Cuir Beluga by Guerlain: The Bet on Powdered White Leather
I was lucky enough to handle an extraordinary project, one I had dreamed of for a long time and which took shape in 2005: the Maison Guerlain, the first point of sale halfway between the prestigious ground-floor boutique (at 68 avenue des Champs-Élysées), created in 1914, and its institute on the first floor, created in 1939.
This temple of beauty and perfume is a place that celebrates Guerlain’s roots and wings, clearly, Guerlain’s history and future through new creations imagined freely.
The “L’Art et la Matière” Collection
It is within the framework of this laboratory of new ideas that the “L’Art et la Matière” line was born, representing about 30% of the sales of this beautiful brand. The first three perfumes created were Angélique Noire, Rose Barbare, and Cuir Beluga, then there were Cruel Gardénia, Bois d’Arménie, Tonka Impériale, Spiritueuse Double Vanille, which I developed. Now, there are others like Néroli Outrenoir, Embruns d’Ylang, most created by Delphine Jelk.
The purpose of this collection is to honor a Guerlain raw material, inscribed in the brand’s DNA. These are not “soliflores,” but perfumes, very faceted, with a real bias.
The Vision of a Different Leather
The leather note is found in Jicky, even more so in Shalimar, Habit Rouge, or Vol de Nuit. The leather note is for me synonymous with a dark, animal note, very linked to the masculine universe: leather jacket, Jaguar interior of course. These are quite animal notes, too raw for me; they are not part of my universe.
So, I started dreaming of a light leather note. More precisely a white suede, feminine, powdery, vanilla-scented. A resolutely feminine perfume that I could wear (I admit, I sometimes cheat on L’Heure Bleue).
The Story of Creation with Olivier Polge
The story of Cuir Beluga begins at an evening organized by a large perfumery company, with the aim of having people smell new creative ideas through olfactory terminals. There were few people that evening who were really interested in the scents; it must be said that there was a superb buffet.
I fell in love with an accord (skeleton of a perfume) created by Olivier Polge. From the very next day or almost, I started working on the note with him.
Composition and Difficulties
The leather note was “sudéral,” a synthetic note. Indeed, before, we could use birch wood but, now, it is impossible. And, little by little, we “dressed” this leather note with:
- In the top: a rising note – aldehydes and tangerine.
- In the heart and base: immortelle, patchouli, heliotrope, and vanilla.
We really struggled; this idea was not easy to work with. Very often, in the corridors, charming colleagues told me: “You should drop it, it’s not great.”
Success and the Name
I held on and Cuir Beluga is a perfume that is now worn by women or men, an intimate, sexy, very cocooning perfume, a very appreciated perfume! It even managed to seduce Guerlain “purists” and that is pleasing, even if I am well aware that the masterpieces created by Guerlain perfumers are “unthronable.”
By the way, the name Beluga is there to evoke luxury, the crème de la crème! Sorry, there is no caviar in the formula.
Maison Guerlain products are now in other boutiques in Paris, but also in New York, Las Vegas, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, Toronto, Montreal, Düsseldorf, London, and other boutiques in prospect: Belgium, Spain, etc.
