Late last month, Glossier released its debut fragrance titled Glossier You. Glossier is a beauty company dedicated to real women and their experiences. Beauty is about more than just makeup in the eyes of this company. So, it’s no surprise the fragrance is designed to enhance the smell of your own skin. The brand even tells potential customers on their website, “Please be advised that the formula comes incomplete; You are the first ingredient.”
Glossier announced a new Glossier You “offline experience” last Friday via Instagram. Founder and CEO, Emily Weiss, explains, “I was really inspired by theater, performance art, and magic shows when concepting the space.” Only a few vague details were relayed about the pop-up event. The announcement declared the experience an “olfactory journey” visitors would be guided through. The goal is to engage all five senses for a unique shopping experience. Even avid Glossier fans were confused as to what the event would entail.
On Saturday evening I stepped up to the entirely red store-front, still not knowing what to expect. The event is set up like a private affair. A Glossier employee clad in head-to-toe red took my name at the entrance, to check me off the list. Then a pink ribbon, which I was instructed I would need for later, was tied around my wrist.
I was invited into the testing room, but only alone. The employee shut the accordion door behind me. The room looked like any regular dressing room, covered in mirrors. A small red button lifted a window in the center of the wall. A gloved hand reached through and motioned for me to lean in, where I was sprayed with the fragrance. I could see the sprayer on the other side of the slightly opaque window. I suddenly became self-conscious that Glossier headquarters, or worse Emily Weiss, whom I really admire, watched me take selfies in the mirrored room.
The inside of the space feels as if you’ve stepped inside Glossier You itself. The plush pink carpets and red curtains along the walls mimic the bottle. Every detail from what the employees wore to how they talked was thought out as a part of the spectacle. The Glossier guides whispered compliments, called me lovely and darling, told me the only thing missing from Glossier You is me.
I honestly could not wait to leave, not because I wasn’t enjoying the experience. I just could not stop myself from laughing right at the actors. I thought everything was hilarious. I could not take anyone seriously. I did not purchase the fragrance there. The way the fragrance is presented after stepping out of the testing room felt like the gift shop at the end of a museum tour. My senses were too overwhelmed, yet amazed. However, knowing what to expect, I would go back to interact with the actors more and buy Glossier You (for now it’s on my Christmas list).
For the rest of the day, I could not stop leaning down to smell the part of my scarf that had been sprayed. The scent is not overpowering, it is subtle and fresh. The in-store experience is just like the smell—personal and all about YOU.
The team definitely accomplished their goal of creating a space that is “totally weird and unexpectedly luxurious…” Head over to 123 Lafayette Street before December 31st for a truly once in a lifetime experience.
All images are courtesy of @Glossier on Instagram.