Estee Lauder adds to life's 'pleasures'

Estee Lauder adds to life's 'pleasures'

Due to technical problems, there were a number of misprints in
the article Estee Lauder adds spice to life's little 'pleasures'
which appeared in the Sunday edition of July 21, 1996. We have
therefore decided to rerun the story on this page. We apologize
for any inconvenience caused. -- Editor

By Parvathi Nayar Narayan

JAKARTA (JP): From the creators of White Linen and Beautiful
comes Estee Lauder's pleasures, the new offering that vies for
one's olfactory attention in the fragrance market. It is
certainly easy on the nose being an exceptionally light perfume,
which assures a broad based appeal over a large age group. In
fact, at Lauder, they hope to see it become the first fragrance
that a girl buys. Appropriate, then, that Elizabeth Hurley's is
the face launching the perfume, for she has made no secret of her
dependency on makeup since a very young age.

"My sister and I were given an electric blue eyeshadow to
share when we were about nine years old. I've never looked back,"
says Hurley. "People often complement me on how 'natural and
fresh' I look. Little do they know that I've craftily applied all
the right products to make me look so 'natural'," adds Hurley.

Light, airy and flowery Estee Lauder pleasures would seem to
strike the right note for a young girl just beginning to
experiment with femininity and allure.

Femininity -- now that's very important to the decision makers
at Estee Lauder Companies, despite the current fragrance climate
that is supportive of unisex perfumes. Estee Lauder products are
aimed at highlighting and enhancing a woman's femininity, unisex
is not their way. Thus Estee Lauder Companies keep as very
distinct their products for men and new or experimental ventures,
such as a recently acquired majority share in Mac the exclusive
new line of professional make-up (named after the make-up artist
who is its creator).

Estee Lauder pleasures was launched in Indonesia in June 1996
and is available from Estee Lauder counters. In terms of pricing,
the eau de parfum (30 ml, 50 ml, 100 ml) is from Rp 93,000 to Rp
200,000. It was launched along with a matching body lotion (250
ml, Rp 96,000).

It seems one can't escape from "high-tech" these days, even in
the sensual world of perfumes. In the creation of the pleasures
fragrance, the extraction of the subtle essence of Baie Rose, one
of its main ingredients, promised to be a tricky problem. Estee
Lauder, however, came up with a revolutionary method of perfume
extraction. Called "soft extraction" using Co2, it results in a
purer, non-toxic extract.

Actually, Baie Rose is the first new, natural ingredient in
perfume manufacturing in 25 years. It is a kind of berry from the
island of Reunion. Other ingredients that go to make up the sheer
floral feel of Estee Lauder pleasures include white lilies,
violet leaves, black lilacs, karo karounde blossoms and Indian
sandalwood. The air of lightness is carried to the almost
minimalist design of the bottle, plain, elegantly shaped glass
with an unadorned platinum colored cap.

The size and scope of the media blitz introducing the new
perfume to the world has been quite staggering. For example, over
22 million scent strips were sent around the world, "...enough to
reach all the way to the moon," adds Nim Ming Decloitre-Nguy,
Estee Lauder's brand manager. At the recent 24th Annual Fragrance
Foundation's International Awards, the perfume equivalent of the
Oscars, Estee Lauder pleasures walked away with two prestigious
awards.

"It took us three years to perfect it, but everywhere it has
launched, it's been a winner," says Leonard A. Lauder, chairman
and CEO of the Estee Lauder Companies, Inc.

Elizabeth Hurley is not just the model for their new perfume
but the new face and spokeswoman for Estee Lauder Companies. No
doubt she constantly seems to make the headlines whether as Hugh
Grant's girlfriend or wearer of that dress held together with
safety pins. However, she was chosen because it was felt that she
epitomized the new 90s look, warm and friendly.

Estee Lauder pleasures has received a warm reception from
women all over the world, but aims to do more. "A really
successful perfume captures 1 percent of the perfume market but
our target is to do even better and eventually capture 1.5
percent," says Decloitre-Nguy.