@Luecke3262 and I were discussing how to build a frag collection without breaking the bank - here are a few tips that I follow - what are yours?
(1) Consider buying testers - these have the same “juice” as a regular fragrance bottle, but may or may not come with a cap and usually come in a tester/plain white box. For me - who cares - I just want The stuff in the bottle and testers are usually about 1/2 the price. So if you go to a gray market or eBay which already are discounting the frag - and you find a tester - you’ll save big bucks.
(2) Even with the gray market sites/discount sites - you can find coupon/promo codes that online that are even cheaper than their site. For instance - Frangrancenet.com on their site - usually promotes a 25% discount- but in reality - they always have a 37% coupon code out there. So if you find something on that site you liKe, close out your browser, clear your cache and do a google search for the frag, and click on shopping - you’ll find that same fragrance at a cheaper price (with the 37% discount) from the same site. Sometimes the YT reviewers will post the code as well.
(3) Know which sites are owned by larger companies. For instance, FrangranceX is a discount site - but they also own perfume.com. If I find something on FragranceX, I’ll search for it on Perfume.com which has better prices - same exact company.
Also, know which eBay retailers are dependable - to name a few: foreverlux, perfume empire, 1-perfumes. Their frags are discounted and you don’t have to worry about getting duped - they sell the real stuff. If you do see something from a lesser known seller - make sure that they aren’t posting the standard picture from an ad - but are using the picture of what they are selling- make sure it is a sealed box (when possible)- and they show the batch code.
(4) There are some sites that have slower shipping - but will have cheaper prices. Fragrancebuy.ca is a Canadian site - they only ship on Mondays - but if you are willing to wait - and why not - buy the fragrance there because they have a lot of frags at really discounted prices.
(5) Consider Dupe sites like Dua and Alexandria Fragrances (owned by the same guy) - I know there are those out there that put there nose up - but I look at it as (1) a way to try before I buy and (2) sometimes the prices of the original are so high if all you do is want to smell nice and the price is only worth it if you are are a collector. These sites also have originals as well.
Consider our shaving artisans - CBL and Ethos do bespoke scents. Stirling and Lisa’s Naturals have dupe scents and Stirling even has EdTs of these dupes. Also - there are shaving artisans like Ginger’s Garden that can make an homage for you as well - will do a dupe for you if she knows the scent.
(6) Look on Fragrantica for similar scents. If you think you want something - and don’t want to go to Sephora or a Department store to test it- fragrantica always lists “this fragrance reminds me of” for each frag - so you can see similar scents - sometimes those similar ones are a lot cheaper with the same performance and similar scent profile.
(7) Buy in small decants - you can go to decantx, luckyscent, eBay) - you can get a 5,10, 30 ml decant of well known, expensive fragrances - which is much cheaper than buying a 100ml bottle.
(8) Consider buying last years “flanker.” These fragrance houses release almost annually a fragrance based on their best sellers. These usually have the same “base” scents and then will slightly modify them - but ultimately the dry downs are very similar. The newest release flanker will be the most expensive - but if you buy the previous years - it will be at a much cheaper price.
(9) Buy “off season.” While I’m a firm believer that you should wear what you want when you want - from a selling perspective - fragrances often fluctuate in price based on the season that most people would wear them. If a frag is a heavy, gourmand like scent - it would most likely be worn by most people in the late fall or winter - that is when the price is going to be most expensive. By buying in the “off season” you can get the same fragrance at a much cheaper price.
(10) Consider the price per volume. If this is going to be your signature scent - i.e. If you are going to wear it almost daily - if you buy the bigger bottle - it will be cheaper in the long run to by the bigger bottle. If it is something that you’ll wear occasionally - by a smaller bottle - while the price per volume is more expensive - the overall price is cheaper.
(11) finally - the Youtube Reviewers usually have a site or two that promotes them - and they will have a 5-10% discount code - not a lot - but
The sites that I frequent are fragrancex, perfume.com, fragrancenet, maxaroma, fragrancebuy,.ca, and donnatella fragrances (though I’m mad at them right now - I bough a bottle of some sweet stuff that was really popular and sold out in a few minutes - and they bumped my purchase lol).
(1) Consider buying testers - these have the same “juice” as a regular fragrance bottle, but may or may not come with a cap and usually come in a tester/plain white box. For me - who cares - I just want The stuff in the bottle and testers are usually about 1/2 the price. So if you go to a gray market or eBay which already are discounting the frag - and you find a tester - you’ll save big bucks.
(2) Even with the gray market sites/discount sites - you can find coupon/promo codes that online that are even cheaper than their site. For instance - Frangrancenet.com on their site - usually promotes a 25% discount- but in reality - they always have a 37% coupon code out there. So if you find something on that site you liKe, close out your browser, clear your cache and do a google search for the frag, and click on shopping - you’ll find that same fragrance at a cheaper price (with the 37% discount) from the same site. Sometimes the YT reviewers will post the code as well.
(3) Know which sites are owned by larger companies. For instance, FrangranceX is a discount site - but they also own perfume.com. If I find something on FragranceX, I’ll search for it on Perfume.com which has better prices - same exact company.
Also, know which eBay retailers are dependable - to name a few: foreverlux, perfume empire, 1-perfumes. Their frags are discounted and you don’t have to worry about getting duped - they sell the real stuff. If you do see something from a lesser known seller - make sure that they aren’t posting the standard picture from an ad - but are using the picture of what they are selling- make sure it is a sealed box (when possible)- and they show the batch code.
(4) There are some sites that have slower shipping - but will have cheaper prices. Fragrancebuy.ca is a Canadian site - they only ship on Mondays - but if you are willing to wait - and why not - buy the fragrance there because they have a lot of frags at really discounted prices.
(5) Consider Dupe sites like Dua and Alexandria Fragrances (owned by the same guy) - I know there are those out there that put there nose up - but I look at it as (1) a way to try before I buy and (2) sometimes the prices of the original are so high if all you do is want to smell nice and the price is only worth it if you are are a collector. These sites also have originals as well.
Consider our shaving artisans - CBL and Ethos do bespoke scents. Stirling and Lisa’s Naturals have dupe scents and Stirling even has EdTs of these dupes. Also - there are shaving artisans like Ginger’s Garden that can make an homage for you as well - will do a dupe for you if she knows the scent.
(6) Look on Fragrantica for similar scents. If you think you want something - and don’t want to go to Sephora or a Department store to test it- fragrantica always lists “this fragrance reminds me of” for each frag - so you can see similar scents - sometimes those similar ones are a lot cheaper with the same performance and similar scent profile.
(7) Buy in small decants - you can go to decantx, luckyscent, eBay) - you can get a 5,10, 30 ml decant of well known, expensive fragrances - which is much cheaper than buying a 100ml bottle.
(8) Consider buying last years “flanker.” These fragrance houses release almost annually a fragrance based on their best sellers. These usually have the same “base” scents and then will slightly modify them - but ultimately the dry downs are very similar. The newest release flanker will be the most expensive - but if you buy the previous years - it will be at a much cheaper price.
(9) Buy “off season.” While I’m a firm believer that you should wear what you want when you want - from a selling perspective - fragrances often fluctuate in price based on the season that most people would wear them. If a frag is a heavy, gourmand like scent - it would most likely be worn by most people in the late fall or winter - that is when the price is going to be most expensive. By buying in the “off season” you can get the same fragrance at a much cheaper price.
(10) Consider the price per volume. If this is going to be your signature scent - i.e. If you are going to wear it almost daily - if you buy the bigger bottle - it will be cheaper in the long run to by the bigger bottle. If it is something that you’ll wear occasionally - by a smaller bottle - while the price per volume is more expensive - the overall price is cheaper.
(11) finally - the Youtube Reviewers usually have a site or two that promotes them - and they will have a 5-10% discount code - not a lot - but
The sites that I frequent are fragrancex, perfume.com, fragrancenet, maxaroma, fragrancebuy,.ca, and donnatella fragrances (though I’m mad at them right now - I bough a bottle of some sweet stuff that was really popular and sold out in a few minutes - and they bumped my purchase lol).
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