‘Fragrances Are the New Sneakers’: How Perfume Became a Teen Status Symbol

In a six-minute TikTok video uploaded in May, 18-year-old Jadyn Laine serves up a rapid-fire review of her complete Sol de Janeiro fragrance collection. 

There’s Cheirosa 40 Bom Dia Bright — a “warm-smelling, very comfortable” scent with a floral kick — Cheirosa 71, which, “I really enjoy, mainly mixed with other scents,” Laine continued. There’s also Cheirosa 48 — reminiscent of a Victoria’s Secret perfume the creator used to buy when she was younger — plus Cheirosas 59, 62, 76, 68, 87 and, lastly, the Sol Cheirosa 62 Eau de Parfum. 

“Instead of vanilla, the perfume has jasmine petal as one of its key notes — you can still smell a little bit of that vanilla — but if you like 62, this is basically that,” concluded Laine, whose Sol de Janeiro review is one of many to hit the platform of late as users size up their respective assortments of the brand’s multicolored, white-capped mists in droves. 

It’s not just Sol de Janeiro, though. Just as often, young people are showcasing their similarly comprehensive Kayali collections. Or Phlur, Creed, Parfums de Marly, Jean Paul Gaultier. Other times, these videos — popular among male and female micro and mega creators alike — aren’t brand-focused, but curated by respective niche vibes. 

You might see a creator showcase their “It” girl perfumes; “mysterious girl” perfumes; summer perfumes; melancholic perfumes; “beast mode” perfumes — which are those sure to announce themselves to anyone within a 10-foot radius — and so on. 

Rare is it that a creator takes to the app to showcase their entire collection in one swoop because everyone — yes, even (especially?) the 18-year-olds — has too many. And teen fragrance consumers are only getting started. 

 
“They feel about fragrance the way people feel about sneakers,” said Frédéric Appaire, vice president of Jean Paul Gaultier Parfums. “They’re looking for specific ones — not common ones — they’re paying a lot for them, and they’re willing to wait for them. And these perfumes are showcased like trophies on shelves in their bedrooms — the way you would display a super high-end sneaker that you’re proud to have found. For young people, it’s a way to express their identity, their style, and their sense of belonging to a community.” 

Appaire would know: Jean Paul Gaultier has seen a recent influx of young shoppers, particularly to its Les Males cologne franchise, that have “pushed the brand to incredible heights,” the executive said. 

Today’s teens aren’t just experimental: they’re informed. 

“They understand the olfactory pyramid, the ingredients — by the time they reach the point of sale, they’ve already compared and discussed different propositions within the Jean Paul Gaultier universe,” Appaire said. “This is a generation that understands quickly when there is a true creative proposition; when there is something genuine.” 

Indeed, the influence of teen shoppers on the beauty industry has increased exponentially, as the coined “Sephora kids” have become less of a trend and more of a force to be reckoned with. According to Boston Consulting Group, teenagers are responsible for roughly 10 percent of the total beauty spend in the U.S., with skin care and fragrance tied as their top categories by spend, followed by makeup. Teen beauty spend is growing 23 percent year-over-year — far outpacing the total market’s 9 percent growth — and the cohort’s mounting interest in fragrance is a key driver of this momentum. 

BCG reports that by the age of 13, 75 percent of teenagers are using fragrance products — including prestige offerings, which teen boys over-index on, with 60 percent opting for high-end fragrances, while 25 percent of teen girls opt for high-end fragrances.

“Last year, fragrance grew at double the rate of our total beauty category at the global level,” said Agnès Brissiaud, vice president of global merchandising, fragrance, at Sephora, adding that young, TikTok-informed customers who are shopping across brands and formats contributed to that growth. 

“This generation is very much into personalization — they love to experiment and play,” said Brissiaud, pointing to the trend of fragrance-layering, which young fragrance shoppers have championed across not just eaux de parfum and fragrance mists, but even hygiene products, such Touchland hand sanitizers. 

Known for its $10-and-up hand sanitizer sprays which come in trendy, gourmand scents like Berry Bliss and Vanilla Blossom, Touchland’s business boomed during the pandemic. The brand quickly carved its place on the shelves of specialty beauty retailers such as Sephora and Ulta Beauty, and this spring was acquired by Church & Dwight for $880 million shortly after it forayed into hair and body mists in its signature scents.

“Teens are shopping all over the category,” said Linda Suliafu, vice president of fragrance at Ulta. “They might use a body cream that’s at a masstige price point and layer it with a Dior eau de parfum — they love travel sizes, they love kits; they want individualism.”

“They don’t want to limit themselves,” added Nicolette Bosco, vice president of beauty at Macy’s, adding that it’s not uncommon to see teens looking to collect popular fragrances — Valentino’s Born in Roma perfumes, or Carolina Herrerra’s Good Girl flankers, for instance — in all of their varieties, often via kits and minis which are more accessible from a price perspective. “They want the ability to say, ‘I have them all, and today, I’m this — and tomorrow, I’m that.’” 

This dynamic is manifesting, too, at Bath & Body Works, which was a teen fragrance linchpin in the 2010s thanks to popular scent franchises like Sweet Pea and Japanese Cherry Blossom, and has yet again won over the cohort today.

According to a 2025 BCG survey of 1,200 teens aged 13 to 18, Bath & Body Works is the number-one fragrance brand among teen girls, capturing 49 percent of share among the demographic, followed by Victoria’s Secret at 22 percent. Though designer brands Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein and Dior comprise the top three, respectively, among teen boys, Bath & Body Works comes in at number four. 

“More than any generation we’ve seen, Gen Z is all about curating their own fragrance vibe,” said Maurice Cooper, chief customer officer at Bath & Body Works. This generational shift is one that the company — with its signature, cross-category plays — has been well-primed to lean into. “Our PocketBac hand sanitizers have been a huge hit with tweens; teens skew toward our fine fragrance mists because they offer a low-risk trial where they can buy lots of different fragrances — but once they lock in, you absolutely see them graduating to our perfume and cologne offers, which are outpacing growth of our other forms within body care.” 

Part of the retailer’s success in building hype across generations, but particularly among young people, has been thanks to an increased focus on collaborations over the last year and a half. Among those have been recent “Emily in Paris” and Disney princess-themed collaborations, as well as a more nascent strategy of TikTok trend-inspired offerings. In April, Bath and Body Works launched a magnesium-infused body care line inspired by the viral “sleepy girl mocktail,” and last month it introduced an Off the Vine body and home care collection, playing on the “tomato girl summer” trend, which has seemingly reemerged each summer following its genesis in 2023. 

So influenced by pop culture and social media are teenagers that, even though most were not around for the hotel heiress’s early-2000s heyday, Paris Hilton’s eponymous fragrance line has come to rank as teen girls’ ninth-favorite fragrance brand today, per BCG. 

In fact, 20 years into the “The Simple Life” star’s fragrance partnership with manufacturer Parlux, Hilton released her 30th fragrance to date in April and the brand has become a boon all over again. 

“This young generation — it’s all new for them,” said Lori Singer, president of Parlux. “Iconic, which is Paris’ latest fragrance, taps into the nostalgia of the 2000s, but reinterprets it for today; there are people who are just watching ‘Simple Life’ for the first time, who are just seeing her influence for the first time. And that’s where the storytelling, especially with this audience, is especially important: it needs to feel honest and show up where they are and where they naturally engage, especially on TikTok.” 

Tween and teen customers comprise an estimated 35 percent to 40 percent of Paris Hilton Fragrances’ sales, per the company, and roughly 30 to 35 percent of sales for Parlux overall, which also makes Billie Eilish’s Eilish Fragrances and Drake’s Better World Fragrance House. In 2024, Parlux netted roughly $305 million in net sales. 

“Teen shoppers lead with emotion and intuition; they’re drawn to fragrances that make them feel good, but they also want to peel back the layers of the onion — they want to know everything about the fragrances,” said Singer, adding that a key to success in the celebrity fragrance game, which has seen a 2020s revival, has been allowing celebrities more narrative control. 

“Allowing the talent to set the narrative from Day One — they make the announcement, they tell the story themselves; we launch the products direct-to-consumer first — that level of access and immediacy is essential in today’s market, especially with young, discerning consumers,” she said. 

Equally significant: Gen Z’s exploratory tendencies are rubbing off on other generations — including those who have traditionally identified with the concept of a one-and-done “signature scent.” 

“One of the biggest trends we’re seeing is that trends, scent profiles, are beginning to go across; it’s not so much, ‘Oh, that’s too young,’ or ‘that’s too old for me’ — we’re seeing that everyone wants the newest, everyone wants the latest and greatest,” Bosco said. 

And as much as fragrance has become a means toward individuality and self-expression — it has simultaneously fostered community, particularly among young, digitally native shoppers. 

“I always say fragrance is the most inclusive part of beauty,” Suliafu said. “You can wear what kings and queens and celebrities all over the world wear; you can wear what your best friend wears — it’s open to everyone.”

Teen girls’ most-purchased fragrance brands from spring 2024 through spring 2025, per BCG.

Teen girls’ most-purchased fragrance brands from spring 2024 through spring 2025, per BCG.