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Estée Lauder Winds Down Designer Fragrance Licensing Division

The beauty group’s licensing contracts with Donna Karan, Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger and Ermenegildo Zegna will come to a close in June 2023.
Estée Lauder storefront. Shutterstock.
Estée Lauder storefront. Shutterstock.

The beauty group’s Aramis and Designer Fragrances (ADF) division has licensing contracts with Donna Karan, Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger and Ermenegildo Zegna, all of which will come to a close in June 2023.

Capri-owned Michael Kors has already announced that has inked a 15-year deal with Italian fragrance maker EuroItalia, which already counts stablemate Versace among its roster of brand partners. Meanwhile, Donna Karan and DKNY fragrances will be licensed to Parisian fragrance giant Inter Parfums.

In a statement, Estée Lauder Companies said the move “will enable us to fully dedicate our attention and resources to our powerful and winning luxury and prestige fragrance portfolio, including Tom Ford Beauty, Jo Malone London, Le Labo, AERIN, EDPFM, KILIAN Paris, Estée Lauder and Clinique.”

This year, Estée Lauder Companies also announced its intention to shutter two brands, Becca Cosmetics and makeup, skin and body care line Rodin Olio Lusso.

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The move comes at a time when the fragrance sector is seeing a boom moment, even as other beauty sectors still recover from pandemic losses. In the first quarter of 2021, fragrance sales reached $954 million, according to data from the NPD Group, an 82 percent increase from the first quarter of 2020, and a 35 percent increase from pre-pandemic 2019.

Learn more:

The Post-Pandemic Opportunity in Fragrance

After a year of booming sales, the fragrance industry is turning its attention to the post-pandemic era, where shifts in product discovery, marketing and more will dictate the sector’s future.

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