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Beauty

I Walked Into A Bar That Bottles Desire

In Paris, I found a scent that lingered longer than a memory—and an experience that felt more like seduction than shopping. It was as if the city itself had wrapped me in a fragrance that wasn’t just worn but lived.

| Kannagi Desai
killian paris cover

There are boutiques that sell perfume, and then there’s the KILIAN store in Paris—a place where you aren’t spritzed, you’re seduced. It’s dimly lit, lined with lacquered bottles, and styled like a bar that serves intoxication by the ounce.

When I walked into the address on Rue Vieille du Temple, I wasn’t just shopping for perfume. I was about to be decoded.

You’re not rushed. You’re seated. Offered a drink. Then quizzed—gently, intimately. What do your evenings look like? What’s your drink of choice? Would you prefer a perfume that acts like a shield or one with arms of seduction?

The staff at KILIAN don’t just sell you a bottle; they bottle you.

Perfume as Power, Not Just Projection

I left with Love, Don’t Be Shy – Special Blend 2023, a marshmallow-oud concoction pulled out from behind the bar like a secret. It didn’t just smell good—it felt like it had chosen me back.

Later, I spoke with Kilian Hennessy himself—the heir to the Hennessy cognac legacy and the provocateur behind the brand. He doesn’t believe in subtlety. “Perfume is both armour and a weapon of seduction,” he said. “Just apply it wherever you’d like to be kissed.”

His personal favourite? Angel’s Share. “You go out, come back, sleep—and the next day, your entire bedsheets still smell like it.”

The Seven Sins of Scent

The KILIAN brand lives at the intersection of duality—sin and innocence, lust and restraint, indulgence and minimalism. So I asked him: What if each of the seven deadly sins had its own KILIAN fragrance?

  • Pride: Angel’s Share — “I’m proud of capturing the Hennessy cellars in a scent.”

  • Greed: Liaisons Dangereuses — “Inspired by dangerous affairs and forbidden desire.”

  • Envy: Woman in Gold — “A painting stolen in war… it absolutely encapsulates envy.”

  • Lust: Straight to Heaven — “I don’t even need to explain that one.”

  • Gluttony: Love, Don’t Be Shy — “Marshmallow and orange blossom. Need I say more?”

The Paris Night Bottled

KILIAN_ MARAIS_5

For Kilian, a perfect Parisian evening involves a new restaurant, a theatre performance, and a nightcap at Maxime’s. It’s not rushed, it’s curated. Just like his perfumes.

But his sharpest insight was about the industry itself: “Customers have been conditioned to believe that quality means longevity or projection. But a super powerful, cheap formula isn’t luxury. It’s just loud.”

How to Choose a Fragrance That Feels Like You

Choosing the right scent, he says, is like finding the perfect pair of jeans. “You try a few. You see which ones give you the best legs, the best butt.” In other words: it’s about confidence, not notes.

Try a few. Wear them. See what compliments you attract. If the right person leans in and says, you smell incredible, then maybe, just maybe, it’s the one.

Try Love, Don’t Be Shy – Special Blend 2023 if you’re into:

  • Gourmand scents with a sensual, grown-up twist
    Marshmallow + oud + orange blossom

  • Feeling like the main character in a forbidden romance

 

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