Monday, June 20, 2022

Spoiled by Theodore c1987

Spoiled by Theodore by Theodore of Beverly Hills: launched in December 1987. 




The fragrance was developed by Roure Bertrand Dupont of Paris. 

"You know what you want - and you know how to get it. Whether it's a job, a man or a fragrance. Now there's an intoxicating new scent that perfectly expresses the self confidence and individual style of the woman who takes care of herself.  It's Spoiled by Theodore. Sexy, yet fresh. Floral, yet spicy. Spoiled - don't wait for him to buy it for you."

Taking its cue from the massive success of the Giorgio Beverly Hills fragrance by Fred and Gale Hayman, Theodore of Beverly Hills decided to cash in on its own boutique branded fragrance.

The perfume was created by Herbert Fink, the owner of the Theodore chain of shops and his partner Lee Bronson. With the surge in status conscious women who were looking for the prestige in everything from cars, clothes, purses, and jewelry, perfumes were a natural fit. Mr. Fink looked to his customers to find the perfect name for his fragrance. 

"We sat around describing the typical Beverly Hills girl,'' he told the New York Times. Fink told Women's Wear Daily that "Lee came up with the name. And we're not trying to be smug. It's an endearing thing. When you start dating somebody, you spoil them. Then you marry them, and soon you start spoiling someone else."

"It may or may not be a positive image here in Southern California, but in the rest of America, Beverly Hills is our door opener," says Herb Fink. "But once the door is open, what matters is the scent. Today people want something pretty, not overpowering." As he points out, even in the lifestyle category, subtlety is the new necessity. "No one is going to the office in something overwhelmingly sensual," Fink says.

There is a definite scent difference between the Giorgio Beverly Hills and the Spoiled. Giorgio is a bold, fruity floral perfect for evenings and special occasions, while Spoiled is a light green floral chypre, appropriate for more casual moments.

Spoiled was given a launch party at the trendy restaurant Spago's.

Fink and Bronson said they spent just less than $500,00 to get Spoiled into department stores, even before the first sale. Less than a year after it was introduced at the Rodeo Drive store, Spoiled was available in major department stores including Bloomingdale's in New York and Chicago. At the time of its release, Bloomingdale's perfume buyer had called its performance "extraordinary" and the store executives told Fink that the scent "zoomed right into the top 10 best sellers." Fink explained, "It wasn't the biggest launch they'd ever seen, but it was way up there. We had to rush an order to them overnight because the original supply almost sold out the first day."

The half ounce bottle of pure parfum retailed for $110, the 3.4 oz bottle of the Eau de Parfum for $55, the 1.7 oz for $35, and the 6.8 oz body cream retailed for $45 at the time of it's introduction.

Fragrance Composition:


  It is classified as a light floral fragrance for women.
  • Top notes: mandarin, tagetes, aldehydes, citrus, neroli, green note, herbs, bergamot
  • Middle notes: orris, jasmine, orange blossom, rose, ylang ylang, lily of the valley, violet leaves
  • Base notes: spices, vanilla, amber, vetiver, sandalwood, musk, oakmoss, galbanum
I am using a vintage sample to give you an idea of what it smells like. It is classified as a light floral fragrance for women, but it smells more like a green floral chypre to me. It begins with some soapy aldehydes, a spike of fresh citrus and a sharp green herbal note, followed by a rich floral heart tempered by crisp violet leaves, resting on a powdery chypre base punctuated with traces of woods and spices layered over oakmoss and galbanum.  


Bottle:

The Mayan pyramid inspired bottle was designed by Pierre Dinand in 1989 and manufactured by Pochet et du Courval with plastic components supplied by NIOB.

Spoiled was available in the following:

  • 0.5 oz Parfum
  • 1.7 oz Eau de Parfum
  • 3.4 oz Eau de Parfum
  • 4 oz Body Cream
  • 6.8 oz Body Cream



Fate of the Fragrance:

With the success of Spoiled, Theodore released its masculine counterpart, Spoiled Man, in 1989. This sexy, spicy and fresh fragrance was available in both a Cologne Spray Concentrate (3.4 oz retailed for $42) and an After Shave Balm (1.7 oz retailed for $28).

This is a very hard to find discontinued fragrance.

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