Friday, September 22nd
2023 Perfume Subscription Reviews
Scent Trunk
- Unique fragrances from independent perfumers
- Scents inspired by annual themes, seasonal focus ingredients, and geographic provenance
- Unisex approach to fragrance
- Founded in 2015
Lots of people wear Bvlgari or Dior, but if you want a scent that no one has smelled before, you should definitely give Scent Trunk your attention. This subscription takes the art of perfumery seriously, working with independent fragrance designers to develop new scents around an annual theme "inspired by the contemporary zeitgeist in art and culture, fashion and beauty, food and travel" . You'll also see a very unisex approach to scent here, with no "men's" or "women's" categories narrowing things down.
Get a fragrance theme...
At the time of this evaluation, Scent Trunk was offering three perfume subscriptions, all priced at $18/month for a 5mL spritzer (roughly 100 sprays). That included their Original Edition, Botanical Machinist, and Supernatural Future collections. For the latter two selections, your monthly deliveries will follow the theme, and fragrances are preselected. For example, the Supernatural Future's delivery in July would be Marigold, while Botanical Machinist's July selection would be Everlasting.
...or choose your own
With the Original subscription, you'll manually select which fragrances you'd like to receive. We didn't see a way to set those in advance, so you'll need to sign into your account each month to let Scent Trunk know what to send you.
Have some fun reading the descriptions
No matter which plan you choose, you can go to the a la carte shop on Scent Trunk to find out more about the unique scents you're receiving. For example, that Everlasting perfume we mentioned? It has notes of Immortelle, Bergamot, Coriander, Honey, Musk, Cedarwood, Oakmoss Abs, and Labdanum, described as "a beautiful Mediterranean scene but something more sinister is lurking" . Wow!
No refunds on this adventure
If you sign up for a Scent Trunk perfume subscription, you should be prepared to not enjoy everything you receive - and to not get a refund. This membership is a fragrance adventure, not a guaranteed "you'll love it" kind of experience. But, since there's no long-term commitment or annual prepaid subscriptions with Scent Trunk, you can always cancel if it doesn't turn out as you expected.
Cost per month
- $18 (5 mL)
Big social media presence
There's not a ton of feedback from Scent Trunk customers - possibly because this is a very different approach to perfume subscriptions. But, you'll find plenty of tags from Instagram users (some of which are promotional, we're sure) and we didn't see anything that would make us think that Scent Trunk isn't exactly what it promises. The one drawback is that customer service is only available via online form or support email, so if you have an issue with a delivery it might take some time to get a response.
Worth exploring for niche fragrance-lovers
Bottom line? We'd definitely give Scent Trunk a try as a perfume subscription that colors outside of the lines. It's a bit of a gamble with no returns or exchanges - and no familiar brands to rely on - but it's an affordable, perfect match for adventurous souls who don't want to smell like every other person they pass on the street.
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We all know what it's like to notice that someone smells amazing and say, "What are you wearing? I love your perfume!" But, after we shell out the cash to get ourselves a bottle of it, we're disappointed by how it interacts with our own body chemistry - and now we have a pretty decoration on our vanity full of a fragrance we'll never wear again.
The same goes when we experiment with a new-to-us scent. Maybe we have a brand that we love and want to see if we like the next variation on that theme, as the top perfumers release their newest fragrances. Or we go adventurous and buy a scent based on the description alone. Spin the wheel, so to speak, and hope you get lucky? That's where perfume subscriptions come in and save the day.
Perfume Subscription FAQ
Continued from above...
When you sign up for a membership, you'll typically spend less than $20 to try up to three new perfumes (or colognes) every month. While most services don't have a refund or exchange policy, it makes it so much more affordable to get out of your comfort zone and give a new scent a try. And, as long as you stick with a reputable perfume subscription, you don't have to worry about getting anything that isn't 100% authentic.
Over the past few years, perfume memberships have become quite popular. Which one is right for you? That depends. Here are some factors to keep in mind as you browse all of the fun options out there:
- Designer vs. niche brands. Some perfume subscriptions focus just on the designer brands you already know and love: Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel, and so on. Others work with independent perfumers around the globe to give you that one-of-a-kind fragrance experience with scents that no one else is wearing. And some give you access to both.
- Perfume, cologne, or mix-and-match. Are you looking for a subscription that is just perfume or that also offers cologne? Would you like to be able to choose between the two at any time you please? How about getting one of each in every monthly delivery? If you have a strong preference for that kind of flexibility, look for the memberships that offer it.
- Who chooses what you get. Usually, the designer brand perfume memberships let you select each ragrance - often giving you a calendar you can use to plan several months in advance, and only sending you a "surprise" if you don't enter a specific preference. On the other hand, most niche perfume subscriptions are all about the experience: monthly scents may be developed around a theme like "Saturday in the Park" or "Winter Chill" and unboxing your mystery fragrances is part of the fun.
- Exchanges or returns. Unfortunately, most perfume subscriptions don't let you return any fragrances that aren't quite to your liking (although there is one very popular retailer that lets you make up to five exchanges per year). You should probably get comfortable with the idea that you might not love everything you get as you try new perfumes.
To help you sample all of the most classic and newly-released fragrances, TopConsumerReviews.com has evaluated and ranked today's most popular perfume subscriptions. We're sure that you'll find a membership you love that will have you smelling like a million bucks - without having to go broke to get it!
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