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Bloomberg

The influencer known as OverSpray Jay has become one of the top sellers of men’s fragrances on TikTok in part by offering his followers a very specific piece of advice: whatever scent they’re wearing, they should spritz themselves 100 times.

His catchphrase: “If you ain’t shining, are you even applying?”
It’s a far cry from how fragrance was marketed in the past to men – and the women who often bought it for them – with campaigns focusing on outdoor pursuits, rippling torsos and smelling “like a man, man”.
Now, the approach is more nuanced. Instead of having one instantly recognisable cologne, men are being encouraged to layer their fragrances, wearing multiple perfumes or colognes at once to create a signature scent. The trend is a boon to cosmetics companies as consumers buy several products instead of just one, often adding lotions, high-end deodorant and body washes to the mix.
Meanwhile, the number of influencers hawking fragrances to men on TikTok has increased around 12-fold from April 2024 through April this year, according to data from Charm.io analysed for Bloomberg News. That far outpaces the eight-fold increase in those marketing to women, the data shows.
Corporations and influencers alike are capitalising on a post-pandemic boom in fragrance in the US, particularly among men. The amount spent on men’s fragrances on TikTok’s shopping platform each month has outpaced that spent on women’s scents for the past two years or so, according to Charm.io, and peaked at US$18 million in sales last November.

The surge in demand is one of the reasons that cosmetics giant Estée Lauder was keen to acquire Spain’s Puig Brands, according to analysts. Puig owns brands including Penhaligon’s, Byredo, Rabanne and Jean Paul Gaultier, and had the second-largest share of the men’s premium fragrance market last year, at 16 per cent.
Estée Lauder and Puig ended discussions about a potential deal in late May, after months of negotiations.
Evan Hall, a 23-year-old influencer based in Arkansas, who posts as @fragranceknowledge, said most of his 1.1 million TikTok followers are 18- to 24-year-old men. Many are seeking creativity and innovation from products and can be ruthless when they don’t see it, he said.
The growth of premium fragrances

Because of their high prices, premium fragrances make up a much larger share of sales than mass-market items – about 86 per cent of the total US$16 billion in US fragrance sales last year, according to data from Euromonitor analysed by Bloomberg Intelligence. At Sephora, a 100ml bottle of Angels’ Share eau de parfum by Kilian costs US$415, while the same size of Dior Sauvage Elixir is US$265.
Fragrance has been the fastest-growing category across the US beauty industry for the past two years, according to Circana.

A tie-up between Estée Lauder and Puig would have helped the US company make up ground against L’Oréal, which dominates the No 1 spot for global fragrance sales with a 12 per cent share of the market in 2025, the Euromonitor data shows.
Influencer Paul Fino, 26, said that when he started posting about fragrances a few years ago, “nobody really cared”. In the past 12 months, he’s promoted perfumes by Balmain, Philosophy and Armani, and amassed a collection of 5,000 fragrances while being paid to fly around the US promoting brands.
He’s noticed a recent spike in interest among his 13- to 18-year-old followers.
“They’re saving up their money to purchase this US$400 bottle of cologne from Creed,” Fino said.
Their expensive enthusiasm reminds Fino of a similar demographic about a decade ago who obsessively followed drops from sneaker and streetwear brands such as Supreme. The next generation of teenage boys “are now into these niche fragrances”, Fino said.

OverSpray Jay, who asked not to be identified by his real name due to privacy concerns, has leaned into the same phenomenon. He said about three quarters of his followers are between 18 and 25 years old – he is 33 – and they come to him to learn.
“I call them nephews, they call me unc’,” he said, using a slang term for uncle popular on social media. Though he intended the 100-spray gimmick to be tongue-in-cheek, he said some followers take him at his word.
While the influencers’ youthful audience means more money flooding into the industry, young men – and Gen Z shoppers in general – aren’t as loyal to specific fragrances as older cohorts, and are happy to try out different brands and price points.
Influencer Hall has noticed a huge increase in the number of so-called dupes, where mass-market or budget brands produce a much cheaper, very similar version of a high-end fragrance. Often stocked at outlets like Burlington Stores or TJ Maxx, they can cost a fraction of what the original scent would sell for, making them particularly attractive to younger shoppers.
Chris Cano, a 19-year-old student in New York, once splurged US$110 on a Jean Paul Gaultier fragrance on sale. But on a recent shopping trip, he walked out empty-handed from an Ulta Beauty shop in Manhattan.
“I can go to dupe shops and get the exact same thing, cheaper,” said Cano, who now prefers to shop online or at outlets, often looking for fragrances by Rayhaan and other manufacturers in the Middle East.

The top 10 most popular sites to buy scents from via TikTok Shop mostly sell dupes, together generating around US$82 million in sales in the 12 months through March, data from Charm.io shows. While that’s a fraction of what cosmetics giants sell, the popularity of replicas could take a chunk out of brand-name sales.
Shoppers who aspire to own premium and luxury fragrances, but have limited budgets, are driving demand for dupes and more affordable fragrance mists, according to Deborah Aitken, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
And unlike their fathers, who are more likely to have one cologne they’ve worn for decades, newer fragrance devotees tend to follow their noses, said Diana Melencio, a general partner at XRC Ventures who invests in the beauty sector. The lack of loyalty “makes it harder to invest in a specific brand”, Melencio said. “We’re all trying to figure out how to approach fragrance.”
With that fickleness, though, comes knowledge. Hall uses phrases like “scent profile” and “classic woodiness” to describe the fragrances he reviews, while Fino calls himself the King of Gourmands – the latter being scents with notes based on edible ingredients like vanilla and cacao.

“They use words that are usually used by the master perfumer or the chemist,” said Jean Madar, chairman and CEO of Inter Parfums, which manufactures and distributes fragrances for brands including Oscar de la Renta, MCM and Donna Karan.
Inter Parfums’ online sales were up more than 20 per cent year on year in the 12 months through April, buoyed by demand from young men buying items online from retailers like Ulta, Sephora and Macy’s, Madar said.
“They have all the vocabulary,” he said. “We have to adapt to this connoisseur.”


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Icons and Influencers

TikTok’s fragrance boom: why Gen Z men are spending US$400 on Creed cologne

TikTok has been experiencing a far faster growth in male fragrance influencers compared with female ones. Photo: May Tse

TikTok fragrance influencer OverSpray Jay advises his male followers to spritz themselves 100 times. Photo: @oversprayjay/Instagram

Fragrance influencer Evan Hall. Photo: @fragranceknowledge/Instagram

Angels’ Share eau de parfum by Kilian. Photo: Handout

Dior Sauvage eau de parfum. Photo: Handout

Paul Fino promoting his fourth collab with Oakcha. Photo: @paulreactss/Instagram

Unisex fragrance Gaultier² by Jean Paul Gaultier. Photo: Handout

Creed’s Millésime Impérial fragrance. Photo: @creedfragrance/Instagram

Cartier’s first perfumer Mathilde Laurent on her olfactory journey

Mathilde Laurent, perfumer and creative director at Cartier. Photo: Handout

Must de Cartier – the maison’s first fragrance – was launched in 1981. Photo: Handout

Cartier La Panthère fragrance. Photo: Handout

Mathilde Laurent is Cartier’s “nose”. Photo: Handout

Cartier L’Heure Brillante fragrance. Photo: Handout

Mathilde Laurent’s office, at Cartier in Paris. Photo: Handout

Mathilde Laurent’s fragrance laboratory in Paris. Photo: Handout

How the seasons affect your perfume, from Chanel and Hermès to Maison Margiela

Fragrance of summer: Miley Cyrus for Gucci Flora. Photo: Handout 

Experience flower power with Viktor&Rolf’s Flowerbomb perfume. Photo: Handout

Tom Ford Neroli Portofino blooms beautifully outdoors. Photo: Handout

Smells like summer spirit: Salt Eau de Parfum. Photo: Handout

Outdoorsy edge from Louis Vuitton’s Pacific Chill. Photo: Handout

Maison Francis Kurkdjian Grand Soir has stamina. Photo: Handout

 Byredo fragrances suit an autumnal atmosphere. Photo: Handout

Zing and zest from Acqua di Parma Blue. Photo: Handout

Terre d’Hermès eau de parfum intense works all year round. Photo: Handout

Chanel Coco Mademoiselle exudes softer florals. Photo: Handout

How Gen Z gave fountain pens a second act, from Montegrappa to Omas

Omas Bologna Galassia Argento. Photo: Handout

Conway Stewart Brunel GWR. Photo: Handout

Montegrappa Arte, Gustav Klimt. Photo: Handout

Some of Montegrappa’s limited edition pens come in a wooden display case. Photo: Handout

Omas Paragon in Grigio Perla Ruthenium Trim. Photo: Handout

Winston Churchill used Conway Stewart pens for many years, including during World War II. Photo: Handout

Montegrappa 007 Special Issue Silver Edition. Photo: Handout

With fragrance sales on the rise, these are the hottest perfumes for autumn

New scents from Tom Ford, Granado and Gucci this autumn. Photos: Handout; Fragrantica

Oud Voyager Eau de Parfum by Tom Ford. Photo: Handout

Dior’s Bois d’Argent Esprit de Parfum. Photo: Handout

Moonlight Cherry Eau de Parfum by Van Cleef & Arpels. Photo: Handout 

Hermès’ Barénia Eau de Parfum Intense. Photo: @hermes/Instagram

Gucci’s new Alchemist’s Garden collection scent is Muschio di Luce. Photo: Fragrantica

Fischersund’s Útilykt is a collaboration with 66°North. Photo: Handout

Goldfield & Banks’ Tales of Amber Extrait de Parfum. Photo: @goldfield_and_banks_australia/Instagram

Granado’s Rosa Sublime Perfume. Photo: Fragrantica

Le Labo’s Osmanthus 19 is the newest addition to its City Exclusive collection. Photo: @lelabofragrances/Instagram

Frama’s new Painted Desert is part of its St. Paul’s Apothecary collection. Photo: @framacph/Instagram

Creed’s recently released Oud Zarian. Photo: Handout

The Cut Eau de Parfum by Penhaligon’s. Photo: Handout

Aesop’s new Above Us, Steorra Eau de Parfum. Photo: Handout

Ellis Brooklyn’s Vanilla Salt Eau de Parfum. Photo: Handout

Biology Functional Fragrances’ Parfum 1: Joy. Photo: Handout

Liberty LBTY’s Tana Meadow Eau de Parfum. Photo: Handout

Phlur’s Cherry Stem Eau de Parfum. Photo: @trendmood1/Instagram

Forbidden Rose by Lancôme. Photo: @lancomeofficial/Instagram

To Summer co-founder Shen Li on the Chinese fragrance brand’s Hong Kong expansion

To Summer co-founder Shen Li talks to us about expansion and the brand’s first overseas store in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay. Photo: Handout

The new To Summer store in Hong Kong has a deliberate 1960s vibe. Photo: Handout

A model holds the To Summer Cedarwood fragrance. Photo: Handout

The Her fragrance, by To Summer. Photo: Handout

The To Summer store in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay. Photo: Handout

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From OverSpray Jay’s 100-spritz rule to the rise of dupes, a new generation of obsessive male shoppers is reshaping a multibillion-dollar industry


From OverSpray Jay’s 100-spritz rule to the rise of dupes, a new generation of obsessive male shoppers is reshaping a multibillion-dollar industry.


TikTok’s fragrance boom: why Gen Z men are spending US$400 on Creed cologne

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}From OverSpray Jay’s 100-spritz rule to the rise of dupes, a new generation of obsessive male shoppers is reshaping a multibillion-dollar industry

From OverSpray Jay’s 100-spritz rule to the rise of dupes, a new generation of obsessive male shoppers is reshaping a multibillion-dollar industry