A. It is true that many brands release fragrances with similar themes. If you work in a perfume shop carrying several brands rather than just one, it is understandable that you might be unsure how to distinguish them.
But are they really exactly the same? If the brand, creative director, perfumer, era of creation, and bottle design differ, there is a strong possibility that “what they wanted to portray” differs too.
For example, L’Eau d’Issey (Issey Miyake, 1992, Jacques Cavallier) and Aqua Universalis (Maison Francis Kurkdjian, 2009, Francis Kurkdjian) are completely different, even though both take “water” as their theme.
To focus on the differences within that theme of “water,” the former was commissioned by Issey Miyake, who was not particularly fond of perfume and believed that the scent of “water,” indispensable to perfume, was the finest fragrance of all. The latter, on the other hand, is a modern eau de cologne created by Kurkdjian, who had gone so far as to establish a brand of their own, under the name “universal water” and with the theme of “the sense of cleanliness between bare skin and a freshly washed shirt.”
In other words, even when the themes seem similar at first glance, the substance is often different. I think that always asking “Why was this perfume created?” and investigating that question will help you find a way forward.
