Trend report
The dupes of autumn
Cinnamon, tobacco, warm milk and smoke: what the cheaper bottles are copying as the nights draw in.
Every autumn the fragrance conversation turns warm. Out of 2,396 originals in our index, 938 are tagged for winter or for cosy evenings — and the notes that come up most in them are musk, vanilla, amber, bergamot, sandalwood and rose. Those are the smells the cheaper bottles are chasing right now.
This year the loudest of them is not an original at all. Fragrance lists online keep putting one bottle near the top: a dupe, built around cinnamon, dates and praline, which costs a fraction of the thing it is sold against. That is the season in one sentence — the copies are the story.
Angels' Share: the cognac-and-cinnamon original
0:00after the first spray
Top
- cognac
Heart
- cinnamon
- Tonka Bean
- oak
Base
- praline
- vanilla
- sandalwood
What the copies are copying
Lattafa Khamrah is sold as the twin of By Kilian Angels' Share. Per 100ml it is $50 against $570 — 91% less.
French Avenue Liquid Brun is sold as the twin of Parfums de Marly Althaïr. It is $124 a bottle.
Lattafa Eclaire is sold as the twin of Giardini di Toscana Bianco Latte. It is $30.15 a bottle.
Armaf Club de Nuit Intense Man is sold as the twin of Creed Aventus. Per 100ml it is $38 against $510 — 93% less.
The copies are the story this season — not because they are perfect, but because they are close enough to wear every day.
Why autumn suits a dupe
Warm, sweet, resinous fragrances are the easiest to love and the most expensive to wear generously: vanilla, amber and tobacco need a heavy hand and a long evening. That is exactly where a bottle that costs a tenth as much changes behaviour. You stop rationing it.
It is also where the twins tend to hold up best. A sweet, dense base is forgiving; a sparkling citrus opening is not. If you are going to try a dupe of anything, try it in October.
Find yours
Every original above has its own page with all of its twins, ranked by price per 100ml — and the winter database sorts the whole season by the biggest saving.
