Online Fragrance Startups Smell Money

Fragrances are a $4 billion annual market, with men accounting for a quarter of it, according to consulting firm A.T. Kearney. But Brian Jeong thinks the way guys go about buying scents—having a sales associate assault their olfactory senses—stinks. His fix? Delivering proprietary colognes to men who won’t have to wander any farther than their phone to order the stuff, at prices that beat the beauty counters. Jeong’s company, Hawthorne for Men, is the latest in a category of digital-native fragrance boutiques banking on the proposition that you’ll pay money for what you can’t smell first.

Step No. 1 is getting guys to pay any money at all, because 43 percent receive their fragrances as gifts, according to market researcher NPD Group. Jeong says he can ensure satisfaction by asking men a few questions. Users enter biometric info (Does your body run hot or cold? Are you a vegetarian or an omnivore?) and choose behavioral and lifestyle leanings (Introvert or extrovert? Hipster or preppy?). Jeong says the data points are relevant because they’re based on studies, such as the way body temperature affects how long a scent lasts. He and his co-founder, Phillip Wong, both 27, also surveyed friends and co-workers on their reactions to Hawthorne’s 10 original fragrances.