Renowned for its commitment to natural beauty and wellness, the prestigious L’Occitane Group has sought to expand its repertoire this year to include home goods and fragrances. This comes from the company’s recent acquisition of the Italian luxury home scents brand Dr Vranjes Firenze, which has been established as one of the market’s biggest names for the last four decades. 

Founded in 1976, the L’Occitane Group has become a global powerhouse, operating in 90 countries with 3,000 retail outlets worldwide. Moreover, the conglomerate saw impressive net sales of $3.4 billion at the end of March 2023, making it one of the leading natural beauty manufacturers and retailers on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. This is not surprising considering its portfolio includes such well-known brands as L’Occitane en Provence, L’Occitane au Brésil, Elemis, and Sol de Janeiro. What sets the L’Occitane group apart from competitors is its dedication to creating high-quality products using in-house production, research, and development. This commitment continues with its attainment of Dr Vranjes Firenze, as the Italian brand prides itself on providing customers with a ‘Made in Florence’ experience. 

Created less than a decade after its new owner, Dr Vranjes Firenze has established itself as a symbol of luxury and sophistication in the world of home fragrance. Dr Paolo Vranjes, a chemist and accomplished perfumer, founded the brand in 1983 with a vision to create fragrances that evoke emotion and elevate the atmosphere of any space. Before L’Occitane Group’s acquisition, the fragrance company was owned by European private equity firm Bluegem, which had acquired the brand in 2017. Dr Vranjes Firenze is recognised as a leading player in the luxury home fragrance market, with its products marketed in over 75 countries through a network of 28 mono-brand stores and 650 points of sale. This recent deal valued Dr Vranjes Firenze at around $244 million, highlighting its significant industry presence and appeal.

The Italian brand offers a range of products, including high-end home diffusers, scented candles, and a growing line of personal fragrances. One of the biggest draws for the L’Occitane group was Dr Vranjes Firenze’s commitment to embodying the essence of Italy in its products. Most notably, the brand designed its iconic reed diffuser bottles to honour the company’s birthplace of Florence by having them look like the Brunelleschi Dome of the Florence Cathedral. 

Additionally, many of the fragrances developed by the brand are inspired by the hometown of its master perfumer, Paulo Vranjes, who grew up in Tuscany. For example, the scent Arancio Uva Rossa was developed as a tribute to the Tuscan grape harvest. Using notes of bitter orange, red grapes, cinnamon, and violet, this diffuser warms the senses and immerses the room in the rich smells of the Tuscan vineyards. Moreover, the special edition home fragrance, Balloon, comes in a hand-crafted crystal bottle made in Tuscany. The scent is designed to add an air of sophistication to a room by combining bergamot, cedarwood, and apple to reflect the flavours of Italian liqueurs. 

In addition to taking inspiration from Italy’s cities and provinces, Dr Vranjes Firenze also honours symbols of Italian craftsmanship and artistry in its fragrances. For example, the Bellini diffuser echoes the famous cocktail the fragrance is named after. Invented in Venice, this scent encapsulates the city’s charm by emphasising the flavours of peach and white grape featured in the Bellini drink. Similarly, Dr Vranjes Firenze collaborated with Maserati in 2014 to celebrate the luxury car manufacturer’s centenary. The subsequent bold fragrance it created uses notes of cardamom, black pepper, and sandalwood in the ultimate expression of Italian excellence and captures the feeling of driving a Maserati car. 

With this acquisition, L’Occitane Group expands its product offerings and brings the artistry of Dr. Vranjes Firenze’s fragrances to a broader audience. The Dr Vranjes Firenze’s diffusers not only envelope a room in beautiful scents but capture experiences and journeys throughout Italy into elegant bottles. Each scent reflects the mastery of Paolo Vranjes in creating captivating olfactory compositions that elevate the ambience of living spaces. The collaboration between these two iconic brands promises to expand L’Occitane’s portfolio of products rooted in natural beauty and well-being and create a harmonious blend of luxury and craftsmanship in home fragrances.