There was a lot of noise before the recent official release of the Voce Viva Eau de Parfum by Valentino. The expectations were quite high for the Valentino Voce Viva perfume since Valentino are well-known for their heady fragrances that have numerous true followers. And Valentino did their best to create quite a hype about their newest fragrance product for women. I would like to cite the Valentino Creative Director Pierpaolo Piccioli who claims that ‘I believe today that the true power is to be able to share emotions.’ He also points out that the Voce Viva fragrance should be regarded as an ‘ode to Valentino multifaceted femininity’ and it is ‘Roman at heart’ and I completely agree with him.
Overall the Voce Viva fragrance has a character and I have no doubts that it will be considerably appreciated by a lot of fragrance lovers. So, it has the potential to become a real crowd-pleaser. I should admit that the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance is a fairly appealing aroma which is sufficiently elaborate but it is not fully complex (to my personal taste) to become the newest Valentino signature scent. Of course, I certainly would not like to downplay the merits of this remarkable Valentino fragrance.
Overall the Voce Viva fragrance has a character and I have no doubts that it will be considerably appreciated by a lot of fragrance lovers and it has the potential to become a real crowd-pleaser. I should admit that the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance is fairly appealing aroma. It is sufficiently sophisticated but it is not fully complex (to my personal taste) to become the newest Valentino signature scent. Of course, I certainly would not like to downplay the merits of this remarkable Valentino fragrance.
Description of the Valentino Voce Viva Eau de Parfum
The opening of the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance is simply majestic. I could fully enjoy the mixture of a floral bouquet with citrusy redolence. Then the fragrance develops very nicely since I was able to detect clearly some of the base notes – vanilla and tonka bean. The dry down is very pleasant as one can fully enjoy the freshness and the delightful sweetness of the Valentino Voce Viva perfume. The sweetness is masterfully moderated by the Italian bergamot essence which we can find as one of the top notes of this Valentino fragrance.
I like very much the entirely feminine nature of this Valentino fragrance. It has creamy and velvety touch and it is definitely sensual and flirty. In short, the composition of the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance is successful. I believe, though, that it had the potential of being more uplifting and surprising and having more dynamic nuances in its development.
The creators of the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance
The Valentino Voce Viva fragrance was the child of not one but of two perfumers. The noses behind the Valentino Voce Viva Eau de Parfum are Honorine Blanc and Amandine Clerc-Marie. This duet of highly skilled and accomplished perfumers has done a wonderful job with the creation of the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance. And this fragrance will certainly stand out in their illustrious portfolios.
Olfactory Pyramid
Top notes: Italian bergamot essence, mandarin essence.
Middle notes: Orange blossom absolute, golden gardenia accord.
Bottom notes: Crystal moss accord, vanilla, tonka bean.
Longevity and sillage
This Valentino fragrance lasts approximately 3-4 hours on my skin. So, the scent intensity of this perfume is moderate but one could expect more from such high-end luxury fragrance in terms of longevity. The sillage of Valentino Voce Viva is completely acceptable but once again it is not spectacular.
Packaging
The Valentino Voce Viva is available as a standard size 1 oz/30 ml, 1.7 oz/50 ml, and 3.4 oz/100 ml Eau de Parfum Spray. It is also available in a mini size 0.33 oz/10 ml Eau de Parfum Spray. Both the normal size bottles and the mini size bottle (you can see it on the pictures above and below) are very attractive and stylish. The standard size bottle has an elegant square form. It is notched on the sides and it has beautiful Valentino rock studs on its cap and collar. The contours of the standard bottle are sharp and fascinating at same time. I should admit that the packaging of the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance has been crafted to perfection.
And it is a powerful demonstration of class and elegance as well. The mini size bottle has a round cap and a body with lined Valentino rock studs. The color of the mini size bottle is dark fuchsia. It is worth noting that all Valentino Voce Viva perfumes are made in France.
The Marketing Strategy of Valentino
I totally approve of the wise move of Valentino to hire Lady Gaga as the face of their Voce Viva fragrance advertising campaign. Lady Gaga is one of the most popular and successful American singers, songwriters, and actresses. However, what matters to me even more is that Lady Gaga is a very talented artist who is so versatile and creative that she never ceases to amaze her public.
Needless to say, Lady Gaga is a beautiful young lady and her visage showcases in the best possible way the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance. It was no surprise to me that Lady Gaga sang a song about this perfume which was recorded as a promotional video. Without doubt Valentino did their best to prepare and execute a brilliant marketing strategy with respect to the Voce Viva fragrance.
Yet, there was a problem …
What I disliked in the Valentino marketing strategy was the fact that the Valentino brand made some very awkward attempt at drawing a parallel between the scent of this particular fragrance and the voice of each female client. Moreover, Valentino claimed that ‘this fragrance celebrates every woman’s voice.’ I beg to differ. We should not mix up our olfactory system with our singing ability since there could be no perceivable link between our sense of smell and our voice. I understand where the Valentino’s blunder comes from – the participation of Lady Gaga in their marketing campaign.
However, Valentino have failed to recognize the fact that Lady Gaga is an outstanding singer for several reasons. First, she has a huge talent as a singer. And second, Lady Gaga has spent thousands of hours to practice and improve her vocal abilities. The regular clients of Valentino and the fragrance lovers in general rarely excel at singing. Consequently, it is pointless to focus on the clients’ abilities (or more precisely lack of particular abilities) which are totally unrelated to their fragrance preferences. Thus, the Valentino marketing strategy has stunningly misfired with respect to the comparison to ‘every woman’s voice’.
My overall assessment of the Voce Viva fragrance
I definitely like the Valentino Voce Viva Eau de Parfum but I am not overly enthusiastic about it for the reasons that I presented above. Therefore, I do not plan on adding it to my current fragrance collection.
This review is based on a Voce Viva Eau de Parfum sample.
Buy the Valentino Voce Viva perfume at Saks Fifth Avenue (US) HERE
You can buy the Valentino Voce Viva perfume at Nordstrom (US) HERE
You can buy the Valentino Voce Viva fragrance at Harrods (UK) HERE
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