Welcome to the weekly Perfume Chat Room, perfumistas! I envision this chat room as a weekly drop-in spot online, where readers may ask questions, suggest fragrances, tell others their SOTD, comment on new releases or old favorites, and respond to each other. The perennial theme is fragrance, but we can interpret that broadly. This is meant to be a kind space, so please try not to give or take offense, and let’s all agree to disagree when opinions differ. In fragrance as in life, your mileage may vary! YMMV.
Today is Friday, July 15, and the euro has equalized to the US dollar for the first time in 20 years, i.e. 1 euro equals 1 dollar. We traveled to Europe earlier this summer and benefited from the favorable euro-dollar exchange rate even before this, including for my purchase of a couple of fragrances, but that was in person. If you’re in the US, have you noticed any effect on the prices of fragrances either in person or online? If you’re not in the US, has the exchange rate had any impact on prices in other currencies you use? If you’re in Europe, have you found that fragrance prices for American brands have increased?
P.S. WordPress has just informed me that I first registered with it 7 years ago today! Wow, it seems like a lifetime ago, when I was stuck at home with a broken shoulder, still working fulltime, undergoing a reorg at work, and needing a positive, creative outlet. Thanks for joining me on that blogging journey, whenever you joined!
Serenity Now Scents and Sensibilities 
Great question! I haven’t seen any decrease in prices in American stores. I think all the retailers who profit from this are just pocketing the profits.
The advantage is when buying directly from brands in Europe. By doing this you get the full advantage of the excellent exchange rate and it makes any shipping costs ore palatable. Also, the personal shopper I use, shopfranceinc, gives buyers the benefit of the excellent exchange rate, so I’m buying more through her recently.
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I haven’t seen decreases either, though I suspect it’s because the retailers placed orders for their stock before the exchange rate changed so much. I’m sure you are right about buying directly from the European brands! I’ve heard great things about shopfranceinc.
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Pocketing the profits – there’s an awful lot of it about😠
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Brexit has made purchasing fragrances from outside the UK almost impossible both shipping and taxes are adding to the costs. The logistics from everywhere to the UK are ridiculous too
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Ugh, I’m so sorry!
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I need a new bell jar of Sarrasins but I just don’t have the vacant bandwidth to manage the order at present.
I also need a full bottle of Hera so she will take preference at the moment. Hera might be more affordable in the USA with the favourable exchange rates
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Wishing you a happy WordPress anniversary. I have been on it for longer but still haven’t worked out its intricacies 🙈
Given the low Euro I won’t be leaving the zone any time soon. I remember getting $1.23 to the Euro at one stage, halcyon days for me, haha. I don’t buy anything from US anymore anyway due to the stringently applied duties and customs charges. It’s great for US visitors though, as you already found out.
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I didn’t realize there were so many extra charges on goods coming from the US. I hope US tourists spend oodles of $$ in their travels — so many economies really need that boost, including tourist destinations here.
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Anything coming from outside the EU is chargeable. And the good boys and girls in revenue here don’t miss a trick.
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