I was at Southpark Mall in Charlotte today, and stopped in L'Occitane. Annoyingly, they didn't have the Cade shaving soap I was going for -- the saleswoman said they hadn't had it in stock in six months or more! She said at this point it is only available online.
The stop wasn't a total loss as I got to sample the men's fragrances. I am a lavender junkie, so I thought I'd like L'Occitan. The opening salvo is quite nice, but the dry-down is (to me) pretty bland -- the aftershave I was wearing (Gillette Coolwave) has a better long-term scent profile to me. Eau de Beax (?) is another story: it surprised me, and would be the one I'd buy and wear frequently. The saleswoman also pointed me to the lavender EdT (a unisex scent), which is a glorious, pure lavender. It lasts for all of 20 minutes, which is typical of the genre.
Instead, I walked out of the store with a big bar of lavender bath soap and a bottle of 4 Reines EdT for the Mrs. I'd already spent some money on fountain pen ink at the Montblanc store, so it was time to exercise some restraint.
The stop wasn't a total loss as I got to sample the men's fragrances. I am a lavender junkie, so I thought I'd like L'Occitan. The opening salvo is quite nice, but the dry-down is (to me) pretty bland -- the aftershave I was wearing (Gillette Coolwave) has a better long-term scent profile to me. Eau de Beax (?) is another story: it surprised me, and would be the one I'd buy and wear frequently. The saleswoman also pointed me to the lavender EdT (a unisex scent), which is a glorious, pure lavender. It lasts for all of 20 minutes, which is typical of the genre.
Instead, I walked out of the store with a big bar of lavender bath soap and a bottle of 4 Reines EdT for the Mrs. I'd already spent some money on fountain pen ink at the Montblanc store, so it was time to exercise some restraint.
