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Questions about perfume development and manufacturing: costs, MOQs, timelines and the BOLD method

This section is not designed to answer all possible questions, but to clarify how we work, with whom and why.

If after reading it you recognize yourself in this approach, the comparison will be much more effective.

BOLD positioning and role in perfumery projects

What kind of partner is BOLD and what role does it play in perfumery projects?

BOLD is an industrial and strategic partner operating as a general contractor in the perfumery industry.

We take responsibility for translating a brand vision into an effective product for the market by governing decisions, trade-offs, and processes throughout the supply chain.

We do not operate as isolated task performers nor as business intermediaries, because this model fragments responsibility, control and results.

An approach Brand-First™ starts with positioning, market and channel, not product.

This involves fundamental choices about:

  • production costs → retail price
  • Definition of product components: packaging, decorations, fragrances, etc.
  • Initial volumes and scalability logic


Those who seek operational shortcuts often discover these constraints too late.
A Brand-First™ approach reduces reactive decisions and late repositioning, among the leading causes of inefficiency in fragrance launches.

Typically:

  • Brand with a clear vision for launch and/or growth or an already structured project
  • Founders who want to prevent problems especially related to the production chain
  • Teams that prefer to delegate industrial complexity to those who govern it on a daily basis

Partner selection and project alignment

In what cases is BOLD particularly suitable as a partner?

BOLD is particularly suitable for projects that aim to build or consolidate a structured brand, with a clear vision of market, pricing and development over time, and that require a partner capable of governing strategic and industrial complexity.

When:

  • the budget is objectively low compared to the goals
  • the goal is to minimize the initial investment more than to build value over time
  • quick execution is sought without real alignment on positioning, method, and accountability

BOLD makes limits and constraints explicit from the outset because a sound project is built on conscious decisions, not initial ambiguities.

Make perimeter, constraints and trade-offs clear from the outset:

  • Aligns expectations among all parties involved
  • Reduces friction and late corrections during development
  • Protects the project even before the business relationship


In this way, energies are focused on choices that generate real value, avoiding compromises that would emerge only at more advanced stages.

Transparency is not a commercial concession, but a structural component of BOLD's working method.

Project models and modes of collaboration

What models of collaboration does BOLD offer?

We operate on three levels, which are distinct but can be integrated:

  • Full service: comprehensive development from strategy to industrial production
  • Bulk formulation, filling and packaging: for projects that are already strategically defined.
  • Highly specialized modular interventions: on specific critical areas of the project (see below)


The choice of model is not a preference, but a direct consequence of the type of project.

These are targeted interventions on individual areas of high decision-making impact, for example:

  • strategic support on positioning and range architecture
  • Development or revision of design and packaging
  • Advice on pricing, channels and distribution
  • Industrial optimization and production scalability
  • Regulatory support and adaptation for specific markets


The value lies not in “doing less,” but in doing what is really needed, avoiding redundancy and premature decisions.

A full service project implies that:

  • BOLD governs the entire decision-making and production process and manages development, internal production, suppliers, regulatory, and go-to-market support, ensuring consistency and control.
  • customer delegates industrial complexity, not vision


It is the most effective approach when the goal is to build a solid brand, not test an idea.

When:

  • the concept is already defined and validated
  • Fragrances and components are already selected
  • the need is mainly industrial


In these cases, BOLD governs production by avoiding inefficiencies typical of fragmented supplier management.

Costs, MOQs and industrial trade-offs

What do costs and minimum quantities (MOQs) in perfumery really depend on?

From structural factors including:

  • SKU number
  • complexity of packaging
  • target markets
  • level of quality
  • scalability required
  • brand price positioning


In general:

  • lower public prices (mass / masstige logics) → higher MOQs
  • higher public prices (niche/luxury) → lower MOQs


Those who seek a “standard” number are simplifying a reality that cannot be simplified.

The investment depends on the project model. Some indicative examples:

  • Niche perfumery project: 3 references, 1,000 pieces per SKU, retail price > €180, industrial cost ~ €20 / piece. Indicative investment: ~ €60.000
  • Structured Brand: 5 references, 5,000 pieces per SKU, public price ~ €140, industrial cost ~ €12/piece. Indicative investment: ~ €300.000
  • Project mass / masstige: significantly higher volumes, lower unit margins, proportionally higher initial investment


Below certain thresholds, decisions become structural compromises that weaken the project.

Because industrial production is designed to run on certain volume thresholds, and many cost items do not scale linearly.

In particular, they come into play:

  • Fixed and semi-fixed costs such as dies and plates
  • Plant startups and machine setup (painting, printing, treatments)
  • regulatory activities, documentation and controls


These costs do not scale linearly. Ignoring them leads to formally realized but commercially fragile products.
Added to these is an often underestimated aspect: At lower volumes, each component has a higher unit cost, because suppliers and facilities do not benefit from economies of scale.
The result is that, under certain print runs, the unit cost increases non-proportionally.

Ignoring this dynamic leads to formally accomplished but commercially fragile products.

Shared timing, method and responsibility

What is a realistic timeline for developing a perfumery project?

Timelines depend on the working method chosen and the level of decision-making involvement of the client.

In BOLD we distinguish between two main approaches:

  • Fast-good: provides for more delegation, fewer review cycles, and faster decisions.
    In this case, typical timelines are 3-4 months from the clear definition of the project.
  • Slow-good: provides for a greater level of control, successive iterations, and more driven customizations.
    In this case, timelines are generally 6 months or more, depending on specific needs and the number of revisions required.


Both work, but they are not equivalent. Forced accelerations or late changes of direction often produce delayed or incompletely made decisions, which emerge later in the form of delays, remakes, or compromises on the final product.

Production, supply chain and industrial responsibility

How is BOLD's supply chain structured?

The supply chain is designed according to the project, not standardized a priori. It can be:

  • 100% Italian
  • international
  • hybrid
 

The choice depends on positioning, cost, volume, markets, and timing. Any other logic introduces inefficiencies that emerge later in the project.

BOLD has its own production site and directly manages the central stages of production, ensuring operational control and industrial continuity:

  • bulk production and maceration
  • Filling and packing
  • quality controls
  • technical and regulatory documentation


In addition to direct execution, BOLD operates as a general contractor of the entire production process.
This means that we coordinate and govern all the interdependencies between bottles, spray pumps, accessories, packaging, supply timing and regulatory constraints, ensuring consistency between the different phases.

The customer does not have to orchestrate different suppliers or manage conflicts of responsibility: he has a single industrial partner, who is accountable for the overall result and intervenes upstream to prevent delays, rework or quality compromises.

Acting as a general contractor means that BOLD assumes the Overall responsibility for the industrial result, not just the execution of individual steps.

In this role:

  • critical decisions are made considering the impact on the entire project, not on individual suppliers
  • Interdependencies among components, timing, technical and regulatory constraints are managed centrally
  • potential problems are intercepted upstream, before they result in delays, rework, or quality compromises


The value lies not in “doing everything,” but in the govern the system consistently, reducing invisible costs and operational risks that only emerge when the supply chain is fragmented.

Regulatory, markets and compliance

In which markets can products developed with BOLD be sold?

BOLD supports projects aimed at:

  • European Union
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
  • Non-EU markets, including GCC and South America


Each market introduces constraints that affect product choices from the outset.

Why the regulatory:

  • determines mandatory packaging information
  • influence formulations, ingredients and claims
  • Directly impacts design and components


Adapting a product later costs more, slows entry into markets, and generates avoidable remakes. Regulatory is a design criterion, not a final step.