• by Sarah Mahoney , Yesterday

Fragrance sales always spike in December, but this year the category is shaping up to be an unexpected standout. Alongside classic gift sets and luxe launches, brands are leaning into comfort and novelty: Lidl is rolling out a Croissant fragrance based on the popularity of its 49-cent pastries, and Pura is launching Cloud Dancer, a scent inspired by Pantone’s new Color of the Year.

New research from Circana finds that one in five shoppers plans to give fragrance as a gift this year. The firm expects strong performance across both prestige and mass channels, with fragrance brands typically generating about 60% of annual sales in the fourth quarter —much of it in the final two weeks. Gift sets account for roughly a quarter of those holiday purchases.

Prestige fragrance should be especially strong, topping $4 billion for the quarter with low single-digit gains. Circana predicts that demand in department and specialty stores will span both ends of the pricing spectrum: higher-concentration juices and luxury brands on one end, and mini sizes and body sprays on the other. Bain & Co.’s new global luxury report also flags fragrance as one of beauty’s most dynamic subcategories, noting particular momentum for masculine scents.

Mass fragrances — which have posted double-digit growth all year — are expected to continue that climb, Circana says. Lidl is tapping into that appetite with Eau de Croissant, a limited-edition scent offered as an Instagram giveaway. Packaged in a croissant-shaped bottle, it’s meant to evoke the warmth of freshly baked pastry.

Pura, known for its smart home fragrance devices, is also chasing mood-driven gifting. As Pantone’s official fragrance partner, it’s debuting Cloud Dancer, designed around the brand’s ethereal white Color of the Year. The scent blends airy bergamot and freesia with magnolia, solar bloom, musk, amber and sandalwood — a profile meant to “quiet the mind and recenter the soul.”

Lush is doubling down on gourmand inspiration, predicting that gift-givers will gravitate toward cozy, edible-smelling blends. Its holiday lineup includes Turmeric Latte, Cherryish Body Spray and Sticky Dates. And its new Super Fairy scent merges two of its fan favorites: the bubblegum sweetness of Snow Fairy and the creamy citrus of Super Milk. The company says food-inspired fragrances helped drive a 54% jump in fragrance sales last year.

“While gourmand fragrances have been huge all year, they really come into their own in autumn and winter,” writes Lee Howes, fragrance category lead at Lush, in introducing the seasonal collection. “We can utilize sugary, cozy, and enveloping fragrances to mirror how snug we want to feel.”

If early signals hold, this holiday season may prove that shoppers aren’t just buying fragrance as a gift — they’re buying a mood. Whether that means smelling like a latte, a croissant or a cloud, brands are betting heavily that comfort-forward blends will define the year’s biggest fragrance moment.