When By Rosie Jane founder Rosie Jane Johnston began developing body mists in 2023, she thought of her teenage daughters — but not because they represented her target customer base. In fact, it was just the opposite.
“In my mind, I was like, ‘This is not going to be my daughter’s body mist,” said Johnston. “I did not want to create body mist to scoop up a younger demographic. If they happen to love it, amazing. But it was about giving our true community, our true customer, something to have that felt more accessible, playful and a little even more casual.”
Today, the body mist category is more trendy — and saturated — than it has been for decades. Johnston’s body mists, which launch on July 15 at Sephora, will have to compete against new entrants to the category like Glossier, Maison Louis Marie and Calvin Klein, all of which launched body mists in recent weeks.
Many of those new launches, from Claire’s to Clinique, have used the body mist format to explicitly go after the lucrative Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha fragrance consumer. But with the category growing more crowded, others are experimenting with body mists featuring sophisticated scents, high-touch packaging, and additional skin and hair benefits to stand out as more than just an appeal to wallet-conscious teens and tweens.
“We certainly don’t position the brand to be a Gen-Z brand, and definitely not with the body mist. We feel like the body mist is for all ages and all demos,” said Salt & Stone founder Nima Jalali.
Body care-focused Salt & Stone launched $45 body mists in 2024. The brand is now the No. 3 body mist brand at Sephora, Jalali said, and in the top five body mists on Amazon. “Our core demo is really 35-plus, which is surprising, in terms of the traditional Sephora demographic,” said Salt & Stone CMO Abby Tellam.
Salt & Stone positions its body mists as an extension of its body-care line with the addition of ingredients like hydrating glycerin in the alcohol-based formula.
Ceremonia founder and CEO Babba Rivera had a similar angle with the launch of her brand’s Guava Perfume Hair & Body Mist, whose alcohol-free formula claims to hydrate the hair and protect against pollution. Rivera said the mist, which is based on the scent in Ceremonia’s guava hair spray and leave-in conditioner, sold out within a week of its launch at Sephora in April.
“It was really important to make this be a beautiful object that will make you feel good and will look good on your vanity,” said Rivera of the $38 guava perfume mist — it’s infused with body shimmer and housed in a glass bottle with an oversized wooden cap. “I think that is the key differentiator for us in the body mist category. The intention was never for it to be an easy money grab. It was more to create something meaningful for our customers.”
Ellis Brooklyn founder Bee Shapiro initially launched body mists with a limited-edition run in 2023, but their success led Sephora to encourage her to expand the format. In May, Ellis Brooklyn launched a trio of milkshake-inspired scents based on fruits like banana and mango.
Shapiro said, more than capturing a younger consumer, the mist format has allowed her brand to experiment with new scent profiles that may be too risky to release in a higher-priced eau de parfum.
“Our mists aren’t that young. Vanilla Sin is actually very sophisticated. For us, it’s more about the innovation,” she said. “We will continue to release mists that I think will benefit the brand and will also give us another outlet for expression that is more risk-taking. Like, the banana milkshake scent is cool, but if we did a full EDP, I’d be a little nervous.”
Heretic founder Douglas Little introduced a trio of $36 mists to his natural perfume brand in May. He said the mists are already selling roughly 100-150 units each day and helping boost sales in what is normally a slow period.
“Body mist is really relegated to the sidebar, and it’s become a real player this year,” he said. “I think that perfumers and the perfume industry are looking at it as not so much of a flanker anymore.”
Like many newer launches, Heretic’s body mists are housed in glass bottles, a switch-up from the plastic bottles traditionally used for body splashes from the likes of Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works. Little said he opted for glass for environmental purposes and is hoping to introduce a refill program for the mists.
Shapiro said she had similar motives for choosing glass for Ellis Brooklyn’s mists. But not all customers like the material.
“We’re a little conflicted about the glass. One, I love the fact that it’s sustainable and 100% recyclable and reusable — that’s why we initially opted for the glass,” she said. “But we have had a lot of feedback that we should move to plastic because people throw their body mist around; it’s not super precious.”
But Johnston found glass, despite its more eco-friendly image, was not the more environmentally friendly option.
“When I originally started [working on mists], I was like, ‘It’s got to be glass,’” she said. “But as we lean more into environmental studies, we realize that PCR plastic is actually more eco-friendly.”
And while body mists have grown up quite a bit since the ’90s, Johnston said they haven’t necessarily graduated from their roots as a grab-and-go fragrance option.
“Another part of it was this portability. Glass is heavy. You’re not taking this with you. You’re not throwing it in your gym bag, you’re not putting it in your luggage,” she said. “I think our customer is excited for something new and layerable and to work it into their already very congested fragrance lives.”
