This week, I checked in on the growth of the chess-inspired fragrance brand Mind Games. Additionally, E.l.f. makes a few key promotions and L’Oréal invests in the body-care trend.
Mind Games is banking on fragrance collectors, rather than a defining signature scent
It’s not uncommon for fragrance brands to rely on one top seller to drive a quarter or even a third of overall sales. According to Circana data on 2025 U.S. fragrance sales, the masculine favorite Aventus drove 35% of Creed’s sales; the rose-and-vanilla Delina accounted for 34% of Parfums de Marly’s sales; and herbaceous Erba Pura drove nearly half of Xerjoff’s sales. In the largest share, the oft-duped Baccarat Rouge 540 made up 69% of Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s U.S. sales in 2025.
Mind Games, the luxury chess-inspired fragrance brand launched by Alex Shalbaf in 2022, has no hero scent, however. According to the brand, 65% of its sales come from 14 different scents. According to Circana, French Defense, its top-selling fragrance in the U.S. market in 2025, constituted just 17% of sales.
A hero SKU is a key strategy for many fragrance brands to get consumers in the door. But a lack of a clear best-seller has not stopped Mind Games from achieving double-digit growth. According to data from Circana, Mind Games saw a 56% year-over-year increase in U.S. sales in 2025, from $18.5 million in 2024 to $28.9 million. The brand is projecting global retail sales for 2026 to hit $120 million.
“We are trying to not have a single SKU that is most of our business,” said Mind Games CEO and founder Alex Shalbaf. “[2025 launch] Check Please is very quickly now in the top five, and we like that a lot, because that means our new innovation is still working.”
Shalbaf believes a diversified assortment can protect sales from going up and down with evolving trends. “It’s a double-sided sword [to have a hero SKU]. For me, you have such a high risk as a business, because what if people stop buying that scent profile?” he said.
Mind Games has expanded to 64 markets since its initial launch in the U.S., largely across department store channels like Selfridges in the U.K. The brand’s prices have also gone up in that time, from $345 in 2022 to $395 in 2026. But Mind Games’ fans are the kind of consumers who are willing to pay such steep prices for fragrance, and who often value a collector mentality over loyalty to one signature scent.
“Our new consumer is young men. There’s no question about it, and young men love to collect,” said Shalbaf. “They kind of express themselves through scent. I feel like sneakers, T-shirts and fragrance are a way for young guys to express themselves.”
Building brand awareness is a key 2026 goal for Mind Games. To do so, the brand is testing the waters for its own brick-and-mortar with in-person pop-ups. In March, Mind Games hosted a pop-up at Los Angeles’s The Grove and followed by an April pop-up at The Americana at Brand in Glendale, both part of billionaire and former L.A. mayoral candidate Rick Caruso’s property group. According to Shalbaf, The Grove pop-up drove roughly 1,000 visitors a day.
To further its connection with male consumers, Mind Games is also partnering with athletes. The brand has hosted events with the likes of retired NBA player Serge Ibaka and a private training day session with Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“We think the athletes are overlooked by a lot of luxury brands for whatever reason, but we are very much going in the direction of partnering with more athletes,” said Shalbaf.
Shalbaf said Mind Games plans to launch two new scents by the fall, taking its total SKU count from 28 to 30. An endorsement from a top athlete like Rodgers could turn one SKU into a runaway best-seller. While Fleur Narcotique was long since the best-seller of French brand Ex Nihilo, Circana data found that the 2023 launch Blue Talisman, which happens to be a favorite scent of NFL star Travis Kelce, drove nearly half of all U.S. sales in 2025.
Executive moves:
- Kory Marchisotto was named president of E.l.f. Brands. Marchisotto, who joined the company in 2019 and most recently served as global chief marketing officer, will oversee the E.l.f. Cosmetics, E.l.f. Skin, Well People and Keys Soulcare brands. E.l.f. promoted Oshiya Savur to the chief marketing officer role and named Ekta Chopra to the newly created role of chief technology and AI officer.
- Elizabeth Nolan joins SharkNinja as chief creative officer. Nolan was most recently svp and global creative director at Clinique. Nolan’s new role will oversee creative storytelling across the company’s categories, spanning hair styling tools and kitchen products.
- Krista McDonough Kubida will join The Wella Company as chief legal officer, effective June 29. McDonough Kubida most recently served as chief legal and sustainability officer at Capri Holdings.
News to know:
- A U.S. judge has approved Pat McGrath Labs to exit bankruptcy. The decision grants investment firm GDA Luma the ability to take over the makeup brand. Founder Pat McGrath will remain as the brand’s chief creative officer.
- L’Oréal invests in body-care brand Hanni via its Bold venture fund arm. Hanni was launched in 2021 and entered Sephora as the beauty retailer’s first razor brand in 2022. The brand also sells body balms and body wash.
- Lancôme named Zoe Saldaña as its latest global brand ambassador. The Oscar-winning actress will be the face of the L’Oréal-owned brand’s new Absolue Longevity MD skin-care line.
Stat of the week:
According to Launchmetrics, Hailey Bieber’s Rhode World activation at Coachella generated $10 million in media impact value, $3.3 million of which came from influencers.
In the headlines:
Has “Euphoria”-inspired makeup missed its moment? What does a disco diva smell like? We went scent shopping with Jessie Ware. Beauty’s even more fractional future. Milan Design Week Highlights: Beauty brands to bring extra juice to Salone del Mobile.Milano.
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