This post was originally about buying perfume in Nairobi at shops in the city such as Scents Kenya. It has since morphed into a post about fragrance in general, e.g., Acqua di Gio, the Armani perfume, and Versace Eros, a Versace perfume for men.
Since many of you come to this post searching for ‘Versace perfume‘ and ‘Armani perfume’, I will tell you about that next.
Best Female Perfumes in Kenya: How to Choose the Best Female Fragrance for You
As I mention later in this post, I am a firm believer in the French saying les goûts et les couleurs ne se discutent pas (essentially: there’s no accounting for tastes).
As such, I am not sure that you can say that there is one best female fragrance.
What is more important, really, is finding the best female fragrance for you.
I try any perfume I am interested in, making sure that I spray some perfume on the test strip, wave the test strip around in the air a couple of times so that the perfume dissipates a bit, and then I lightly smell the test strip from a distance so that I get a sense of what the perfume will smell like after a while.
After I have decided on a maximum of three perfumes that could be the one for me, I spray each perfume on a separate place on my body (usually the inside of my wrists or somewhere else on my arm).
I then walk away for a while and do something else for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Once the fragrances have had time to settle, I smell each of the spots where I sprayed the perfumes to see how each fares with my personal body chemistry.
Best Female Perfumes in Kenya: Making the Final Choice
Choosing the best female fragrance for me then becomes a purely subjective decision.
I buy the perfume that smells best on my body at this point and one that I feel I will want to represent me for the next couple of months. (I usually only wear one or two perfumes at any point in time, so I know that the scent I choose will be “my scent” for the next few months.)
How do you choose the best female fragrance for you? Let me know in a comment below.
Versace Perfume for Men (May Be Available at Scents Kenya)
Of their fragrances for men, Versace tags them the expression of a man’s strength and charisma conveyed in modern and sensual Mediterranean freshness as well as the essence of pure masculinity for a strong passionate man who is master of himself.
Want to learn more about Versace perfumes? If so, check out a wide range of Versace fragrances here.
My mother often half-jokingly says that I eat toilet paper and drink perfume.
That’s in reference to how fast I use up each of these items.
Let’s leave the first item alone for now and focus on the second, perfume.
Well, not really perfume itself, rather I’d like to talk about where to purchase perfume in Nairobi and tell you how I came to settle on my current preferred perfume shop.
From the time I owned my very first perfume, Anaïs Anaïs at the tender age of 13, most of my perfumes have been bought at duty free counters at airports across the world.
When I was very young, this would happen when my parents would travel for business, after I’d beg them to bring me back perfume.
When I got a little older, this would invariably take place during long transit hours spent at airports in Europe as I crossed continents to go to and from school.
Even now as an adult, I usually acquire perfume either as I am traveling or when others gift me perfume when they have been traveling.
Whatever the case, I’ve always had the mindset that the cheapest place to buy perfume is at duty free stores, so I rarely ever attempted to buy perfume at perfume shops in Nairobi or elsewhere in the city for that matter.
Fast forward some years.
Searching for Davidoff Cool Water Cologne for Men
Without going into too many details, a company I was working for, at the time, needed to purchase a bottle of Cool Water, the man’s fragrance, on a very strict budget but was having a hard time finding it.
In the spirit of team work, I decided to pitch in and check for it at a perfume shop or two even though it was my day off.
Checking Out Different Perfume Shops in Kenya
While I was at The Village Market, I stopped by the Diplomatic Duty Free, to see if they might stock Cool Water.
I was in luck! They did, but unfortunately, not at the price I was looking for.
Not to be discouraged, I walked downstairs to the City Walk, which sells shoes but also has a well-stocked fragrance counter.
There, too, I found what I was looking for, though still not at the price required.
Before that, I decided to make one more stop at The Sarit Centre to see if I might have any luck at Lipstix, the cosmetics and perfume shop, on the lower ground floor.
Again, I found the same situation: they stocked the product, but it was above my budget.
One Last Perfume Shop
Not about to spend my entire day off performing work-related activities, I called the office and told them that I was unable to find the item at the required price.
Although the item was readily available, I hadn’t been able to find it within the required budget.
My colleagues thanked me for my efforts and continued looking for the item elsewhere.
I, on the other hand, proceeded with my day as I had originally planned.
One of my next stops was Nakumatt Ngong Road, where I needed to purchase some things.
As I stood in the checkout line at Nakumatt, it occurred to me to check out Sensations, the perfume shop at Nakumatt.
I wasn’t very hopeful, but I thought, since I was already there, I really had very little to lose.
Believe it or not, Sensations stocked Cool Water at exactly the price I was looking to pay!
After conferring with the office, I quickly purchased the cologne and off I went on my merry way!
I had never paid much attention to Sensations before then but with retail prices being 500-1,000 Ksh below anywhere else I had looked that day, I made a mental note of it.
A couple of months later, when I noticed that I was running out of perfume without any air travel (or visitors) in sight, I decided to make a stop at the same perfume shop, Sensations, to restock.
I purchased this perfume at only a little more than I would expect to pay at a duty free counter.
A Reader Question or Giorgio Armani Acqua Di Gio for Women (an Armani Perfume) & Other Perfumes I Love
Upon reading my choice of Rose Essentielleas a personal perfume, a fellow blogger asked me in the comment section:
Biche: How could you go from Anaïs Anaïs to Rose Essentielle? I was just wondering what were the steps in between? Because I feel something must have gone wrong along the way. Just a personal opinion, but I don’t like this Rose Essentielle.
To which I responded:
Hehehehehe Rafiki,
I totally get where you are coming from but as the French say les goûts et les couleurs ne se discutent pas (essentially: there’s no accounting for tastes)!
Truthfully, Anaïs Anaïs is not my style at all. I find it’s too soft, floral, and subtle. I like stronger, “clean” smells.
My Mom says I just like “murky” perfumes. (What?!)
I can’t really enumerate the steps between Anaïs Anaïs and Rose Essentiellebecause my adventurous spirit can be evidenced in my choice of perfumes too (as a rule I never buy the same perfume more than once).
Some of the perfumes that I’ve used over the years which still stand out for me are:
Un Jardin sur le Nil by Hermès (meant to evoke a stroll through the island-gardens on the Nile at Aswan—I love the fresh complexity of this fragrance)
Eau Parfumée au thé vert by Bvlgari (a green-tea inspired fresh clean scent), and
Sì by Giorgio Armani (an amazing Armani perfume with a sweet elegant scent)
An Armani Perfume for Men: Acqua di Gio pour Homme (Might Be Available at Scents Kenya)
I mentioned above that I never buy the same perfume twice.
The first fragrance to make me break this rule was the Armani perfume Acqua di Gio for women. (Coincidentally, the second was also an Armani perfume: Sensi).
Although I know Acqua di Gio primarily as a women’s fragrance, there is also a men’s version of the fragrance known simply as Acqua di Gio pour Homme.
How Does Acqua Di Gio pour Homme, the Armani Perfume, Smell?
With several flavors of the fragrance available, Acqua di Gio pour Homme is a sensual men’s fragrance collection with citrus and other notes such as orange, lime, mandarin orange, jasmine, bergamot, lemon, and neroli.
What Is the Inspiration Behind the Armani Perfume, Acqua Di Gio pour Homme?
The Acqua di Gio fragrances were inspired by the beauty of the Italian island of Pantelleria after Giorgio Armani spent a holiday there.
The men’s version of the fragrance seeks to capture the essence of freedom, full of wind and water.
Acqua di Gio pour Homme combines the sweet and salty notes of sea water with nuances of sunny warmth on your skin.
Acqua di Gio pour Homme is said to be full of scorching Mediterranean sun.
Bitter citrus and the aromatic nuance of rosemary intertwines with the scent of the salty sea.
A woody base and a warm musky trail soften sharp notes of spices.
Acqua di Gio pour Homme has a crisp and lively aquatic splash of woody marine freshness. This sea-inspired limited edition cologne stands out among men’s fragrances.
Flavours of Acqua Di Gio pour Homme, the Armani Perfume
Some flavors of the men’s version of the fragrance include:
Where to Buy the Best Female Perfumes in Kenya Inexpensively in Nairobi (Also at Scents Kenya)
So there you’ve got it: according to my informal survey, Sensations is one of the least expensive places to buy authentic fragrance in Nairobi.
Do you, my reader, know of any other that you would like to recommend? (The perfume shop at Westgate Center seems to also stock a wide variety of perfumes for OK prices, though I’ve not paid that close attention to their pricing so please don’t quote me. Also, you can get a wide selection of perfumes online here at Jumia Kenya.)
As always, I look forward to hearing what you have to say.
Until the next time, Biche
What Are the Best Female Perfumes in Kenya and Best Male Colognes According to You?
P. S. I would like to know what you think are the best female perfume and the best male cologne on the market today. Please let me know in a comment below! 🙂
The best female perfume for me at the time: Rose Essentielle by Bvlgari
I’m a huge fan of Versace Eros, though I have shifted to Tom ford black orchid. Tried Acqua di Gio before but didn’t like it.
Hi Ally,
Thanks for sharing. Now I will have to smell all of those and get back to you on what I think of them. 🙂
Biche.