Like Coke, Old Spice is cemented in our cultural memory, but not always in the way we might imagine. Think of it this way: When I asked Edwards what other scent Old Spice was closest to, his answer was Coca-Cola.
Old Spice captured this scent profile perfectly and uniquely. “To Americans, the idea is almost sweet.” Think vanilla, spices like cinnamon, and lemon or orange. “The French idea of freshness is citrusy,” Edwards says. Somehow, in developing the scent, Schultz was able to tap into the exact idea of American freshness. Old Spice is cemented in our cultural memory, but not always in the way we might imagine.Īnd yet that fragrance is the ultimate legacy of Old Spice. When they came back from the war, they kept shaving, partly because “we saw the rise of corporate America, along with the question, What did a corporate man look like?” The answer: beardless. “You had a whole generation of young men who became accustomed to shaving for the first time,” Edwards says. The armed forces required men to be clean-shaven for both hygienic and practical purposes: A shaved face ensured a close fit for a gas mask. World War I changed that, says fragrance historian Michael Edwards.
Before the invention of the double-edged safety razor, men had to brave a barber shop to shave. To really understand why Old Spice became iconic, one must consider its historical context. Old Spice is the official scent of generations of American men, but what would it be like to wear it in 2021? Does it still smell good? I clicked "Buy Now" on Amazon to find out. Hell, it’s the actual Old Spice slogan: “If your grandfather hadn’t worn it, you wouldn’t exist.” In the 80 years since its invention, Old Spice has become the object of pastiche, one of the rare brands, like Kleenex, Post-It, and Jacuzzi, that transcend the shop shelves and becomes shorthand for an entire category-or, in this case, a smell. I don’t think my grandfather actually wore Old Spice aftershave, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he did.
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