There are 50 to 60-year-old cologne firms that still proudly carry on the tradition inherited from their grandfathers. Here, we tend to believe that cologne is unique to Turkish culture and can only be found on this soil. But, in fact, that is not the case; the birthplace of kolonya is the German city of Cologne from which the name derives -- Eau de Cologne.
Although the formula may have been developed in Cologne, Turks were swept away by lemon-scented cologne when it first arrived in Turkey during the reign of Abdulhamit II. We just loved the freshness it brought, and so it quickly became an indispensable item in the home. We soon turned out four major brands of lemon cologne: Pereja, Eyüp Sabri Tuncer, Boğaziçi and Selin. But in recent years, it seems that traditional lemon cologne has lost some of its previous popularity. The proof of this is in the words of the owner of Esmen Kolonya, a 60-year-old Balıkesir-based company that produces lemon cologne: “We have now aimed our products more toward Anatolian cities. In the larger cities, our products are on the lower shelves these days, after previously being in the middle shelves, where customers’ eyes tend to rest first. It is really true that there has been a decrease in demand. Even our bayram promotions have decreased. Cologne itself will not die out, but aspects of it are set to change.”
These words from Serdar Albayrak caught our attention because the truth is, it is no longer just the scent of lemon that comes out of cologne bottles these days in Turkey. We are busy discovering all sorts of new scents in cologne, from fruits to flowers, even the essences of leaves. Pomegranate flower, olive, grape, lemon blossom, lemon rind, saffron, walnut leaves, jasmine... Of course, some scents of cologne have a longer history. For example, lily, tobacco and even grass-scented colognes date back to the 1970s and ‘80s. In fact, nearly every region in Turkey has produced its own unique cologne scent, and for a while, these become popular. Right now, for example, Anatolia’s olive cologne is getting a lot of attention.
The owner of İstanbul’s Lokum, Zeynep Garan, has produced a new variation on the classic lemon cologne in order to draw attention to the bad treatment this traditional scent is receiving. She has produced mint-lemon cologne, in other words, the cologne version of the very mix Turks make when someone’s stomach is upset or when someone has a cold. She has also added four new scents to her lineup: mandarin orange, lavender, rose and linden flower.
“Cologne is a part of our tradition. But lately it has been the target of terrible treatment. Some can’t stand the smell; I see this among my own circle of friends. So we decided to produce these new scents both to remind people of our traditions, as well as to appeal as Lokum to people’s senses of taste and smell,” Garan says.
‘You cannot just sell people lemon cologne for 40 years’
Serdar Albayrak of Balıkesir-based Esmen Kolonyaları: “Change occurs quickly in all sectors, which is why you cannot just sell people lemon cologne for 40 years. Actually, these changes have been being reflected for the past 15 years. First, there was just classic lemon cologne, then Arko offered shaving cream so you could spread the scent on your face. Then there were the Johnson’s Baby colognes that came out. Of course, cologne scents change with fashion. The era of lemon cologne is passing. The youth of the 1980s and now are very different from one another. Lemon cologne was a very refreshing cologne, but now we live in a more chaotic age, with more chaotic scents that reflect this. We decided to produce olive cologne, since our region produces so many olives. This new scent has been very popular for the last four to five years. We send it all over Turkey. There are larger cologne companies than ours, but we are very successful when it comes to variety. A full 80 percent of the cosmetics market in Turkey is in İstanbul. Then again, this business also has the Anatolian aspect to it. In the larger Anatolian cities, there is a more thriving cologne culture. In the global cosmetics market, sales of perfumes, lotions, deodorants and colognes are always increasing. Firms that don’t appeal to the large markets or which are not innovative and interested in variety are going to disappear altogether. In recent times, the number of Anatolia-based cologne firms that have shut down has increased. Now there are only 500 companies left. If we had spoken a year ago, this number would have been between 1,000 and 2,000 companies.”
‘Turkey’s common love is lemon cologne’
Selin Kolonya Marketing Director Gelincik Onan: “The market for cologne in Turkey is TL 52 million annually, which means 7.6 million liters every year. This is just the measurable part of the market. We speculate that there are also unrecorded sales of around half this amount. Cologne sales during bayram times are three times that of other times. Young people use cologne less than older people. This is one of the reasons behind the slowdown in this sector. There are many local and regional brands of cologne. Many local firms are busy producing not only lemon cologne but also different fruit and herbal scents. But still, the shared love in Turkey remains lemon cologne. And actually, the new kinds of cologne coming out only constitute a small part of the market, so we can really ignore their influence.”
Cologne consumption dwindling
Pereja Assistant General Manager Altan Eplek: “Cologne does have a loyal faction of users, even if its general level of use is dwindling these days. The faithful users are generally the over 35 age group. The loss of traditional ways and customs and [the development of] new habits have, of course, meant that the use of cologne -- one of the symbols of traditional Turkish culture -- has been affected in Turkey. Still though, whether out of sheer habit, out of appreciation for the fresh scent of lemon, or out of emotional attachment, people are still using lemon cologne. But in this time of change, we see that many are buying products we label as ‘scented youth cologne’ or simply perfume instead.”
Cologne scents unique to certain regions:
Hamsi Cologne: This is produced by the Trabzon-based İnanlar Kozmetik company. Everyone loves to eat hamsi (anchovy), but hates the smell. So don’t think that this cologne reeks of hamsi! According to company owner Aziz İnan, this is a cologne that completely eliminates the smell of hamsi from your skin. This company also produces special hazelnut and tea-scented colognes.
Grape Cologne: Tahir Çakar of Tekirdağ thought to himself, “Everyone is producing cologne; what should I do?” So after thinking a bit more, and taking a stroll under some grape vines, he decided to produce grape cologne.
Saffron Cologne: Well, it’s only natural that the Turkish city of Safranbolu would produce not only saffron lokum, but also saffron-scented cologne, as this city produces the highest quality saffron in Turkey.
A special cologne: ‘Every home needs this’
For 41 years now, cologne has been produced in the Bolu town of Yeniçağ. There are many varieties here, all local. There is Abant pine, pomegranate flower, grass, white lily, tobacco, lemon and so on. But there is one cologne in particular that is very interesting. Its name is “her eve lazım hacı mülazım” (every home needs this). The formula for this special cologne is fiercely protected in the Çağlar family, which produces it. Recai Çağlar says his production facilities, which were built 41 years ago by his father, Azmi Çağlar, turn out 13,000 liters of cologne per year. There are three generations working there. Çağlar says: “We add local scents in a special formula to our colognes. Our experience in this business speaks for itself.” He notes that no one should even attempt to imitate the new scents they plan to introduce soon.
A thousand and one varieties of cologne
Acacia tree, golden drop (from İzmir), pear, baby cologne (vanilla), white lily, five blossom cologne, bouquet, walnut leaves, apple, fresh lemon, hazelnut, secret blossom cologne (from İzmir), rose (from Isparta), honeysuckle, coconut, apricot, kiwi, lavender, lilac, lemon rind, mango, mandarin orange, violet, banana, mint, pomegranate flower, orange blossom, hyacinth, cinnamon, tobacco, lime, green tea, lily blossom, olive blossom, pine, strawberry, shepherd’s cologne and oleaster blossom are just a few of the many types of cologne available in Turkey.
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