The experience of wearing the fragrance - not the bottle or the packaging - is still the most important thing for consumers, says Michael Edwards, publisher of global perfume database, Fragrances of the World.

Most people want a scent that is "pretty easy to like", he says.

A fragrance has to entice at first sniff with a compelling "top note", and convince the buyer that it will linger sufficiently long on his or her skin.

Above all else, he says: "It must make the wearer feel special."

Retailers will be hoping that the launch will help return the fragrance sector to modest growth in the UK after two years of what Ms Khanom calls "disappointing sales".

Mintel estimates UK sales will be worth about £1.5bn this year, making it the fifth-biggest market globally behind Brazil, the US, Russia and France.

As with other retail sectors, she says one of the problems is savvy consumers who try out products in a physical store but then go online to buy it for less.

Manufacturers are spending more on the bottle and packaging, as well as marketing, in a bid to get consumers to buy their fragrances.