The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
New Romantics is Emma Vincent's 2024 tribute to the 80s movement that gave us Duran Duran, Ultravox, and a visual language built on flamboyance. The name isn't decorative, it's a direct reference to a genre that took David Bowie's provocations and turned them into something theatrical, something wearable. Vincent built the fragrance around that same energy. Davana opens the composition with a green, herbal quality, hardly fruity, maybe a bit sweet like dried fruit. Warm spices form the backbone, giving the fragrance its structure. From the first spray, the composition announces itself with confidence, refusing to disappear into the background.
What makes this work is the davana itself. It's not a common note, an aromatic herb that smells like ripe fruit with a slightly medicinal edge, like someone left tropical candy too close to the heat. Paired with orange in the top, it gives the fragrance its immediate sweetness. Then the spices arrive not to overpower but to deepen: cloves anchor the heart, cinnamon and nutmeg add warmth, allspice ties them together. The fruit doesn't disappear. It stays underneath, holding the spice accountable to something softer.
The evolution
The opening is all citrus and davana, bright, fruity, attention-grabbing. Give it twenty minutes and the cloves start asserting themselves, warming the composition into something denser. By the hour mark, the cinnamon and nutmeg have settled in and the davana has receded to a supporting role. The drydown is where this fragrance earns its name: warm spice that lingers close to the skin, with the allspice holding on longest. On clothing, it carries into the next day.
Cultural impact
New Romantics takes its name from the 1980s music movement that blended synth-pop with flamboyant fashion, a period when self-expression and artistic experimentation defined a generation. The use of davana, a relatively uncommon ingredient, as a centerpiece rather than an accent speaks to the brand's willingness to take risks.
