The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Viktor&Rolf built Good Fortune around a belief, destiny is not a matter of chance, it's a matter of choice. Part of their Spiritual Glamour Haute Couture Collection, this fragrance is an olfactive manifesto for self-potentialization, not decoration. The name came first, as it always does for the Dutch duo. A name that had to smell like something. Nicolas Beaulieu and Anne Flipo answered with jasmine, vanilla, and an unusual green opener that keeps you paying attention.
Fennel and gentian are rarely center stage in mainstream perfumery. Their co-distillation here creates an aromatic, slightly bitter lift that arrives like a sharp inhale before the rest of the composition breathes out. That initial brightness is the tell, this isn't just another jasmine-vanilla. The jasmine itself is a Superinfusion, a concentrated material designed to carry more nuance than a standard absolute. And the Bourbon Vanilla, ethically sourced from Madagascar, is less a dessert note than a skin-warm anchor that quietly holds for hours. Vegan formulation was part of the brief from the start, reflecting the house's long-term eco-conscious commitment.
The evolution
The opening hits with fennel first, green, almost medicinal, surprisingly clean. Gentian joins within seconds, adding a bitter floral edge that feels like standing in an herb garden after rain. This phase lasts maybe twenty minutes before the jasmine takes over completely, blooming warm and creamy. For the next three to four hours, jasmine is the conversation. Then the Bourbon Vanilla begins to show, not as a loud sweetness but as something close, intimate, slightly powdery on dry skin. By hour six, it's a skin-musk warmth that lingers if you're close enough to notice. Moderate sillage throughout. You smell it more than the room does.
Cultural impact
Good Fortune arrived in 2022 as part of Viktor & Rolf's Spiritual Glamour Haute Couture Collection, a line that positioned fashion and fragrance as vehicles for self-actualization rather than mere luxury goods. The Spiritual Glamour concept, introduced by the house's couture designers, frames personal style as a form of ritual and intention-setting. Good Fortune specifically taps into the wellness-adjacent fragrance trend that gained momentum in the early 2020s, where consumers sought scents that felt purposeful rather than purely decorative. Its fennel-gentian co-distillate opening was relatively uncommon in mainstream perfumery at launch, offering an aromatic bitterness that distinguished it from the sweet-gourmand dominance of the era. The fragrance's emphasis on ethically sourced Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla also aligned with growing consumer demand for supply chain transparency.
