by Jaclyn Smith, the “Charlie’s Angels” actress and the personality behind America’s most famous fashion collection, is launching a fragrance on HSN, called “Jackie”.
“It’s soft, timeless, feminine and powdery,” Smith told WWD. “It doesn’t hit you in the face, and it lasts all day. When you go to bed at night while reading, it might be faint, but it’s there.
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“One of the most beautiful gifts from my husband is the opportunity to create a personalized fragrance. He knew I loved vanilla and musk, and he surprised me when he took me to this little shop in France where you could mix your own perfume. I started mixing all these oils, and I wore that perfume for years until it got to a point where I couldn’t get those oils anymore. So when I was approached for this project with HSN, the timing was perfect. I could wear something similar to what I’ve liked for years. It’s not an oil, but it’s very memorable.”
Jackie launches July 24 on HSN and HSN.com with one fragrance in a 3.4-ounce bottle priced at $75. The bottle has a slim, classic, rectangular shape with a clear toggle top. The top three notes are bergamot, aldehydes and amber. The heart notes are earthy musk, sandalwood and heliotrope. “That heliotrope grounds it and brings it all together,” Smith said. Randee took St. Nicholas photographed the Jackie campaign in the garden of the actor’s home in Los Angeles.
Smith said she worked closely with the Greenwich, Conn.-based fragrance manufacturer RJTB Group. “This perfume is really me,” Smith said. “I was involved in every aspect of the development of the perfume and I was involved with the bottle. It’s very simple and refined,” said the actress who became an overnight icon playing Kelly Garrett on the TV series “Charlie’s Angels” which ran from 1976 to 1981. She also starred in the TV movie “Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy,” starred in miniseries such as “The Bourne Identity” and “Rage of Angels,” and had cameo roles in the “Charlie’s Angels” movies, among other roles.
Smith’s fashion collection was first launched in 1985 and has always been sold exclusively at Kmart. Her brand was one of the reasons Kmart survived despite its constant mismanagement, bankruptcy and store closings over the years. Jaclyn Smith’s collection disappeared for a while until January 2023, when it was rebroadcast on HSN. It targets women 35 and older, with classic and on-trend pieces that can be worn from day to night, stretch, and a wide range of sizes that, as the actress said, “fit real people.”
When the series “Charlie’s Angels” ended (it still appears in reruns) Kmart approached Smith for its famous line. At the time Smith was under contract with Max Factor, which dissuaded her from Kmart’s offer. After she balked, Kmart followed up, and encouraged her to look at Kmart’s Hunter’s Glen line, which impressed her, and convinced her to work with Kmart against many people saying, “don’t do it.”
“It was one of the wisest decisions I’ve made,” she once told WWD.
Now, the launch of Jackie fragrance is another step forward to add the Jacyln Smith collection to the lifestyle brand. Besides the fragrance, Smith said a body lotion is in development, and she would like to make additional fragrances including a room spray. “I’m still trying to write my book. I want a book that reflects where I came from and my life.” She said she will be introducing 14 new fashion pieces later this month, and this fall, Kohl’s will begin carrying some of her separates that can be coordinated into outfits and worn interchangeably. Kohl declined to comment.
“I have loved perfume since I was a little girl. My mom used Guerlain; she also mixed some of her own perfume. Sometimes my mom would put oils on the stove and that smell would waft through the house. I even remember when she visited me later in her life, when she opened a suit, that smell was in her clothes, in her suit. It’s amazing what smell can do to memory. You don’t want to lose that. Smell has always been a part of my life. My mom thought it helped define your personality, it was the finishing touch, or what accentuated your appearance. That’s romantic, isn’t it?
“I remember in New York once, this girl stops me. She said ‘I don’t want your autograph. I know you’re on Charlie’s Angels, but I want to know what perfume you’re wearing.’ I had to mix the oils.”
While under contract with Max Factor, Smith represented Epis, which was launched in 1981. “It was a very exciting nostalgia. He won many awards.” The motto was, “Part of the art of being a woman is knowing when not to be too much of a woman.”
Ten years later with Max Factor, Smith launched the fragrance “California”. “It was really a lifestyle fragrance,” said the former Charlie’s Angel. She said that she was involved in the development of that fragrance, but along with Jackie, other people involved in the development were more receptive to her ideas. “I didn’t get that many people.”
When asked what accounts for her brand’s longevity, Smith said, “I’ve been thinking about that myself. At my age (she’s 78), I’m out there working harder than I have in years. It’s good for my brain. I put so much time into the clothes. This group came to me and now I am launching a fragrance. I have a very strong work ethic. I work very hard. I do not know. I am lucky. I am approachable. I’m open to letting us all participate in it. Whether it’s the fragrance or the clothes, it’s all about the team.”
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