Gilles Andrier - CEO of Givaudan | Podcast | In Good Company | Norges Bank Investment Management
TL;DR
Givaudan CEO Gilles Andrier reveals how the world's largest fragrance and flavor company combines neuroscientific principles with artistic creativity to serve B2B clients, while navigating the tension between consumer testing data and bold innovation in a market being reshaped by Gen Z self-expression trends.
🧬 The Neuroscience of Smell and Taste 3 insights
Quarter of human receptors detect chemicals
Humans dedicate 500 of their 2,000 sensory receptors—25% of the total—exclusively to taste and smell, reflecting these senses' evolutionary origin as a survival kit for detecting poison and calories.
Fastest pathway to memory and emotion
Olfactory signals provide the most direct neurological route from sensory input to memory and emotional response, making scent the most powerful sense for creating lasting consumer connections.
Purpose expanded beyond basic senses
While originally survival mechanisms, Givaudan has evolved its mission to making consumers "happier and healthier," broadening its scope beyond traditional fragrances and flavors.
🎨 The Creative Development Process 3 insights
Competitive B2B briefs with co-development
Major brands like Tom Ford issue simultaneous briefs to multiple fragrance houses, engaging Givaudan in a collaborative process to define olfactive signatures that fit strategic portfolio gaps.
Perfumers compete with evaluator support
Each project involves multiple perfumers writing formulas like musical compositions while evaluators bridge creative work with client needs, maintaining friendly competition through team-based incentive structures.
Testing paradox stifles breakthrough innovation
While consumer testing offers comfort, it often locks products into familiar territory, with major successes like Red Bull and Angel by Mugler initially testing poorly or bypassing testing entirely.
📈 Market Trends and Innovation Cycles 3 insights
Gen Z fuels double-digit fragrance growth
Generation Z has driven five consecutive years of double-digit growth in fine fragrances by adopting multi-layering techniques and using scent primarily as a form of personal expression rather than private luxury.
Accelerated churn requires constant innovation
With Givaudan growing at 15% annually in fine fragrances versus traditional 5% market growth, the industry now sees 25% annual newness against 10% erosion, far exceeding historical replacement rates.
New molecules birth entirely new categories
Innovative ingredients like Akigalawood, created within Givaudan's research facilities, can establish entirely new fragrance families and become "mothers" of subsequent industry trends.
🎓 Talent and Education 2 insights
Elite school trains global fragrance leaders
Givaudan's 80-year-old perfumery school has produced graduates who created approximately 40% of all fragrances sold worldwide.
Technical skill requires artistic genius
While having a "perfect nose" is essential, comparable to a musician's perfect pitch, true mastery requires Mozart-level creativity beyond mere technical olfactory accuracy.
Bottom Line
Success in sensory innovation requires balancing data-driven testing with the courage to launch disruptive, untested concepts that capture emerging cultural shifts, particularly the Gen Z demand for multi-layered self-expression.
More from In Good Company (Nicolai Tangen)
View all
How the we use AI in practice | AI Summit 2026 | Norges Bank Investment Management
Norges Bank Investment Management details its aggressive AI adoption strategy, revealing that achieving a 20% efficiency target required mandatory company-wide upskilling, painful data infrastructure overhauls, and shifting from traditional Scrum teams to small AI-enabled autonomous units.
Christine Lagarde - President of the European Central Bank | Podcast | In Good Company
Christine Lagarde warns that today's combination of AI-driven technological disruption and geopolitical fragmentation mirrors the 1920s, creating risks of financial instability and conflict. She argues Europe must accelerate its green transition, confront difficult trade-offs between social benefits and defense spending, and fiercely protect central bank independence to navigate unprecedented economic uncertainty.
This is how we work with risk in the fund | Risk Summit 2026 | Norges Bank Investment Management
At NBIM's inaugural Risk Summit, executives from the world's largest sovereign wealth fund explain how they navigate an era where 'stability has never been more unstable,' employing AI-enhanced monitoring and rigorous scenario planning to manage intertwined geopolitical, counterparty, and emerging technology risks.
Andreas Berger - CEO of Swiss Re | Podcast | In Good Company | Norges Bank Investment Management
Swiss Re CEO Andreas Berger explains how the world's largest reinsurer manages global risk through diversification across life, property, and corporate lines, while emphasizing that population growth in catastrophe-prone areas—not just climate change—is driving record insurance losses and requiring a fundamental shift toward prevention and public-private partnerships.