Shamless marketing 101, 007 Fragrance just in time for skyfall.

James Bond films have become irrevocably linked with marketing since the days of Pierce Brosnan, long before that, even as far back as Sean Connery, people scrutinised every aspect of Bond, his wristwatches, his suits, the vintage of Dom Perignon he drinks, bu not until the coming of Brosnan, and the shamless marketing that went with it di Bond start to become a vehicle for brands to sell their wares.  All of which culminated in the cringeworthy exchange between Daniel Craig's Bond and Eva Green's character in Casino Royale. "Is that a Rolex?  No it's an Omega actually".

Such shameless marketing is one thing on screen, but off screen the brands who invest heavily in the Bond name get the right to utilise it in their campaigns, and use it they do, from Samsonite selling their "bond luggage" back in Brosnan's days, to the "Omega bond edition" watches that have been a feature since Craig uttered those immortal lines, the Bond brand has become a launchpad for other products for some 15 years now, and this is a trend which is set to continue, not change.

Proctor and Gamble, the Cosmetics giant behind amongst others, Lacoste and Hugo Boss fragrances have decided to go a different way, they have decided to buy into the Bond Brand by releasing a 007 fragrance, designed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Bond, it is timed just a little too conveniently to the release of Skyfall for our taste to merely be to commemorate 50 years of Bond.  However what we have here is a new fragrance for men (naturally), in a specially designed box and bottle, with a trick spray top, and an advertising campaign doen by Greg Williams, who was the on set photographer of the last five Bond movies.

The question now is, what does it smell like?  And how much does it cost?  To answer the first, it contains Lavender, Moss, and warm woods, with a musky base, a safe fragrance with masculine hints to satisfy fans.  As for the cost, it will be retailing for £32 for 75ml, and £42 for 100ml, so it is no particularly expensive, a testament to the fact it has pretty much just been thrown together to capitalise on the marketing boon.

Available now, the only question is, will there be a scene where a Bond Girl says "what's that smell James?  It's 007 Darling, 007 Fragrance!"