Jaclyn Smith, the “Charlie’s Angels” actress and the personality behind America’s most enduring celebrity 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 get into bed at night and you’re reading, it might be faint, but there it is.
“One of the most beautiful gifts from my husband was the opportunity to create a personalized fragrance. He knew I loved vanilla and musk, and he surprised me by taking me to this little shop in France where you could mix your own fragrance. I started mixing all these oils, and I wore that fragrance for years until it reached a point where I couldn’t get those oils anymore. So when I was approached for this project with HSN, it was perfect timing. I could again put on something like what I loved for many years. It’s not oil, but it’s very reminiscent.”
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Jackie launches July 24 on HSN and HSN.com with a single fragrance in a 3.4-ounce bottle priced at $75. The bottle has a lean, classic, rectangular shape with a clear toggle top. The three top notes are bergamot, aldehyde and amber. The heart notes are earthy musk, sandalwood and heliotrope. “That heliotrope really grounds it and brings it all together,” said Smith. The Jackie campaign was photographed by Randee St. Nicholas in the garden of the actress’ home in Los Angeles.
Smith said she worked closely with the RJTB Group, the Greenwich, Conn.-based manufacturer of the fragrance. “This fragrance is really me,” said Smith. “I was involved in every aspect of the development of the fragrance and I was involved in the bottle. It’s very simple and refined,” said the actress who became an overnight icon by playing Kelly Garrett on the “Charlie’s Angels” television series which ran from 1976 to 1981. She also played the lead role in the TV movie “Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy,” starred in such miniseries 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 always sold exclusively at Kmart. Her brand was one of the reasons why Kmart survived despite its mismanagement, bankruptcy and constant store closings over the years. The Jaclyn Smith collection disappeared for awhile until January 2023, when it relaunched on HSN. It targets women 35 and older, with classic and on-trend items that can be worn day into night, stretch, and a wide range of sizes that as the actress has said, “fit real people.”
When the “Charlie’s Angels” series were discontinued (it’s still seen in reruns) Kmart approached Smith for her celebrity line. At the time Smith was under contract with Max Factor, which discouraged her from Kmart’s offer. After she balked, Kmart persisted, and encouraged her to look at Kmart’s Hunter’s Glen line, which impressed her, and convinced her to work with Kmart against a lot of people saying, “don’t do it.”
“It was one of the wisest decisions I made,” she once told WWD.
Now, the launch of the Jackie fragrance marks another step forward in building the Jacyln Smith collection into a lifestyle brand. Aside from the fragrance, Smith said a body lotion is being developed, and that she would like to do additional fragrances including a room spray. “I’m still trying to finish writing my book. I want a book that really represents 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’s declined to comment.
“I have loved fragrance ever since I was a little girl. My mom used Guerlain; she also mixed some of her own fragrances. My mom would sometimes put oils on the stove and that scent would permeate through the house. I remember even when she visited me later in her life, when she opened a suitcase, that scent was in her clothes, in her suitcase. It’s amazing what scent can do to memory. You don’t want to lose that. Scent has always been a part of my life. My mom thought it helped define your personality, that it was the finishing touch, or what underscored your look. 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 are on Charlie’s Angels, but I want to know what fragrance you are wearing.’ I had on the oils that I mixed.”
While on contract with Max Factor, Smith represented Epris, launched in 1981. “It was a very provocative fragrance. It won a lot of awards.” It had the slogan, “Part of the art of being a woman, is knowing when to be not too much of a lady.”
Ten years later with Max Factor, Smith launched the “California” fragrance. “That was really a lifestyle fragrance,” the former Charlie’s Angel said. She said she was involved in the development of those fragrances, though with Jackie, others involved in the development were more receptive to her ideas. “I didn’t get as many no’s.”
Asked what accounts for the longevity of her brand, Smith said, “I was wondering that myself. At my age (she is 78), I’m out there working harder than in many years. It’s good for my brain. I’ve put so much time into the apparel. This group just came to me and now I’m launching a fragrance. I have a very strong work ethic. I work very hard. I don’t know. I am lucky. I am approachable. I am open to let’s all take part in it. Whether it’s the fragrance or the apparel, it’s all about team.”