ORANGE, Calif. — The world’s first spiritual perfume – Virtue(R) – was premiered this week by IBI, a niche fragrance company in Orange, CA. Based upon an inspired Biblical formula, the perfume is designed to be a reminder of God, Christ, spiritual self and soul.

“We turned to the Bible to seek inspiration about which items to include and became convinced that a formulation would reveal itself,” explains Rick Larimore, IBI’s chief executive officer. “Creating Virtue has been an adventurous journey through fragrance and scripture, with remarkable miracles confirming our choices.”

Virtue’s subtle blend includes top notes of apricot, pomegranate and fig that transition to a gentle heart of iris, warming to a golden base of rich, exotic woods of frankincense, myrrh, aloe, and spikenard. Several ingredients cost up to $4,500 per kilogram, making Virtue(R) a truly precious mixture of oils. It is available in a 1.7-fluid ounce French bottle and over cap, with 24-kt gold raised lettering on the bottle and embossed gold foil lettering on the box, pamphlet enclosed. Virtue(R) retails for $80 and is available only via the Internet at www.virtueperfume.com.

“The natural oils of Virtue blend with the wearer’s own body chemistry to form your own signature fragrance. Uniquely beautiful and definitely unforgettable, it places the wearer in an ancient world of senses, enduring and timeless for over 3,000 years,” says Vicki Pratt, IBI’s president. “A gift for someone special or your own unique treasure, Virtue brings a valued gift of scent and hope of a renewed spiritual self. No one has ever done this before in a perfume – developing a fragrance that reminds us of our, sometimes frail, conscious link to God.”

Six years in development, Virtue(R) is Pratt’s inspiration. Her fragrance career started as a perfume demonstrator at Disneyland’s Mademoiselle Antoinette’s Parfumerie, overlapping her 30 years experience as a home fragrance manufacturer. Pratt and Larimore have relied on divine guidance throughout Virtue’s creation.

Researching possible names, Pratt and Larimore, through prayer, were guided to “virtue.” A full year after filing for a registered trademark, the team became aware that virtue was surprisingly associated with fragrance.

“Biblically, fragrance was associated with Christ and many of the saints; including last century’s Padre Pio, who gave off a fragrance that was associated with virtue,” explains Larimore. “Almost every religion and spiritual system worldwide acknowledges that many individuals of high spiritual attainment give off a fragrance attributed to their virtue.”

For example, in the King James Version of the New Testament, virtue is recognized as both a power and a presence. When the lady touched Christ’s robe it says, “And Jesus, immediately knew in himself that virtue had gone out of Him, turned Him about in the press and said, who touched my clothes?” (Mark 5:30). Christ understood virtue’s power and presence – and knew when some of it left him.

While researching ingredients, Pratt and Larimore turned to the Scriptures to investigate a substantial list of Biblical items. Modern scholarship revealed the true nature of those items, not originally translated correctly.

In research, the IBI team discovered that the “apple” of the Bible was not likely the “forbidden fruit.” Native apples did not exist in the Holy Land in ancient times. Scholarship has long since revealed the likely candidates were pomegranate or apricot. The references in the Bible to the apple tree say it offered shade and its fruits were sweet tasting, fragrant, gold in color, resting amongst silvery leaves – indicating apricot, one of the most plentiful fruits of the Holy Land. The apricot essence – the last ingredient of Virtue(R) to have its technical difficulties resolved – brought a unique twist to the perfume’s purpose.

“Because Virtue was created to remind the wearer to feel God’s spiritual presence throughout the day, it’s especially fitting that the ‘forbidden fruit’ is now the prime top note for reconnecting to His spirit,” says Larimore. “In a subtle turning of the tables, apricot now assists as a simple reminder of our Divine associations and spiritual intent.”

Initial product testing in 2005 at Barney’s New York in Beverly Hills showed that 95% of those tested – male and female – loved the fragrance. Typically, 30% or better “likeability” is considered a success. Initial users of Virtue(R) report that the fragrance is not only a great reminder of God, but layers beautifully with other fragrances.

As part of its premier launch, IBI is offering free shipping and introductory $15 Certificates on the website, for immediate redemption.

Orange County, CA-based IBI was formed in 2005 as a niche fragrance company. It will introduce a Biblically based moisturizing lotion soon.

For more information, please call 714-974-8333 or visit www.virtueperfume.com.

[tags]Virtue perfume, niche fragrance company, first spiritual perfume[/tags]

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ABOUT THE EDITOR: Aria C. Munro works in the book publishing industry and has been a content editor for the Neotrope News Network since 2004. Her black video iPod is most often shuffling Invader Zim episode vids and Thomas Dolby or Dead Can Dance tunez.
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