As a teenager in the ‘90s your perfume choices were non-negotiable — you wore one of two iconic scents, either Dewberry by The Body Shop, or its arch rival, White Musk. Which depended on whether you favoured Dewberry’s crisp burst of under-ripe dark berries and green leaves or White Musk’s freshly-laundered, airier undertones.
I was 13 when I was given a wicker gift basket containing Dewberry perfume oil and bath pearls, and I’d never felt more sophisticated. Nothing came close to that fruity, slightly sherberty fragrance hit. The scent of Saturday mooches around Topshop and school discos, the air heady with a combination of Dewberry, Lynx Africa and questionable decisions.
Yes, as I got older, I dabbled in more high-end fragrances – Thierry Mugler’s room-clearing gourmand, Angel, and, of course, CKOne - because, who didn’t want to be Kate Moss in those ads? Yet Dewberry still held a special place in my heart and it was the fragrance of a generation until it was discontinued in the early ‘00s.
Now, it’s making a comeback. But over twenty years on, will it still hold the same appeal? Or is Dewberry best left in the ‘90s, along with our overplucked eyebrows?
Suffice to say there was uproar, and countless Reddit threads, when Dewberry was discontinued. I asked Victor Sabbe, Global CMO at The Body Shop why. “I’m honestly not sure why that decision was taken,” he said. “But so many of our customers were left heartbroken and they’ve been asking for it to come back for over 20 years.”
Then when The Body Shop went into administration in 2024, it felt like all of our favourite nostalgia spritzes risked dying with it, too. After being rescued with a buy-out that same year, like many beauty editors, I wondered how The Body Shop would survive in the long-term - so I did a little whoop of excitement when a recent press release landed on my desk saying they were relaunching Dewberry.
So why the big comeback now? “Dewberry is still our most requested product, with hundreds of fans worldwide requesting it monthly, we’ve seen thousands of Dewberry product searches on our website and have a waiting list before we even announced its return,” explains Victor Sabbe.
Dewberry’s relaunch feels timely too, given iconic ‘90s fragrances, from Clinique Happy to Tommy Girl by Tommy Hilfiger, are having a moment on social media.
“With everything going on in the world right now it’s no surprise that people are nostalgic for seemingly simpler times like the ‘90s, a time when fragrance profiles were definitely simpler too,” explains Haydn Williams, fragrance expert, writer and podcaster, @yousmellgreatwhatisit. “Of course, demand for ‘90s fragrances never went away completely, many are still enduring bestsellers, because there’s something very comforting about this kind of scent nostalgia. Perfume has that unique ability to transport us to a certain time and place because our sense of smell is linked to the limbic system, the part of the brain that controls our emotional responses to things.”
Victor Sabbe agrees. “There’s a definite trend, with consumers across all age groups, seeking products with cultural nostalgia and the ‘90s were so iconic,” he says. “Dewberry’s relaunch is a playful nod to those moments when life felt a little simpler.”
Perhaps that’s what we’re all craving right now – and given I spotted bottles of original ‘90s Dewberry fragrance going on Ebay for over £75, enthusiasm for the scent hasn’t waned either.
When I received early samples of the new Dewberry range, I noted the new line-up includes Dewberry Perfume Oil, 14ml for £20, and also a bodycare collection – featuring Body Butter, Body Yoghurt, Mist, Hand Cream and Shower Gel, starting from £7 (all on sale from January 27).
The key fragrance notes listed are crisp Dewberry, green leaves and a touch of eucalyptus with heart notes of Jasmine, Freesia, Cedarwood and Musk. But I panicked slightly when I spotted the new range contained “updated formulas”. Would it still smell the same?
“The fragrance formula has been updated to meet modern regulations but the scent profile has been perfectly replicated with the same olfactive notes,” explains Victor. Phew. But the burning question is, will I still like it, and as a Gen X beauty editor, can I really pull-off wearing Dewberry again in midlife?
© Bethan KingMy first dab of the perfume oil took me right back. A sharp burst of zingy dark berries and crunchy leafy greens exactly as I remembered. Instantly recognisable. Yes, it’s youthful and vibrant, but the green accord ground it and stop it straying into fizzy sweets territory.
What I liked most trying it again is that once that initial fruity hit fades, there’s a nuzzly, slightly musky, velvety dry-down that feels a little more grown-up. I think relaunching it as a perfume oil, rather than an Eau de Parfum, was a smart move, because it’s less intense too. Yes, it doesn’t have the longevity of an EDP — you can expect this to last around three hours before a top-up’s needed. But as an easy-to-wear, everyday spritz, which, let’s face it, Dewberry always was, I certainly didn’t feel silly wearing it.
At £20 it’s affordable too — which Haydn Williams thinks adds to the appeal. “Designer and niche fragrances are getting more expensive, so some smart shoppers are choosing retro perfumes like this that might be less hyped but are consequently much cheaper,”, he says.
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I’ll admit, my tastes have moved on since I was 14, and there isn’t the refined complexity to Dewberry that many of us have now come to expect from our scents. But Dewberry is still very wearable, fun and it won’t break the bank, either.
“Yes, it reaches people who lived the decade, but also a whole new younger audience who are enjoying aspects of it for the first time,” agrees Haydn Williams.
Rest assured, Dewberry 2.0, as I’m affectionately calling it, still has the enduring appeal it always did so I predict it to be a hit with the teens and tweens, not to mention those of us buying it second-time around.
Dewberry will be available to purchase from 27 January.
