When I open Instagram these days, I honestly don't know whether to get out the popcorn or bite the table edge. The spectacle that has been awaiting interested fragrance lovers for days is becoming increasingly absurd. Growing more bewildered, I ask myself: When did 100 ml of alcohol plus a few fragrances become a worldview and a fight for freedom of speech and human rights? It is astonishing what can fit into a small bottle.
What had happened? The German perfume distributor Nobilis reported unlawful content on TikTok from its perspective. TikTok then suspended or warned various content creators in view of the platform rules. The consequences were massive boycott calls and a widespread wave of outrage against all brands distributed by the company. Bottles were demonstratively and, of course, online removed from shelves or disposed of in the trash. In an AI video, influencers take up arms and fight against the German "Fragrance Syndicate" in Avengers fashion. All participants are clearly recognizable. AI makes it possible: labeled as fiction, but real people take part in the armed fight as heroes; the opponent has no chance. At the same time, personal attacks escalated. Handelsblatt and Bild newspaper report on hate messages and death threats against the managing director of the Nobilis Group, Udo Heuser, and his family. The police are investigating. Meanwhile, the first creators are expressly distancing themselves from the death threats. This is right and above all necessary.
What responsibility is associated with the public staging of a social media conflict and what dynamics it can unleash remains, however, a legitimate question for me. Already after a short time of cross-platform outrage on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube, it was no longer about the actual reason for the account suspensions, but about one of the big questions of society: freedom of speech or dictatorship and the fight of the "Avengers of the Disinherited" against the oppressors. The consequences were defamation, incitement, hate, and polarization on the one hand, and fear on the other. For me, one thing became particularly clear: outrage is a lucrative topic for content creators and a strategy for success that should be taken quite seriously. For example, the anti-Nobilis AI video recorded far more than 100,000 views after just 24 hours. After only two days, there is already the third part of the viral hit. For a small account with just under 1,500 followers, this is a remarkable success.
The mechanics follow a relatively clear pattern: the first video is followed by a reaction, then a rebuttal, new alliances are formed, the next level of escalation is already waiting. Even the subsequent distancing provides more posts. By the way, this does not necessarily mean that someone starts a conflict specifically for this purpose. But if the dramatization receives many times more attention than ordinary fragrance posts, it may at least provide an incentive. Please do not misunderstand me: criticism is of course part of it, and strong criticism is welcome. But concrete criticism can be examined for its reasoning. An enemy image, on the other hand, can be particularly well fed with ever-new stories. There is little room for factual clarification. And let's be honest: reciting legal foundations is not very entertaining. The fight for freedom of speech and against oppression gives a bit more.
But like every performance, this spectacle also needs an audience. A community, fans, and followers who have as little doubt as possible about the distribution of roles. A comment, a shared video, the first contribution is made. By now, the audience is no longer merely watching. It carries the story further and thus becomes part of the staging itself. The return: attention and reach, the social media currency par excellence.
This brings us to the much-vaunted community that is supposed to show solidarity and stand supportively by the opinion leaders. What is often forgotten here, however: a shared hashtag is not yet a shared interest, and the fragrance community is anything but a homogeneous community. Someone who merely wants to get information about a fragrance has a different perspective than someone who wants to sell it. Someone who collects bottles has different expectations than someone who wants to generate revenue with their content. Of course, creators are also allowed to earn money. But they should neither conceal nor hide their economic interests. The current distribution of roles – here the evil commercially acting company, there the selfless voice of the community – therefore does not convince me. Anyone who can convert attention into economic advantages is themselves part of the business.
And then there is another party that appears surprisingly little in this dispute: authorized retail. It usually has nothing to do with the dispute, but in case of doubt, it would be the first to be affected by boycott calls. And that in multiple respects. They have already paid for the goods on their shelves. Whether someone subsequently declares the brands a public enemy is irrelevant for the investment.
I myself ran a perfumery for almost ten years and know the constant balancing act. Customers expect coveted brands, new products, and a selection that can be tested in peace. For that, you have to buy, pre-finance, and estimate which demand could at least hold up in the medium term. Yesterday, you absolutely had to carry the coveted brand. Today, you have to justify it because a handful of suspended TikTokers made a must-have a no-go overnight? I assume that the absurdity of these demands is obvious.
The retailer bears the risk for the purchased goods. Especially those who stand up in the name of the community should keep in mind that they could be the first to get run over. However, social media reality is rarely identical to the real world. Even if some influencers consider themselves the center of the world with their strong opinions, it has little to do with real life.
What if the rest of the world doesn't even hear about all this fuss? What role does it play for someone who is currently looking for a perfume as a Christmas gift whether three TikTokers were suspended? And are the viewers and creators of these outrage videos even identical to the customers who buy the affected brands? In other words: How much power does outrage content have outside its own bubble? Initial feedback from retail shows at least that so far nothing has been noticeable on the ground.
Probably, in the end, most people are simply interested in the fragrances. And they still smell just like before all the fuss – and are not bestsellers without reason.
