FUGAZZI
HEMA

2026

pear
green rose
bergamot

nutmeg
saffron

akigalawood
sandalwood

This is a limited edition in collaboration with Dutch store Hema. It celebrates the 100th anniversary of Hema. 30ml/€30. Release date: May 18, 2026 at Hema stores.

Pear is notoriously hard to get right in fragrances. Fugazzi in my opinion has a reputation for smelling quite unnatural/plasticy for a brand in their price class and that’s 100% the case here in the opening. The scent is not unpleasant, but it’s a screechy, artificial pear scent, with a surprising amount of aquatic touches and aromatic spices.

I find it to lean a bit more traditionally masculine than I’d expect from a collaboration like this. The fruitiness sets it apart, but the rest of the composition feels more akin to a shower gel-ish cologne with some aquatic touches for the first hours. I keep seeing this explained as pear icecream, but it opens closer to Acqua di Gio than to most feminine marketed, gourmand or fruity fragrances.

References that come to mind are those cheap big hair gel jars that take me back to my teenage years. As well as fragrances from that era akin to Acqu di Gio, Issey Miyake, Iceberg. The pear does enough to make it more unisex than most of those, but it’s quite peppery (I saw someone mention that it smells like celery in the opening and I can see that as well); I wouldn’t be surprised if the spiciness throws off a lot of people, younger & women especially.

I don’t love it, but don’t dislike it up to that point, but the drydown is where things go left for me personally. Instead of fizzling out, the freshness changes into a different scent. The spicinesss remains, but it gets sweeter. It slowly starts to smell like those burnt sugary & milky gourmand drydowns up close; like condensed milk and pulpy woods. I think it’s the faux-(sandal)wood accord that Fugazzi uses, as I’ve had this issue with several of their previous releases, especially Passionfroudh. Not great & totally not fitting with the first hours.

At €30/30ml it’s definitely appropriately priced; you’re getting a better deal here than with most Fugazzi releases. As a scent profile goes, this is nothing special, rather surprisingly retro and kind of kitschy. The later hours feel disconnected and borderline start to ruin the experience, so it’s a soft no for me, but I guess it’s a fun collaboration at a reasonable price.