Yves Saint Laurent introduced the fragrance Opium in 1977.
The name was chosen to suggest an intoxicating, luxurious experience and immediately made the perfume one of the most distinctive launches in fashion fragrance. Raymond Chaillan and Jean Amic are credited as creators of the original composition, which used a rich oriental style associated with spices, woods, resins, and floral notes.
The fragrance became especially notable for its provocative name and advertising. Those elements generated controversy in some markets, but they also helped make Opium a landmark in late twentieth-century perfume marketing.
Opium should not be confused with Yves Saint Laurent’s Kouros, launched in 1981, or Paris, launched in 1983. Later flankers and reformulations have appeared, including Black Opium, but Black Opium is a separate modern fragrance rather than the original 1977 release.