The Body Shop — Italian Summer Fig
Essence
Italian Summer Fig is The Body Shop’s 2015 budget take on the green-fig genre, launched as the fifth scent in the relaunched Voyage Collection (the rebranded “Scents of the World” line). Its entire reason for existing, in the wearers’s eyes, is that it is a near-clone of Diptyque’s Philosykos at roughly a quarter to a third of the price - a realistic just-picked green fig that leans grassy and leafy rather than coconut-creamy. It is simple, linear, and pleasant, and is now discontinued, which has given it a small cult following among fig lovers who stockpiled bottles.
Scent Profile
Given the catalog’s fig/green/vine top, floral-saffron-rose heart, and oak-amber base, the wear experience reported by the wearers is far simpler than that pyramid suggests: this is essentially a fig-leaf soliflore from start to finish. Per a 2015 review by curlyhairedmessymane, perfumers Arnaud Winter and Constance Georges-Picot “combined their love of figs with notes of grape leaf and crocus (top notes), Tuscan Rose (middle notes), Amber and Oak-wood (base notes).” The opening is the loudest and best part - a fresh, green, slightly sappy fig that multiple reviewers call “very authentic” and “just-picked,” with the vine/grape-leaf note reading as a leafy chlorophyll bite. The listed crocus/saffron and Tuscan rose are largely submerged; reviewers say the florals “are hardly perceptible” and the saffron-rose spicing does not announce itself. There is a recurring “creamy, soft, milky undertone” some perceive as a phantom coconut even though none is officially listed. The drydown is a soft, light woody-amber, with one experienced fig collector noting it “dries down to a lot of Iso E Super” where Philosykos goes woody-creamy. The consensus is that it is firmly linear - “you basically smell the fig the whole time, from start to finish.” The signature accord is unambiguously green fig leaf over a quiet woody base.
Performance
This is the fragrance’s chronic weakness and the most consistent wearers complaint. Reviewers describe “virtually no lasting power” and “sillage at best below average.” Multiple published listings and wearers report it fading to a skin scent within a couple of hours on skin, while lasting noticeably longer on clothing (“after my shift, my clothes still smell of the scent”). It is an EDT and wears like one. Practical strategy from the wearers: spray generously, reapply, and lean on the matching body products (the line included a fragrance mist, shower gel, body lotion, and body cream) for layering and longevity. Heat helps it bloom - one reviewer who initially dismissed it found it “wonderful” only when retested in peak summer.
Wearing Context
Overwhelmingly a warm-weather daytime scent: spring and summer, casual daywear, office-safe, errands. Its green freshness and low projection make it essentially impossible to offend with, and its gentle nature suits hot days where heavier figs would cloy. One minority reviewer argued it works as an autumn/winter “deep and rich” scent, but that is against the grain - the dominant reading is bright, light, and summery. As a practical reading, this is a “smell nice for yourself” fragrance rather than a compliment-puller or signature statement, given how close it sits to the skin. Unisex in structure, though it skews slightly feminine in marketing and perception.
Comparisons & DNA
The defining comparison, repeated constantly, is Diptyque Philosykos (EDT) - reviewers call Italian Summer Fig “definitely Philosykos’ little sister” and “an equivalent alternative” that is “much cheaper,” with the delta being that it smells “cheaper, more synthetic and artificial,” lacks Philosykos’s coconut/fig-leaf nuance, and has far weaker longevity. Some find it actually closer to Philosykos than L’Artisan Premier Figuier is (from the same nose, Olivia Giacobetti), with one reviewer noting Premier Figuier and Philosykos are “noticeably different” and ISF tracks the latter. It also sits squarely in the family of Acqua di Parma Fico di Amalfi, with one user calling them “almost identical” though Fico di Amalfi is more citrus-forward and woody-vanillic. Broadly: fresh green fig-leaf DNA, the Giacobetti-style fig template rendered on a designer-budget composition.
Reception
consensus is genuinely warm given the price: a “budget-friendly fig,” a “hidden gem,” and a “real gem” from a house with “an amazing ability to make fragrances that smell much more expensive than they actually are.” Common praise: realistic green fig, lovely for summer, excellent value. Common criticisms: poor longevity and sillage, a slightly harsh/alcoholic synthetic opening, and (for a few) “very common”/“generic” - one reviewer returned a bottle because it was so recognizable in 2015. Polarization is mild and centers on value-vs-quality: fig purists hear the synthetic edge, casual wearers love it. Blind-buy verdict from the wearers is essentially yes-if-you-can-find-it, especially for fig fans, precisely because the risk is low and the Philosykos likeness is reliable.
Versions & Reformulation
Italian Summer Fig was produced as a 50ml EDT and as a separate Fragrance Mist (lower concentration), both part of the Voyage Collection, plus matching body-care layering products. No reformulations of the EDT are documented; the fragrance was discontinued rather than reworked.
Acquisition Notes
Originally a mass-market budget item, retailing at £18.00 for 50ml at launch - per curlyhairedmessymane (Sept 17, 2015), “The 50ml bottle of Italian Summer Fig costs £18,” corroborated by Periwinkle Barn (“The Voyage Collection retails for a pocket-friendly £18.00”) - a fraction of its Diptyque inspiration. Now discontinued, so acquisition is secondhand: leftover stock, resale, and decant/split channels. Because it was cheap and is now gone, counterfeiting is not a meaningful concern, and no whitelisted batch-code guidance exists for it. Buyers should note that old, poorly stored bottles can have a degraded/alcoholic top, though the fig reportedly survives storage reasonably well. Fig lovers who find new-old-stock at low prices generally consider it worth grabbing.
Notable Facts & Lore
- The launch story is documented: in summer 2015 The Body Shop renamed its 2012 “Scents of the World” range to the Voyage Collection, gave the existing scents (Atlas Mountain Rose, Japanese Cherry Blossom, Indian Night Jasmine, Fijian Water Lotus) new faceted-glass bottles, and added Italian Summer Fig as the new member - the range going on sale July 21, 2015, per published listings’s launch news by Sandra Raičević Petrović (“Voyage arrives in sale on July 21, 2015”).
- It was positioned around figs “hand-picked from Puglia, Southern Italy.” The brand made a point of the fig fruit extract (Ficus Carica) and wearers Trade sugar-cane alcohol, and marketed it as vegan-suitable.
- The fragrance’s lasting cultural footprint within enthusiast circles is almost entirely as “the cheap Philosykos,” a status cemented after discontinuation turned it into a sought-after bargain.