STYLISH BURGER
Patricia Rossignol walks into the
room with an air of importance and
a scintillating scent of … could it be
gardenia, layered with ylang-ylang,
jasmine and orange blossom and a note
of caramel? Very likely it is Signature,
one of three Rossignol 1634 fragrances
that carry her family name.
A fashionista, Francophile, art
philanthropist and now fragrance
founder and entrepreneur, Rossignol
has taken the reigns mid-life of a new
founder of Rossignol 1634. Long part of
St. Pete society circles, she’s been a tour
de force hosting top-notch fundraisers
like Wine Weekend at the Museum of
Fine Arts. (As chair of the 2018 Wine
Weekend, her Louis XV-theme masked
featuring guest vintner Maison Louis
Latour for Grand Cru and Premier Cru
wines.)
In January, she’s assisting with a 1920s
Cabaret at the Dali Museum as part
of the “Midnight in Paris” Surrealism
exhibit, a major exhibit organized by the
museum and the Centre Pompidou in Paris – and sponsored in part
by Patricia Rossignol.
Married to noted French chemist and pharmaceutical magnate
Jean-Francois Rossignol, Patricia is proud of her heritage in the
Rossignol family. With a legacy dating to 1634 in Burgundy, France,
generations to start her own business, traveling constantly (I barely
caught up with her for this interview in the Dali café), jet-setting
between Paris and the south of France, Milan and New York. Yet
she takes her hectic schedule in stride, popping in at fashion shows,
parties and lunches, being sure to spritz a few people along the way
with small bottles she pulls from her handbag.
In the gift shop at the Dali Museum, a large display touts her
fragrances and trademarked “Lady in Red” logo. She was delighted
in late 2018 when Executive Director Hank Hine invited her to hold
a launch party at the museum and sell the product in the gift shop.
Plans also called for a debut at Jackie Z in December, a high-end
fashion boutique at Sundial.
Rossignol seemed destined for the fashion world. “I’ve always loved
fashion,” she said. Born in New Jersey to a banker father and stayat
home mother, her grandmother was an excellent seamstress
and her mother loved fashion, she said, making dress patterns from
32 StPeteLifeMag.com January/February 2020
newspaper and taking trips to New
York City to purchase fabric. She made
dresses for Patricia inspired by Paris
fashion shows.
Fast forward and Rossignol’s background
in the fashion industry is extensive,
the majority of her career as account
executive for Levi Strauss & Co, where
she became an expert in merchandising
and branding and attending the runway
shows in New York, Paris and Milan.
What inspired her to delve into the world
of fragrance?
“I started thinking about it three
years ago,” she said. “I found a French
company headquartered in New York
so spent two years traveling back and
forth to work on the development … the
Rossignol family goes back to 1634 so
I wanted it to be a heritage brand, yet
moving it to the modern. I wanted to
create a luxury line of niche fragrances
that would be classic and modern for
both women and men. I love art and Art
that with the Lady in Red.”
She and her team at world-renowned Mane Fragrance tested 200
Jour (For Day), and Pour le Nuit (For Night). She calls them unisex,
centered on spicy oriental, and each has its own distinct layering of
to Paris to shoot a promotional video and photographs. (The photo
with this story was taken at Le Bristol in Paris.)
On May 1, 2019, she held her launch party at the Dali.
While she spends a lot of time in Paris and France (she has a
home in Brittany), Rossignol loves living in St. Pete. Ever the
businesswoman, she is thinking about expanding into lotions and
accessories, but is not ready to divulge details.
What has she learned from the past few years of developing
signature fragrances?
“I learned that most fragrances are not quality,” she said. “Ours
are complex and very high quality. Each one evokes memories of
something good in your life.”
To learn more or order Rossignol 1634 fragrances ($150/1.7 oz.), check
out the Dali Museum gift shop, Jackie Z at Sundial, Oxford Exchange in
Tampa or go to www.rossignol1634.com
Patricia Rossignol
/StPeteLifeMag.com
/www.rossignol1634.com