Dating is associated with growing up and that is when young people start to change their appearance.

The same goes for Biniyam Meles, 22. After finishing high school he started worrying about his appearance and began looking at girls with a different intention. His look became his highest priority and wore the contemporary fashion, looking simple and feeling fresh is what he is looking for in his everyday hustle.

Renting a house around Giorgis, water is not that accessible, where he does not like the inconveniences related to taking shower using a container.  So he has to maintain that feeling of freshness using antiperspirant and perfumed body sprays.

Apart from the water accessibility he also accepts the usual saying which is associated with the idea of being a man; he does not frequently take showers.

“You know, when you are a man you do not take a shower every day; it is just not right,” Biniyam states.

Rather, when he gets up early he puts Smart Collection body spray before he leaves his house, which, according to him provides freshness for the whole day.

It has been a while since he started using Smart Collection, which are imitations of renowned brands like Givenchy, Allure,  Chanel, Bulgari and many other brands and every month he tries to use a different flavor.

“With the hot weather and humidity, there has to be something that makes you feel fresh,” Biniyam says.

It has been a while since the deodorant business boomed in the city and even in obscure spots it became one of the fast-selling merchandise. It is not only big cosmetic shops but also the small neighborhood kiosks, video stores and the street vendors that sell this product.

With the invention of the first commercial deodorant brand Mum invented in 1888, a cream which was applied using fingertips, countless brands of deodorants evolved with different types.

The idea being the same, the concept of deodorants dates back to the time when the Egyptians were using perfumed bath, using perfume with different incense to their underarms.

According to different records, they used incense as a deodorant and women also would put a melting perfumed wax on their heads that would slowly melt throughout the day. The same thing goes for ancient Greeks who used perfume and aromatic oils in their armpit. Some ancient civilizations were also fanatical about perfumes when they soaked their clothes and pets with perfume. In Asia what is now referred to as natural deodorant was used by applying mineral salts to the armpit to avoid the smell of body odor caused by the growth of bacteria in the armpit and to give a pleasing scent.

In Ethiopia, people used to put lemons to avoid the odor of armpit.  And also rural Ethiopians used different leaves, including ades to bring good scent and also the woiba (steam bathing) is used not just to bring about a smoother skin but also to bring about a fresh smell.

Piazza with its brick buildings which bear witness to the five-year occupation by Italian fascists is its legacy and what makes it unique from other areas.

Apart from that, Piazza is always full of beans, serving as a joint for the different crowds of people. The different cafés, shops, the woyalas, passersby and shoppers create a unique ambience.

For Asmamaw Kasse—owner of Abrico Cosmo cosmetics shop around Piazza—the past two years have been hectic even during holidays.

He did not hide the fact that these products, deodorants, are the best selling products making it 3,000 birr worth of sale everyday.

With the hot weather many people especially the younger generation come to this shop usually to buy their brand of choice or sometimes asking for a recommendation from his side.

So far the leading brands are Axe and Smart Collection for men and Dove, Innocence and Royal for women and Roll-on Nivea deodorants for both sexes.

“The weather is getting hotter every time but I guess it is working on our side, an opportunity for the market,” Asmamaw states.

When it comes to pricing, the roll is the cheapest. And the price ranges from 38 birr to 100 birr.

It is not only the Piazza shops; even small shops around Casancis on the road to Aware have high deodorant sales as well. Located on the road-side, Yimegushal Kassa thinks it is very convenient for passersby to come to her shop.

Even if the market is flexible on different occasions, she makes up to five hundred birr per day.

“Every day you might see a new customer,” the small shop owner, Yimegushal, says.

The highest selling brand in both sexes is Smart Collection with its more than a dozen flavors.

Tadesse Birhanu also prefers Smart Collection for its nice smell. Now he has the luxury to choose which brand he can use but when he was in college the variety of deodorants was limited.

While studying at Gondar University, water was a luxury, so taking a shower was unthinkable. So they had to wait for a week to get water. The only choice before them was putting deodorant to feel fresh. Now he would not miss it for the world, it does not matter if he takes a shower or not. He does not go without putting on a deodorant.

According to Asmamaw and Yimegushal, there are also times when customers have itching and allergy problems.

Sometimes the products are fake and that has a side-effect. Asrat Feleke, sales and marketing manager of one of the major cosmetics importer, Al Farag, highly insists customers must be careful when they buy products.

He says in most of the shops they have what they call “the 2nd one,” which means fake. According to him, there is no product called 2nd one, only an original or a fake.

These products are cheaper than the original one and since they are almost identical, with only a slight difference with the original one, it is not obvious to customers. So he advises customers to buy from the recognized cosmetics shop.

“These products have side-effects which affect the skin. So considering only their price should not be a priority,” Asrat told The Reporter.

Importing cosmetics products from England, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and Egypt since 1932, during the last five years, Al Farag have witnessed tremendous increase in the products of deodorant ranging from 5-20 percent increase every year in the sale.

Asrat says this is not only in Addis Ababa but also in other Ethiopian cities since deodorants are becoming urban symbols and every year the sale is growing.

According to him, the brand consumers use differs across the group. Youngsters prefer perfumed deodorants in a spray format and the middle-aged prefer roll with a decent smell.

From their sale the leading brands are Axe, Dove, Nivea, Bac and now Smart Collection is also breaking into the market but Asrat says the customers do not have detail information on Smart Collection.

Since using deodorant is a recent trend, according to Asrat, there are also times when people use antiperspirants materials on their clothes.

“Some materials are done as antiperspirant but some people put them on their clothes which might leave stains on their clothes,” Asrat says.

Michael Assefa, sales manager of Cosmo Trading, also shares Asrat’s idea and says how it is growing even in replacing the perfumes where people are shifting to deodorant sprays.

“Even if it cannot stay for long hours they use these perfumed sprays as perfumes,” Michael says.

In their sale Smart Collection leads in both sexes followed by Axe Dark Temptations for men. Power House also has high demand.

“Many people have the awareness on what to buy, how to use the roll ones and they also know the different brands,” Michael says.

Walking on the street or in a taxi it became common to smell some of the renowned brands like Givenchy, Calvin Klein, Chanel, Christian Dior and Dolce & Gabbana which are highly expensive. And Michael believes that deodorant formats have made these renowned scents accessible to people who cannot afford this perfumes.