Official FFA jacket zipped to the top? Check. Black slacks or black skirt? Check. Official FFA tie? Check. Black hosiery. Check. Black closed-toe dress shoes? Check. A spritz of one of the official FFA Fragrances? Say what?
You can now check your FFA scent off the list with an official licensed FFA women’s perfume and men’s cologne thanks to members of the Ord FFA chapter out of Nebraska.
As part of their Supervised Agriculture Experience project, sisters Josie and Sadie Ference, along with their cousin Vickie Ference, and three other relatives have released 1969 for women (after the year women were first admitted into FFA) and National Blue for men (after one of the official FFA colors).
And the products were flying off the shelf at this year’s National FFA Convention.
“People are very interested in this product,” Sadie said. “We hope that chapters all around the United States are going to start selling this because it is just a really good product. I think it appeals to almost everyone and I hope they like it as much as we do.”
The team first came up with the idea to make official FFA fragrances after a hard time selling fruit as a fundraiser for the chapter.
“We were selling fruit and people complained that fruit goes bad fast so we wanted to make something that is non-perishable, that you use every day, and can sell all year long,” Josie said.
From there the girls teamed up with a chemist in New York to formulate three perfumes and three colognes. The partnership was made possible through Michelle Caspersen, an Alma, Nebraska native who is the sole owner and operator of the perfume company, Mucielago. Murcielago has worked with celebrities in the rodeo and country music industries to develop their signature fragrances. Her most noted scents include Nashville, Nashville Blue, and Nashville DB for men and Donna and Starlet for women.
To create their signature scents for FFA, the team looked at their own perfumes and saw a pattern of what they liked in them and what other people also liked. That was the basis for what the girls sent to the chemist in the hopes to develop the scents.
After the chemist came back with three options for gals and three options for guys, the team decided to let Nebraska FFA members make the final decision at the 2017 state convention … with 1969 and National Blue declared the winning scents.
Now that the FFA fragrances have been chosen, the girls have been busy filling bottles. The National FFA Convention was their first official launch.
Vickie said a lot of students passing by at National FFA were ecstatic and thought it would be a great fundraiser for their chapter. She also pointed out this type of fundraiser would eliminate some of those complaints they received previously.
“They get a hands-on experience at smelling it and feeling the bottles and looking at the sleeves we are putting them in,” Vickie said.
The 3.4 ounce bottles are currently available through the Ord Public Schools site and sell for $35 each. Josie said the team hopes to have a web site up and running soon.
Since the Convention was a trial run for the girls until the National FFA officially approves the use of the FFA fragances under the official web site, the team is hopeful their SAE project will win over the organization at the very top as well.
“I hope that they let us soon and I think they are going to think it is a really good product,” Josie said.
