MERIT New Wave L'Extrait de Parfum bottle, golden liquid in rounded glass with a polished silver pebble cap, on whiteBottle with silver pebble cap and yellow MERIT travel spray balanced on top, looped with green grass blades on greyBottle on dark tree bark beside a curling yellow flower and red berries against a soft taupe backdropUncapped bottle tilted to show its silver spray nozzle, leaning on the chrome cap over a reflective surfaceSoft-focus close-up of the golden bottle and silver cap, white MERIT lettering sharp, reflected below

MERIT New Wave L'Extrait de Parfum is the brand's second perfume, an amber built on pink pepper, a honey floral heart, benzoin and oakwood. MERIT launches it on 22 October 2026 on meritbeauty.com at $92 for 30 ml, with a $34 travel spray, and it arrives two years after Retrospect L'Extrait de Parfum (2024).

MERIT's other launch this season is MERIT The Archival Set, and the MERIT x ERDEM limited-edition collection includes a Retrospect Soap Trio.

Updated 9 October 2026: New Wave is listed at Sephora US and Sephora Canada ahead of the brand-site launch. meritbeauty.com currently offers only a free sample sign-up.

Quick Facts

DetailInfo
BrandMERIT
ProductNew Wave L'Extrait de Parfum
Release date22 October 2026, meritbeauty.com (US)
First accessListed at Sephora US and Sephora Canada by 9 October 2026
Price$92 (US, 30 ml); $34 (US, 9 ml); £79 (UK, 30 ml)
AvailabilityUK from 22 October 2026 (MERIT UK site and retailers); Europe not yet confirmed
Size30 ml full size; 9 ml travel spray
ConcentrationExtrait de parfum
NotesPink pepper, honey floral accord, benzoin, oakwood
PerfumersDominique Ropion, Meabh McCurtin

Release Date

MERIT launches New Wave L'Extrait de Parfum direct-to-consumer on 22 October 2026, according to WWD. Elle UK and Who What Wear UK give the same date. Since 22 September 2026, meritbeauty.com has offered a free 2 ml sample sign-up. The full size isn't on the brand site yet. Sephora US and Sephora Canada already list the perfume as "New" ahead of the official launch.

Price

  • US: $92 (30 ml), $34 (9 ml travel spray) at Sephora US
  • Canada: C$125 (30 ml), C$46 (9 ml travel spray) at Sephora Canada
  • UK: £79 (30 ml). The UK price for the travel size hasn't been announced.
  • Europe: Not yet confirmed

MERIT New Wave Fragrance Notes

MERIT's official pyramid:

  • Top: pink pepper, angelica seed
  • Heart: orange flower, ylang ylang, honey floral accord
  • Base: benzoin, labdanum, olibanum, patchouli heart, ambrarome, ambroxan, musk, cypriol, vetiver, tobacco accord, cedarwood heart, oakwood, vanilla bean, tonka bean

Sephora classifies it as Florals / Warm Florals and lists four key notes: pink pepper, honeyed floral, benzoin and oakwood.

What Does MERIT New Wave Smell Like?

Based on the official notes, the scent moves through three stages:

  • Opening: spicy pink pepper and green angelica seed.
  • Heart: orange flower and ylang ylang, with a honey accord.
  • Base: resins, incense, woods, tobacco and vanilla.

MERIT describes it as moving "from bright and optimistic to warm, sensual and deeply magnetic." Master perfumer Dominique Ropion says he wanted "to capture the spirit of classical amber compositions, such as Ambre 83, while reinterpreting them for today."

According to Cosmetics Business, the brand calls it an "unconventional amber" with no citrus-led opening, no powdery florals and no aldehydes. Perfumer Meabh McCurtin told Elle UK that the oakwood is upcycled from offcuts left over from making wine and spirit barrels.

Retrospect vs New Wave

RetrospectNew Wave
Launch202422 October 2026
Sizes & US prices9.5 ml $34; 30 ml $92; 60 ml $1389 ml $34; 30 ml $92
Notes (per MERIT)Soft, clean opening, subtle floral centre, then musk, vanilla and mossPink pepper, honey floral, amber base with benzoin, labdanum and oakwood
Character (per MERIT)"Introverted": soft, nostalgic, second-skin"Extroverted": sensual, rich, powerful

Both are extraits in wave-shaped bottles from the same design family. New Wave swaps Retrospect's soft musk profile for an amber structure and doesn't come in a 60 ml size.

Where to Buy

  • US: meritbeauty.com from 22 October 2026. Also listed at Sephora: 30 ml ($92) and 9 ml travel spray ($34).
  • UK: £79 from 22 October 2026 on MERIT's UK site and at retailers. MERIT hasn't named the UK retailers yet.
  • International: Canada: Sephora Canada 30 ml (C$125) and 9 ml travel spray (C$46).
  • Europe: Not yet confirmed.
  • Other markets: Availability varies by region, and more international stockists may be added.

Checked 9 October 2026: listed at Sephora US and Sephora Canada; not yet on meritbeauty.com (sample sign-up only); not listed at Space NK or Cult Beauty.

What Makes the MERIT New Wave Perfume Different?

  • Two generations of perfumers: it was co-created by Dominique Ropion and Meabh McCurtin.
  • A reworked classic structure: it is built on the Ambre 83 amber structure but leaves out citrus, powdery florals and aldehydes, per Cosmetics Business.
  • A standalone scent, not a flanker: MERIT says it set out to create separate perfumes rather than variations on Retrospect. CEO Philippe Pinatel told WWD that Retrospect is MERIT's number five SKU.

Packaging

  • New Wave L'Extrait de Parfum: a custom glass bottle that MERIT says is inspired by surrealist art and designed to suggest the movement of a wave. The idea came from a team visit to the Musée Picasso in Paris. It holds gold-toned juice and has a silver pebble cap.

For more launches, browse all fragrance releases. They include another extrait this season, L'Artisan Parfumeur Abyssae L'Extrait.

Sources

Slim 9 ml travel spray with golden liquid, silver cap and vertical white MERIT lettering on whiteGolden bottle and chrome cap lying beside an upright smoky dark-tinted MERIT bottle on a mirrored surface