About Dolores M. Vinci

Creator & Owner of Vinci & Rakos * Who Makes Sense?

Dolores had extensive background in marketing and product development at major cosmetic companies – Max Factor Cosmetics/ Division of Revlon, Jafra Cosmetics/Division of Gillette and Clairol/Division of Bristol Myers – which prepared her to develop her own line of innovative products.  Dolores’s love for fragrance and formulas started when she was a teenager working at the cosmetic counter at the local J. J. Newberry’s.  That love continued when she moved to New York City and discovered a product maven at the drug store on Lexington and 53rd Street.  The maven introduced Dolores to the world of fragrance, skin care formulations and incredible customer service.  Dolores worked at Clairol in the Cosmetic and Hair Care areas in marketing and merchandising.  During those days an Associate could also work hand in hand with the laboratory, chemists, packaging engineers and vendors learning from the ground up. While there, she was tested and found that all her senses were heightened, validating what she had always felt about her intense product and fragrance ability.

After moving to California, Dolores worked for Jafra Cosmetics as Director of Marketing and New Products in all categories consisting of 60 brands, as well as marketing and new product liaison with the International Division for 24 countries.  As Senior Director of Marketing at Max Factor, Dolores was responsible for the fragrance, skin care and new venture businesses from marketing through sales.  She directed the creation and development of new concepts for celebrity spokeswomen Jaclyn Smith and Jane Seymour.  For Jacyln, two new fragrances were launched:  Jaclyn Smith’s California and California for Men.  In 1990, Jaclyn Smith’s Fragrance won the prestigious FIFI Award, helping to establish Max Factor as a major force in the US fragrance market.  For Jane, the fragrance leJardin was repositioned and re-launched with a more aggressive marketing and merchandising plan, as well as new packaging and advertising to help increase share of the market.

 

In 1991, Dolores left corporate life and opened a specialty boutique and gift emporium in Los Angeles, which was created with a European flair, called Who Makes Sense?.  She offered products to lose yourself in luxury, realize your fantasies and “awaken and stimulate” your six senses:  smell, touch, sight, sound, taste, spirit and sometimes even your sense of nonsense.  With the look of an Italian apothecary shop, Dolores launched her product line and introduced the personalized Vinci & Rakos Fragrance Bar.

At the Fragrance Bar, clients could sniff and smell until they found the scent best suited for them from her Parfum line of Complex Blended Expressions, full fragrances that captured a person’s character, temperament, mood, and body chemistry.   Or for those who preferred simplicity, Single Note Expressions were available to reveal and enhance their inner self.  A Personalized Parfum could also be created exclusively for them or that special person in their life.  Each Parfum was full bodied, undiluted with no added alcohol or extenders.  It was at her boutique where Dolores developed the warm and sensual Earth Parfum used by many of Hollywood’s celebrities, which has been the signature scent of Vinci &  Rakos for almost 30 years.  Earth is defined by its warm and sensual combination of white musk and earthly delights with a hint of floral accents.  It is warm and sensual but at the same time devastatingly fresh and clean smelling.   Both men and women find Earth arousingly exciting.  One musky whiff of sensual pleasure will have you coming back for more.  The scent of Earth allows everyone’s personality and body chemistry to come through creating a more individual and unique fragrance experience.  Earth has been the signature scent of Vinci & Rakos * Who Makes Sense? for over 30 years.  Realizing that Dolores did not want to offer typical cologne based fragrances, she developed and launched her unique Dry Body Oil Spray and Eau de Vinci Parfum Spray formulas.  Both formulas are non-alcoholic and help to prevent dryness and retain the integrity of your chosen scent.  Dolores wanted the full concentration of the parfum blend and the softening properties of the formulas to harmonize simultaneously and envelop the user with sensual satisfaction.

After eight years, Dolores closed the retail boutique to concentrate on mail order catalogue sales, wholesale, and designed and launched her original website www.vinci-rakos.com.  To learn more about the rapidly changing business environment, she concurrently helped introduce and brand new companies specializing in products and services to the hotel, spa and casino industries.  In addition, she implemented a wide variety of innovative advertising projects within the custom publishing, newspaper and TV arenas.

Dolores learned that the lives of her clients and potential clients were becoming busier and more hectic, so  she wanted to help make their shopping experience much easier.  She spent the last few years creating new parfums, formulas and gift items to satisfy their growing needs and desires.  Realizing the need to enable a client to transition their fragrance choice throughout the full spectrum of bath and body care products, she has developed this unique shopping location.

You are now offered over 200 Parfums from Dolores to heighten the senses and offer the best opportunity to experience a new and personalizing scent.  She arranged the Vinci & Rakos Parfums in two ways,  Alphabetically and by Predominate Notes & Categories to help in the selection of a scent and to be scentually rewarding.  New formulas, such as her Sheer Spray on Lotion, After Shave Spray on Balm, Solid Parfum, Whipped Body & Massage Butter, Luxurious Body & Massage Cream, Daily Facial Lotion and Intensive Night Cream were introduced to delight and satisfy the needs of her clients, as well as her scented candles in the fragrances of warm and sensual Earth and fresh and floral Radiance.

Dolores designed her website employing many ideas and suggestions that came from clients during their conversations.  These ideas were used to enhance the functionality of the site and help provide the ultimate online shopping experience.  There is more detailed product information and a wealth of helpful hints you will want to learn and explore.  On the front of her website, she added three easy to click on Buttons:  Specials/Features, Current Newsletters and 200+ Parfums.  Specials/Features:  With the internet and social media becoming more important and user friendly, Dolores sends out a mailing through Constant Contact every three or four weeks.   It is the perfect way to stay in touch about new scents, formulas and Vinci & Rakos and Who Makes Sense? special promotions.  A copy of the mailing is found under the Specials/Features which also then allows new clients to the site to take advantage of the current special.  Current Newsletter:   The Newsletter usually gives helpful hints about transitioning from Season to Season and mentions client comments, as well as product features.   200+ Parfums:  The list of Parfums is By Predominate Notes & Categories.  The Parfum categories and descriptions were based on years of working and listening to the comments, preferences and interpretations of my clients, as well as their memories, so the descriptions were written with that in mind.

In addition, Dolores is introducing a link on her site called “Who Makes Sense?” named after her Los Angeles boutique from the 90’s – see the vintage photographs above.  Over the years, her clients have asked if they can purchase many of the specialty gifts and collectibles that were sold at her store.  The Who Makes Sense? section will feature many of these items, as well as one-of a-kind antique and nostalgic pieces.  The selection of items featured on the Who Makes Sense? site will be updated on a regular basis and as the one-of-a-kind items are sold.  Click on the Vintage Finds button on the top of the Menu to connect to Who Makes Sense?

Dolores maintains a Personal Folder on each of her clients to keep track of their fragrance choices, product preferences and comments, and many of her clients go back over 30 years.  Dolores always looks forward to working with her clients on the selection of a new scent, choosing body and bath care formulas beneficial to them, and to help with their gift giving needs.

 

                                                                   COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAMS

The Waring International Piano Competition:  Dolores believes in giving back to her community and for several years acted as Sponsorship Director for the Waring International Piano Competition in Palm Desert, California helping to raise funding and participation through the business community.  The Mission of the Waring is to excite, educate and engage the community at large with the joy of classical piano by presenting, promoting and nurturing classical music through live piano performance including international competitions, concerts and local educational outreach programs for all ages. Since 1978, Palm Desert has been host to aspiring young pianists from around the world and has launched many into significant musical careers.  At the same time, visitors and residents have enjoyed listening to great classical piano.  The original goal of the Waring was to provide young pianists with performance opportunities.  To this day, winners are awarded recital and concerto dates throughout the United States and Europe.  Participation includes three categories:  Juniors (age 12 and under); Intermediate (13 through 17 and Seniors (age 18 through 30.)  Contestants participate in both solo and concerto rounds as well as Master Classes in each age category.  Winners have earned performance opportunities in Vienna, London, Rome, Carnegie Hall – Weill Hall (NYC), Florida, Denver, Snowmass, Co, San Francisco, as well as Cathedral City, Palm Desert, Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, California. In addition to performance opportunities, scholarships are given to both solo and concerto winners in each division.  In 2006, the Waring Competition started outreach programs bringing music into the local schools for their education and awareness.          

Act for MS:  In addition, Dolores also works with Act for MS which provides assistance for Coachella Valley Residents living with Multiple Sclerosis, Helping Clients Live Stronger Longer.  Website:  www.actforms.org