SLUG SLUG
David, Annissa, Bob,
and Gail in Indonesia at
David and Annissa’s
wedding celebration
ADVOCACY MAKES SCENTS
“I don’t think they’re aware enough of
how much they enjoy fragrance.”
Obviously, that message informs the
industry’s advocacy efforts, with which
Bob has been engaged since the 1990s.
He says it’s the fact that it’s a challenge
that makes it fun. Additionally, “I think
it’s very important for the industry to
constantly be talking to legislators and
talking to our critics, just to make sure
they don’t go too far in another direction,”
he says. When you’re on The Hill, there
are always a number of staff or legislators
themselves who have that “a-ha” moment,
when they realize that fragrance is more
than just fine fragrance, but is also in the
soaps, detergents, shampoos that each of us
uses every day.
“I think the industry, for many years,
thought the best thing to do was just stay
quiet,” he says. “Most of us who have
been around a long time have come to the
conclusion that that was a big mistake.”
While we may have attempted to deal with
these issues head on in regard to safety, by
creating RIFM, “we didn’t in terms of PR
and talking about what we’re doing and
addressing concerns in a straightforward,
transparent manner,” he says.
He’s heartened by what he sees of late,
associations and companies “responding
when it makes sense and talking not just
with legislators but also the general public
to make sure they understand our safety
program,” he says. “I don’t think most
people are aware enough of how much they
enjoy fragrance.” We need to be able to
make people understand that they’re often
enjoying fragrance even when they don’t
realize it.
MAKING TIME FOR WHAT MATTERS
“When you’re exercising, I think your
brain goes to a different place and
functions differently.”
When he’s not working or fighting the good
fight, Bob makes time for his beautiful
family—wife Gail; sons Matt, David, and
Phil; daughters-in-law Kristin and Annissa;
and grandsons Blake, Cole, and Max. On
raising a house full of boys, Bob says it
was a challenge—the good, life-affirming
sort of challenge. He remarks that his
father always talked about the “Stubborn
Bedoukians”—to which he replies,
chuckling and including himself in the
assessment, “He had NO idea!”
While he says they don’t make it up to
visit nearly enough, Bob and Gail own a
small house on Cape Cod on the bay. “It’s
great to have people come up and visit,”
he says. “The grandkids are getting old
enough now to come up and actually enjoy
it.” On the weekends, he enjoys spending
time with family, as they all live near
each other in Connecticut, except for his
youngest, Phil, who is currently pursuing a
Ph.D. in Computer Engineering at Cornell
University. (Yes, another soon-to-be
Doctor in the family!)
Last year, following son David and
daughter-in-law Annissa’s wedding, the
family traveled to Jakarta, Indonesia,
for the first time for the Indonesian
celebration of the couple’s union. “It was
unbelievable,” says Bob. “There were
Indonesian dancers, and there was an entire
hall that, from ceiling to walls to floor,
was completely covered with fresh flowers
everywhere. It’s something you could never
do here… It was an amazing experience.”
In his free time, Bob admits he absorbs
way too much news, which, these days,
doesn’t quite help him relax, but he also
Issue 2, 2018 | FRAGRANCENOTES.ORG | 9