French parfumier Jean-Paul Guerlain 'the nose' on trial on racism charges As for the second phrase, it was an idiocy on my part. I was trying to make the interviewer laugh and I regret it. "I deeply regret it and present my excuses to the black community," he went on. "I am anything but racist," he added, recounting how he met black GIs after the Second World War who introduced him to "chewing gum and Coca-Cola." Mr Guerlain's remark on air had sparked angry condemnation from anti-racism groups, and a deluge of protests on Twitter with comments like "Guerlain, the parfumier who stinks." France's Movement Against Racism and for Friendship (MRAP) said the remarks revealed "the state of ordinary racism that still permeates French society." Mr Guerlain quickly apologised, saying: "My comments in no way reflect my true thinking, but were a slip of the tongue." But protests were staged outside the company's boutique on the Champs Elysées and there were calls for a boycott of Guerlain and its owner, luxury giant LVMH, which bought the brand in 1994. The Reverend Al Sharpton, the American civil rights activist and a former Democrat presidential hopeful, took up the cause, saying: "The fact that Jean-Paul Guerlain felt comfortable enough to use the N-word in public ... illustrates the depth of racism not only in France but throughout Europe." The Guerlain company was quick to denounce the remarks as "unacceptable," pointing out that he had not been a shareholder in the company since 1996 or on salary since 2002. Mr Guerlain, who claims to be able to identify 3,000 different fragrances, took over the family perfume house from his grandfather, Jacques, in 1959. He is considered one of the great perfume "noses" of the 20th century, concocting famous scents including Samsara, Nahema and Jardins de Bagatelle. The perfume house remained in the Guerlain family for five generations and has created over 300 fragrances since Pierre Francois Pascal Guerlain, a doctor and chemist, opened his first perfume boutique in Paris 183 years ago. Mr Guerlain was advisor to the brand's current "nose" until 2010 but the group cut all links with him after the row. A verdict is due in the coming weeks.