Meet the Northeastern engineer, entrepreneur, and cologne connoisseur who is trying to woo The Bachelorette

Photo courtesy of ABC

Meet Northeastern graduate Jean Blanc, the “career-driven,” cologne-loving contestant on this season of The Bachelorette.

Blanc, 31, first appeared in the season premiere of the popular ABC show last week. The second episode airs Monday night. Identified as a “colognoisseur,” Blanc is among a pool of 28 contestants that includes a sales rep, an attorney, and a former pro football player, as well as a stuntman, a banjoist, and—wait for it—a social media participant.

Blanc has an interesting story, as well. According to his website and interviews with ABC for the show, he was born in Haiti, and he and his family immigrated to the United States when he was 2. He grew up in Boston and attended Northeastern, earning his Bachelor of Science in engineering technology in 2009.

While in college he launched a construction company with his father, and later held various electrical engineering positions in research and development and standards development. Then, he got interested in economics and finance, and pivoted careers.

Blanc now lives in Florida and works as a purchasing manager in the global sourcing and procurement industry. He is also pursuing his Master of Business Administration at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

The show noticeably laid on quite thick his affinity for cologne. In an interview that aired during the premiere, he described himself as a “life collector of accouterments” and as a “colognoisseur,” saying, “I have over 100 bottles. I really see them as an extension of my outfit and as an extension of my soul.” What’s more, according to his website, Blanc is launching a luxury fragrance boutique of his own.

The Bachelorette herself, Becca Kufrin, certainly took notice of him. In their first encounter, Blanc taught Kufrin how to say, “Let’s do the damn thing”—which has become her catchphrase—in French. And after he walked away, Kufrin said, “He smells so good.”