Demystifying Fragrance: Breathing More Colour, Memories and Persistence into Perfume
Olfactive {ol-fahk-tiv}: the sense of smell or related to scents
‘If you look for something hard enough you just might find it’, swept in the feel-good spirits after I cast my digital net wide to scout for black-owned fragrance brands. I swiftly discovered many to my delight, that were swirling in the aromatic cosmos that is scent, but also as brands they were thriving! Firing up first to my attention was London based brand Maya Njie whose unisex scents cater to an integral feeling of genuineness, and nostalgia with an undeniable dash of ‘Scandi-cool’. Next on my radar was t.&toff a cottage of luxurious handcrafted relaxing bath soaks, fragrances, and candles, which have a beautiful ethos of taking our time… and power back. Soon floating by was Ezra-Lloyd Jackson, a young scent designer whose passion for design injected with a gift for rewriting the rules, bubbles through his raw online presence and the interview we had together. What do these noses all have in common? Well, they are voices of colour rapidly crafting a legacy where creativity in luxury fragrance is limitless. Through interviewing and learning about their foundations, demystifying fragrance it seemed was just as important as piecing together memories whilst digesting how to turn our passions into persistence.
A Slice of The Perfume Pie
There needs to be a bigger piece of the pie for brands and individuals who have powerful messages and stories that will sizzle our senses. Currently France holds the largest share of the fragrance industry at 27% of global exports. Does Annick Goutal, Dominique Ropion or Frédéric Malle, ring a bell? Maybe not? They are considered some of the biggest French perfumers to step out of the 20th century and into the present, and for a faceless industry, we often overlook these respected noses behind our favourite scents and instead naturally snuggle up to big brand names. However, this big picture, Eurocentric in nature, isn’t a true representative of a bigger picture and blossoming minority perfumer. From a small online group survey, we (Reform The Funk) conducted, only 20% of people knew who the perfumer behind a perfume was let alone their race or gender. The Black Pound Report also signs off how the fragrance industry is losing out on $3.8 billion (£4.5 billion) by failing to recognise the needs of black and minority ethnic groups in the UK.
Yes, celebrity endorsed perfumes do paint more promise of diverse representation à la Michael Jordan’s 1990s sporty flankers or Beyoncé’s sensual series of scents and now Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty perfume. Therefore, is having a black-owned fragrance brand that important? Genuinely, we may be overlooking a crucial part, which is that the fragrances we consume are made in a lab - by someone who is equally valued and qualified, yet without the fame. Our research showed that people would be very likely to support a black-owned fragrance individual or brand. Instinctively, this should gift more educational opportunities for people behind the scenes, from ethnic backgrounds, refining their fragrance noses whilst having a safe space to create. And in our digital age where Gen Z are leading the fore of sustainability and transparency, more than any generation, they are proudly sensitive to social issues. This ultimately is a strength which reflects their purchasing power and why they will only support brands that are authentic and inclusive.
Figure 1: Graph showing percentage of people aware of a perfumer’s background
Meet Maya (@maya.njie.perfumes)
Since launching her artisan scents in 2016, Swedish-born Maya Njie’s focus is to envelope us in a multisensory world of memory and light whimsy with fancifully named perfumes like ‘Les Fleurs’ or ‘Tropica’. All whilst capturing a clean Scandinavian aesthetic with her woody, roasted, fresh and floral scents, blowing a welcome breeze on our bones. Her perfume Nordic Cedar perfectly sucks in the cool edge of a walk in the Swedish autumn, whilst sister scent Vanlij is bright yet musky like incense, possibly alluding to her Gambian heritage. Maya expresses herself by seamlessly dissolving imagery into her inspirational scent-chessboard, often gliding photos into place from her childhood using her photography and surface design background to understand certain memories and their correspondence with space and scent.
““Perfume is comforting to me, above all so I find both strength and solace in wearing it on an almost daily basis. It’s helped lift me if I’m feeling down, confident if I’m feeling insecure, it’s elevated outfits and made me feel more attractive. It adorns my bed regularly… it wakes me up in the mornings.” ”
Speaking with clarity on the small spotlight on minority brands, Maya accepts the state of the industry for what it is whilst celebrating something new, “Being a black female in these rooms enables me to bring a different perspective, one that has been missed and is much needed amongst both perfumers and consumers. I feel that most people celebrate that and welcome the change.” We all know that putting a name to a face can be an everyday challenge yet applying that name to a voice ensures that the needs of black and minority ethnic groups are echoed even in silence. Luckily Maya’s silence speaks volumes with her treasured scents stocked in Liberty London, Net-a-Porter and internationally too. Maya also runs bespoke perfume workshops for anyone wishing to swoop straight in, mixing natural and synthetic notes (not derived from animal testing) to form our own special fragrant potions. And when she isn’t running workshops or bottling up her own transformative elixirs, she fondly reminisces on her travels to the Gambia (a part of her dual heritage), “the traditional incense used there in peoples’ homes and courtyards. It’s a woody, smoky and floral experience that scents peoples clothing too. It’s synonymous with the place for me.” Discover the world of Maya here.
“It’s important to see people who look like you in all areas of life and the perfume world is not known for its inclusivity. I believe that this is changing… the young black kids need to know that the dream of becoming a perfumer is attainable.”
““Greek physician Hippocrates championed warm baths scented with sweet-smelling perfume oils.””
Fragrance is an Ancient Science of Self-care
From benzoin to frankincense, sage and thyme, scent has always lingered from the recent past, where extractions from raw materials were a medicinal playground for ancient Indian healers, Egyptians, and physicians from Ancient Greece, the Middle East and Victorian era. Fundamentally the untold stories of aromatic fragrances derived from medicinal plants in Southern Africa for example are a disservice to methods of ancient extractions pre-1200 AD’s hydrodistillation methods. This is because the ancient samples collected, though highly potent and even unstable, produced great therapeutic potential. Now we have settled more into synthetic scents, a necessity for meeting the demands of an increasingly globalised consumer base where cosmetic appeal is favoured. Absolutes, or highly concentrated parfum however, are still the most valued, collected from flowers, plants, seeds, and nuts with their precious oils bottled up as 20-40% concentrates with minimal alcohol and nasties present. The value of fragrance, aside from cosmetic appeal also boosted hygiene health in 19th century France, which possibly helped slash down illnesses and death rates. Truthfully, the spell of fragrances on our senses are the strings that continually connect millions of people to their self-care rituals today, especially when playing with products.
Meet Georgina (@t.&toff)
t.&toff is Georgina’s heart. This is a fact because her eyes twinkled as we recently talked over coffee about her launch in 2018. Georgina is from a Caribbean background and though she has drifted from her political studies background, along the way finding things that are more of her vibe, she still speaks warmly of her beginnings. Fast-forward some years later and she has been featured in Vogue and publications like Women of The City (WOTC), yet those are not her only stamps of approval. This is because Georgina first and foremost conjures products for herself and her close-knit network which include family and friends to name a select few. Her mission to promote the power of wellness has struck a special chord with her audience especially as she’s shared her experience with bullying in her adult life, and how it propelled her forward to help others find their inner power and tranquillity. She laughs at herself (life is serious enough), by saying that “It always surprises people how much time I spend sleeping. But I’m a great believer in relaxing and working when I’m feeling inspired.”
“I think we still need diverse representation across so many industries not just the fragrance industry, but also the creative industries. We need to see more fragrance campaigns being portrayed and influenced by people of colour. We need to see more perspectives and more creativity within the space.”
She also talks proudly of her multidisciplinary career “I’m the global head of salesforce for a fintech company and a model part-time.” In her downtime however, she is still putting into practise her philosophy of relaxation, surrendering to the sensory ease brought on by her 100% natural aromatic bath teas and candles (take a whiff of №1 Neroli Blossom). It’s incredible! She is not afraid to shake things up by mixing different essential oils and luckily Georgina believes in the enchantment of aromatherapy from lavender, rose and neroli which may season into her new range of sleep balms later this year. Thankfully, aromatherapy can be a useful holistic pot of wellness for people who are experiencing stress and mental health issues. This insight is a prime takeaway further marrying the unique memories and heritage of black communities with fragrance, to hopefully manifest breakthroughs in self-care and wellbeing. Most importantly, Georgina’s story as a black female entrepreneur rejects the stereotype of always pushing past pain, instead, prioritising rest and reset as worthy rituals. Because of this Georgina is lucky enough to enjoy memories of her first ever scent №2 Grapefruit and Rosemary, “Every time I smell it it reminds me of what I have achieved, all the years of hard work I have spent creating t.&toff”
t.&toff is celebrating four years of business. Find out more here.
Business isn’t the Only Priority
Starting, remains the first haunting aspect of any business plan or idea and unfortunately there is no way around it. Start-up costs are the biggest mountain of financial frustration for most brands to reckon with, from packaging, marketing, copyright, research and even rebranding (yes rebranding!). This could be as high as $38,000 (£32,000) in total. The theories: once you know who your customer is everything will fall into place; what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger – both smart concepts. Yet knowing and noticing the early signs of depression which usually creep up on most entrepreneurs especially those from minority backgrounds, is a vital mental health bookmark. This is because the lack of mental health awareness especially during the recent pandemic for the black community was astounding. This further highlights how a bouquet of resources is needed to help people who are fighting everyday challenges let alone trying to launch a business.
Meet Ezra (@jacksonlloydezra)
Ezra, who is from a mixed English and Jamaican background with roots firmly planted in his south-east London upbringing, is building his own fragrance experiences. His driving force is to always make social commentary using the diasporic mist of perfume to reset the hierarchical fragrance pyramid, whilst unlocking unexpected olfactive memories, turning what may be considered boring into bliss. He describes notes of violet, patchouli, and vetiver as instruments which he uses to create a record (perfume) where one missing code (coding being part of his educational background) could make the smallest difference. His unique take on lavender for example, “Lavender grows a lot in south-east and I’ve built a strong memory or association to that. I’ve remixed lavender from being this British associated thing to a London thing. Everything that comes with London with its multiculturalism that is now what lavender is to me… but also things that remind me of brown skin, vetiver has that affect for me, which is beyond an intellectual thing to me and is instinctive”. Truly a wiz, he has crafted his talent at the respected perfume company Olfiction since 2018, growing from lab operator to fragrance assistant, and now immortalising his own fragrance contribution: a perfume called Trackside Buddleia.
“We’re out here but not on the side that is seen. Most people of colour are farming the materials that go into the perfumes. There’s the perfume point of the pyramid and it’s important to reset the balance of the fragrance structure.”
In July after his visit to luscious Grasse, one of the biggest exporters of perfume, he sings of his early morning rituals picking flowers at 5am, then he curls in deeper speaking of Grasse’s fragrance community, “It’s very insular… diversity wasn’t really there from what I saw and what I know but we’re working on that and hopefully me being in that space is a step in the right direction.” Yes! Ezra is humbly lunging in the right direction where he is sharing his time at the Ashton Jazz Academy and the Rural Refugee Network enlightening young girls and boys about the power of fragrance. Mental Health Awareness which is also part of his efforts, is shown through his advocation for the Maytree respite centre for people in intense mental health situations. Naturally, Ezra blends fragrance with his own activism, a new territory for some yet he glides through with joy, a reminder that our contributions, however small, can create change with the right persistence.
Back to Trackside Buddleia - Ezra’s mischievous blend of notes like ‘City Smoke’, and ‘Traffic’ on the lap of floral accents and aged honey, already challenges historical notions of the term ‘exotic’. This he asserts has been historically weaponised to ‘other’ people, and he explains further “I like this sense of friction and trackside buddleia is an example of that, to some people buddleia is an exotic plant even though they call it an invasive species, very mundane thing… I’m glad I could make a comment on that. The territory of olfactive friction and questioning the ‘exotic’ is something I want to pursue.” Trackside Buddleia is part of an exciting new launch for Ezra. Find out more here.
So, why do we need more people of colour to take their own spaces in the luxury fragrance industry?
After years of public campaigns for diversity in fashion and advertising, we are finally seeing a stretch of positive results. Now, similarly in the fragrance arena of the beauty industry there is a small buzz about the absence or lack of black and minority ethnic perfumers. Yet we must walk before we run and although inclusivity is at the tip of our tongues, we must remember that the first step is to notice. First by respecting the purchasing power of the Black Dollar/Pound and realising that black-owned brands are out there but just need be found. Awareness will always charge forward diverse voices, memories, and persistence especially in the fragrance industry because it plants a seed. Hopefully the nostalgic warmth of Maya, the maverick faith of Georgina and the poetry of Ezra will paint a path for a long time to come for many fragrance lovers… and maybe soon-to-be black perfumers and entrepreneurs.
