T
he world of perfume, with its history of catering to kings and clergy, has always been one of fiercely guarded tradition and highbrow tastes. Classically trained, besuited kingpin “noses” go about their business with the air of favoured courtiers privy to alchemical secrets that only the select few, preferably French, could ever have access to.
It’s a venerable air that the British perfume houses of the 18th and 19th century, from Floris to Penhaligon’s via Yardley and Creed, originally adopted. But, says Jo Fairley, the journalist and co-founder of The Perfume Society, their founders’ backgrounds tended to be in grooming and barbering rather than the classical perfumery in the French style. “I think British perfumery breaks more rules as a sort of genetic trait,” she observes. The launch of Jo Malone in 1991, whose eponymous perfumer, famously raised on a council estate, broke new ground with her fuss-free, minimalist bottles and unexpected blends suffused with quintessentially English notes, pushed this uniquely British sense of stylish eccentricity to the fore. Today it’s making its presence known more than ever.
We may have our younger generations to thank for that. “They have given up perfume monogamy, and I love that,” says Nick Steward, the founder and creative director of the independent London perfume brand Gallivant. “They’re much more into the idea of having a ‘fragrance wardrobe’ than finding a signature scent for life.” Turned off by mainstream perfumery and private equity-backed new brands with their carbon copy blends, scent lovers, he finds, are seeking out honest, authentic perfumes from independent creators. There is a “liberating ‘Anarchy in the UK’ spirit to our indie perfume culture”, Steward says, with a tongue-in-cheek irreverence and a taste for collaboration. Look at how these brands and their fans describe their wares and the dominant words are “artisan”, “gender-neutral”, “experimental”, “small-batch”, “slow perfumery”, “sustainable”, “craft”, “self-expression”, “mood-enhancing” and “functional fragrance”.
