The Democratization of Scent
Most of us can name our favorite fashion designers or musicians, but very few can name a favorite perfumer. That’s because, like many systems in the world, the fragrance industry is not very democratic. Run by a few large conglomerates, the industry has been notoriously difficult to break into and even if you can, perfumers don’t have rights or IP over their creations.
Fortunately things are beginning to change. Thanks to a handful of industry insiders, independent perfumery is growing and space is opening up for people to practice & share. The Institute for Art & Olfaction, founded by Saskia Wilson-Brown is leading the way, making the study of perfume accessible to all. While industry heavyweight Christophe Laudamiel is pressuring the industry to change its hold over IP laws & allow perfumers credit for their creations.
There’s a lot of amazingly talented people who are willing to share, so if you’re interested in scent, here’s a few places to start:
- The Institute for Art & Olfaction - for online classes & workshops as well as a bunch of free resources
- Christophe Laudamiel - for teaching & insight into fine fragrance formulations with regular Q&As
- An Aromatic Life - a podcast about everything scent by Frauke Galia
- ‘Can Scent Be Democratized?’ - a great NYTimes article by my perfume buddy Betty Hallock
“The balance of power is off in perfume, and it’s off in the world - tweak one space, and maybe that’s a model for tweaking another.”