There’s no denying it: Everybody is getting on the perfume train, and we’re not talking about how Hollywood celebrities such as Sabrina Carpenter and Harry Styles are doing it. Ever since Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540 hit the mainstream, the once-exclusive world of niche perfumery became less obscure. Now, labels such as Zoologist Perfumes, Floraïku, and Penhaligon’s are not at all foreign to local noses.
Malaysia has quite a robust community of fragheads—that’s the term used for fragrance enthusiasts. For starters, there is a 50,000-people-strong online group. Here, they share their finds from around the world (quite literally, as some even offer decanted perfumes for those interested), talk about the old, the new, and the upcoming in the realm of perfumery, and occasionally gather in person.
Aside from consumers and connoisseurs, local luxury beauty retailers are also expanding their curations. In 2022, TROVE opened its first location at The Starhill, bringing in award-winning creations from Ormonde Jayne, Parfums Dusita, and Mendittorosa. As of press time, it hosts a total of 20 brands from all over the world, and store visitors can immerse themselves in the experience at the thoughtfully designed coves.
A year prior to that, Escentials opened its doors, bringing to local shoppers immaculate blends from maisons such as Santa Maria Novella, Björk & Berries, and Amouage. KENS Apothecary, which has been in the market for over two decades houses iconic fragrances like Diptyque, Maison Crivelli, and Goutal. Amaris is where we can visit to get our hands on Akro, BDK Parfums, and Xerjoff. The short of it is that we are not lacking options here.
And when enthusiasts ran out of new smells to nose into, they began to branch out. There’s a lot of pride in uncovering hidden gems—everybody wants to be the first to realise a new jewel—so travel souvenirs now include their new discoveries: HMNS, Alt Perfumery, and Unké Naru from Indonesia; Pesade, Tamburins, and Borntostandout from South Korea; Borom, Sirodom Parfum, and Butterfly.
Just Around the Corner
But sometimes the real treasure is hidden in plain sight. Lying right under our noses are remarkable Malaysian perfume brands such as Malaya Perfumery, Scents of Memento, and SUKKA. Through their distinctive background, they each bring a different edge to the local offerings. Between these three designers, they collectively have over 70 perfumes in their repertoire.
Alia Alhaddad of SUKKA brings with her a lifetime of experience being entrenched in the business during her formative years and seeks to bring modernised takes on oud to the masses. Malaya Perfumery’s Zaid Musa is armed with a chemical engineering background and his flair for playing around with scent profiles and churning out fresh scents that have won the hearts of many. Koryou Xing from Scents of Memento, on the other hand, is a career creative who can encapsulate experiences into a bottle. The one common ground? Their passion for the field.
Zaid and Xing both left lucrative industries to kickstart their brands. Zaid found the industrial end of chemical engineering to be dreary, while Xing was convinced by his advertising colleagues to turn his love for collecting perfumes into a business. “I shop so much that one day my friends told me that I may as well begin making my own,” he jokes. Nowadays, procurement has become part of his research and development process. Obviously, he’s not alone in this never-ending cycle of pickup perfumes in the name of research. In fact, one could even call it an occupational hazard.
There’s always a match that lights the first sparks of a fire. “Issey Miyake’s L’Eau d’Issey completely captured my attention in the late ‘90s. It just felt so ahead of its time,” Alia confirms. “For me, it has to be Olympéa by Paco Rabanne,” says Zaid. “Bleu de Chanel has been a scent I’ve been using since my schooling days. I feel nostalgic and young again whenever I wear it, and it’s one that I continuously repurchase,” Xing shares.
The Real Scoop
Despite sharing the same domain, they each identify different predicaments in their ventures. Alia acknowledges the cultural disparity—she is of Middle Eastern descent—and puts that at the forefront of her consideration. “I’ve had to learn a lot since I can’t approach things from a Middle Eastern or Western way. I have to consider cultural aspects and practices.” She also realises that weather plays a lot into how perfumes are worn, noticing that Malaysians lean towards fresh scents to counterbalance the stifling heat.
“I find that the Malaysian audience shy away from trying new things, so I have to reel my excitement in and design scents based on what will work for the market,” Zaid admits. This rang true when we spent an afternoon at Malaya Perfumery, where the designer showcased his archive of prototypes. It felt like we stepped into Willy Wonka’s lab, where all kinds of fantastical creations were available for us to relish. Alas, some of them may only be available in the coming years, or never even see the light of day. This is dependent on our response to it as consumers, of course.
As for Xing, he struggles against global designer brands. “People here aren’t as willing to spend on local luxuries as they do for foreign labels. Which is unfortunate, because we have immense talent here that’s yet to be discovered,” he asserts. “We also have a smaller market compared to Thailand and Indonesia, and can’t produce items as fast as they can.”
All that does not put a damper on their spirits, though. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of education. Sure, some fragrances can be overwhelming for the uninitiated, but there’s a key to developing your senses. “I would recommend that they first start with citrus fragrances, then go towards the fruity and then the spicier ones, and finally explore more of what oud perfumes can offer,” Zaid suggests. For Malaya Perfumery, the designer nominates ‘Mineral Water’ to be the entry point. Over at SUKKA, Alia suggests ‘High Tea at the Ritz’ for your appetiser. ‘007 Blue Jeans White Shirt’ from Scents of Memento—the brand’s best-seller—is Xing’s pick for those new to his neck of the woods.
Following Their Noses
Challenges are simply realities that everyone, not just businesses, has to face. Even though these brands are not outwardly working together, they do share a common goal: to cultivate a vibrant perfume community here in Malaysia. With many ways to go about it, each of these scent designers chose their path towards tackling the task.
Alia, who has now successfully placed SUKKA in a local beauty retailer, will focus on further establishing the label’s presence in Malaysia. Zaid, on the other hand, is toying with the idea of offering Malaya Perfumery beyond our national borders. The two actively participate in lifestyle pop-up markets in order to introduce their creations to new crowds, so if you have yet to stumble onto them, you might soon.
As for Xing, he is happy to keep his production small, as he makes his perfumes by hand. “This will never feel like a job to me, and I don’t want it to be. My shop is like a playground to me and it’s where I get to know my core audience.” Of course, if the right opportunity does present itself, he is open to considering it. For now, he has his eyes on the Thai market.
So the question now, dear reader, is what can we do to bolster their efforts? Far be it for us to seek your blind faith. But for starters, it is perhaps time to seek out local perfume brands and see what’s up your alley. Be it light and effervescent or deep and complex, we have all that and in between right here at home.
This story first appeared on GRAZIA Malaysia February issue.
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