Interview: Behind the Scent — Building Sustainable Fragrance for Modern Makeup

Interview: Behind the Scent — Building Sustainable Fragrance for Modern Makeup

Hook: Fragrance choices are as strategic as pigment selection. In this interview, our lead perfumer explains how scent supports ritual, brand identity, and refill adoption.

Key Excerpts

“Scent is the silent product differentiator — it shapes memory, not just preference.”

On Sustainability and Ingredient Sourcing

The perfumer highlights partnerships with small-batch distillers and local suppliers — a move aligned with broader retail signals showing small-batch makers outperforming algorithm-driven mass channels (small-batch gift retail).

Layering Scent in Product Lines

They described a three-tier system: base note for the palette chassis, top note for limited seasonal drops, and an optional scent capsule that customers can add at refill. For curated scented gift pairings and merchandising tips, the scented candle reviews are instructive (best scented candles).

How Storytelling Shapes Scent Perception

Story-led product pages and short narrative experiences help consumers place scents in meaningful contexts. Brands should use short, shareable narratives and microbook-style summaries to encapsulate origin stories (rise of microbook summaries).

Community & Zine Culture

The perfumer recommended collaborating with local zine and typewriting collectives to create tactile scent stories, pointing to work like community typewriting photo essays for inspiration on analog storytelling and community curation (Photo Essay: Community Typewriting).

Final Note

Takeaway: Scent should be designed as part of systemic product experience — not an afterthought. Use local partnerships, story-led pages, and community touchpoints to amplify meaning.

Author

Maya Rivera — interviews product leaders and documents craft systems for modern beauty brands.