A list of independent Australian and New Zealand fragrance brands we love
IMAGE VIA @odesse/instagram
WORDS BY AMY FOCIC AND FASHION JOURNAL
Your guide to the best local perfumes.
I don’t think I’m alone in feeling smug when someone tells me that I smell good. This smugness is particularly heightened if I’m asked by a stranger what perfume I’m wearing.
Always on the hunt for more compliment-inducing fragrances to add to my collection, I’ve realised in my searching that Australian and New Zealand brands are often missing from perfume recommendations on the internet, and undeservedly so.
We like nosy people. Don’t be shy, head to our Beauty section for more.
We love championing independent, local brands and we aren’t ones to gate-keep, so go ahead and enjoy this growing list of Australian and New Zealand fragrance labels.
Perdrisat
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Relatively new to the world of perfume, Melbourne brand Pedrisat’s focus is on quality rather than quantity, and as such, each perfume is released in a limited run. The first release consisted of only 20 bottles, so keep your eyes peeled for the next exclusive fragrance the brand releases.
Mihan Aromatics
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We all love the way the earth smells after it rains, right? In a stroke of genius, Mihan Aromatics has bottled this intoxicating scent for you to spritz to your heart’s content, rain or shine. Don’t look past the brand’s Guilty Story perfume either, a sweet yet woody concoction.
Odesse
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Odesse is one of the few fragrance brands to offer solid perfume. Its version is pretty luxurious, plus it’s wax-based, Australian-made and refillable, so you can feel good while smelling great.
Tsu Lange Yor
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Independent fragrance and homewares brand Tsu Lange Yor is owned by none other than Troye Sivan and his brother, Steele Mellet. Operating from its base in Carlton, the label boasts a selection of perfumes, candles, homewares and is even expanding into textiles. Its latest release, ‘The Garden’, includes three separate scents, Fig, Orange Grove and Tomato, designed to be layered together.
Abel
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Founded by a former winemaker, New Zealand-based company Abel makes forward-thinking, 100 per cent natural fragrances without harsh petrochemicals. With minimal new launches, Abel’s range is a considered edit of genderless scents inspired by nature: think salty ocean swims, crisp green woods, the stillness after summer rain.
Ayu
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Ayu is an Australian-based brand crafting artisan scent blends like Black Musk, Sage and Smoking Rose. Each perfume is made to evoke a certain kind of energy – calm, invigorated, sensual or uplifting. Ayu provides ethically-sourced, rich scents for those seeking to shroud themselves in the warmth and spice.
Who is Elijah
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Cruelty-free and hand-filled in Sydney, Who is Elijah perfumes are crafted with ethics and sustainability front of mind. The brand’s modern, clean-cut aesthetic shines through in its scents, too, making it ideal for any minimalist.
Váhy
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Váhy is a Melbourne-based, natural fragrance house producing genderless perfumes with scents created here in Australia. The brand has a passion for honesty in its products, offering a full list of the ingredients behind each perfume and ensuring all are natural, organic and cruelty-free.
Ficifolia
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Melbourne-born brand Ficifolia creates scents inspired by iconic Australian cities. Fragrances like Intermission, Out of Office and Rose Street play on our olfactive senses to transport us back to our favourite places, people, memories and traditions.
Orb Oils
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Orb Oils makes genderless, oil-based fragrances that are designed to be multipurpose. Not only can your Orb Oil perfume be dabbed onto pulse points, but it can be used in your oil diffuser or added to your bath.
Cygnet Perfumery
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With a focus on the harmony between nature and body, Cygnet Perfumery is the Australian brand taking ‘plant-based’ to a whole other level. Our fine fragrances are handcrafted from the highest quality natural ingredients. The brand’s perfume base of Spiritus Vini, a natural grape alcohol, is distilled in the Barossa Valley from 100 per cent Australian grapes and wine residuals.
Curionoir
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Curionoir is a Māori-owned fragrance brand based in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Founder Tiffany Witehira draws on her own past to respond to the rich, varied history of perfumery, aiming to produce sensory experiences that trigger and create memories using the traditions of past relatives.
Ssaint
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Gender-neutral and cruelty-free, Ssaint perfumes are consciously made, inspired by landscapes across the world and olfactory memories. Cosmic Bang – with notes of tobacco, cedar and bergamot – sounds intoxicating.
Gorgeous Nothings
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Melbourne-based perfume house, Gorgeous Nothings, was born out of a rejection of excess. Founded by Avigon Belle Paphitis, it took five years in development before the brand officially launched its hero scent, Volume I, in February this year. The inaugural scent was developed by French master perfumer Pierre Negrin and composed using 95.1 per cent upcycled fragrance concentrate.
Orok
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Orok Fragrances was founded in 2023 by John Domjan to share narratives of queer joy, diversity, adversity and resilience. Taking inspiration from Melbourne’s gay nightlife with “the smell of a rave: sweat, amyl” the resulting fragrances are anything but ordinary.
Loess
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Sydney-based brand Loess is passionate about creating ethical and sustainable fragrances. Its vegan-friendly, cruelty-free perfumes are made from high-quality natural ingredients, and its bespoke bottles are recyclable.
The Raconteur
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I’d hazard a guess that those who have experienced an Australian summer share a nostalgia for this season, and the good folks at The Raconteur have transformed this nostalgia into a perfume. The Raconteur makes candles and reed diffusers too, in case you need some more intoxicating fragrance in your life.
For advice on finding your signature scent, try this.
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