Materials Availability in Indie Perfumery

Starting and running an independent perfumery is challenging, and one of my biggest concerns is always quality.

Making high-quality perfume starts with exceptional ingredients, which I source and feature in my work. But it also means a commitment to you, my collectors, to maintain consistency over the lifetime of each published perfume and to remain transparent about changes that might occur.

Sometimes, regulatory changes affect quality. The governing body of the perfume industry, the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), sets many international safety standards for natural materials and chemicals. When they update their standards, manufacturers often stop producing products that were once allowed, but will soon be limited or banned.

Alternatively, natural materials are often only available in limited quantities or, when extremely expensive, can only be purchased in small amounts due to the conservative budget of a self-funded independent perfumery, which I am.

Last year, IFRA updated their list of restricted materials with their 49th Amendment to the Standards. As such, some common and historically important chemicals have been further restricted, while others have had their restrictions eased.

In order to be as transparent as possible with you, I strive to either notify my collectors about impending reformulations as a result of changes in materials availability, or to announce new works as a "limited edition" when it is unlikely that a production will be remade. A "special edition" is a single-batch production that will not be remade.

Moreover, when a reformulation would likely result in a drastic aesthetic change of any published work, it is my policy to retire that perfume and ensure that any new iteration is renamed accordingly.

My hope is that I can maintain a balance between the artistic integrity you expect from original, handmade perfumery while balancing the demands of sustaining a business in the economic system of capitalism. It's a juggling act, for sure, but it is my belief that communication is key.

As always, thank you for supporting this studio.

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