Can you smell success in the air? It could be emanating from one of Kent’s remarkable fragrance companies, designing perfumes that not only reflect the mood of the modern woman, but that echo the spirit of the county itself. Katie follows her nose to find out more…
If you stand in the middle of Blean Woods in late spring with your eyes closed and try to ignore the sounds around you, wisps of complex fragrances will slowly reach you. The freshness of new leaves on the silver birch, hornbeam and crab apple trees; the loamy earth and the faint undertones of smoke, charred wood and ashes from an abandoned camp fire.
Parfumiers have focused for centuries on extracting and distilling the essence, or essential oils, from plants; which they then layer as notes or overtones to create fantastical perfumes. The earliest perfumes were often focussed upon a single plant-flower; but now perfumes are complex, bringing in spices; synthetic essences; natural essences and fruits. Launched in 1921, Chanel’s No5 was the first perfume to combine synthetic and natural notes. Two companies in Kent are using this alchemy to create perfumes that evoke something incredibly specific – pin-pointed locations in their home county.
Margate resident, volunteer beach warden and coastal enthusiast Dom Bridges founded ecological skincare brand, Haeckels, in 2012. A spell working in China had opened his eyes to the huge potential in seaweed. Back home on the Kent Coast, he experimented and created bars of seaweed-based skincare products for friends and family. At the water’s edge, where Bridges once said he goes to let 'big thoughts' come, he formed the initial outline for the brand, which is now winning plaudits worldwide, but is firmly Kentish. The headquarters reside in a formerly derelict casino, sitting on the cliff-top at Walpole Bay. Amongst vertical farms growing produce both for eating and homecare; bio-reactors cultivating algae; and under a moss-wall; the Haeckels team layered scents to create the GPS range of perfumes.
There are eight perfumes. Among them is scent for Dreamland; which evokes its former glory, bitter demise and then reinvention. Smoked wood and leather conjure the moment that the historic railway burnt; amber and vetiver are earthier tones, while the rose and geranium add a wander through the ornamental garden after the fun of the fair. Location is everything, shares Em Foster Rose, Head of Product & Sustainability at the company. She explains: 'The initial idea for the range came from the idea of taking scent-based 'snapshots' of locations, and translating those into a fragrance that can transport you in an instant to a time, a place and a feeling.' Locations including Reculver and Botany Bay were picked because of their importance to Bridges and his company, but also for their 'historical, ecological or social importance in Kent,' according to Foster Rose. Harvesting took place at each location in a day - the charred wood for Dreamland, for instance, was collected on February 9, 2014, on a cloudy day and, then and there, the fragrance profiles were created.
For Chris Rowe and Alanna Naps, specific places have also sparked their creativity. It was the faint smell of the fresh citrus hops outside their new home that inspired what was the first perfume in what is now a burgeoning range from their company, Edenbridge. Rowe shares: 'Faversham has a rich history both as a market town loved by royalty, as well as being the home of England's oldest brewer, Shepherd Neame, since 1698. We moved to the area in the summer, and the smell of the hops is delightful - so trying to capture that smell of summer and weave in Faversham's history is where we started.'
Their original scent, Maison Dieu, prompted more exploration of Kent; and scents followed that are inspired both by places and the people who lived in them. Rowe explains: “We have tried to bring very specific moments to life through fragrance. For example, standing in Churchill's home-office in Chartwell, trying to understand the weight on his shoulders, the fortitude of the man, as well as taking in all the smells and textures of the room. If you close your eyes, you can picture it vividly. We wanted to create the same imagery with fragrance: the leather of the chairs, the dark woods of the desk and panelling, a rich tobacco, and just enough citrus in the opening to nod to the optimism and energy of the man.”
Chris and Alanna continue to release new scents; They are currently are using essences from plants grown both within and without the county but experimentation continues. Rowe shares: “We're passionate about Kent and try to incorporate local elements wherever we can. We've experimented with creating our own extractions from plants and fruits grown here, but we haven't been able to nail that yet.” He teases: “We're consistently working on that, however, so in the near future I expect we'll have news on that front.”
Both ranges offer olfactory journeys. They conjure a geographical location. Some of the scents even evoke moments in time or notable figures who have made their mark on the county and country - the Edenbridge team say that a new one is imminent inspired by one of Kent's historic figures. With their GPS code names, meanwhile, the Haeckels perfumes also serve as a direct appeal to find the spot where the team harvested for each perfume. As Bridges says in a documentary: 'The scent invites the person who has fallen in love with it to go and visit that place. Those codes will take you to beaches and unusual places that you might not think have any kind of aromatic merit.'The perfumes are not ethereal, he adds, but real.
These perfumes are an ode to Kent; and a call to come and experience it with all of your senses primed.
haeckels.co.uk; edenbridge.co.uk
