Pitti Fragranze 2018: People of Pitti

PITTI FRAGRANZE, FLORENCE 14-16.09.2018. – Part I

Florence! One of the most beautiful cities in the world! Here I am again, just last Summer I was wandering around Tuscany: this time my experience of Florence is completely different, and I could return to it time after time.

Pitti time is something special. A gathering of people connected to perfumes, from all over the world. I needed some time for all the impressions to settle down, now I think I’m about to write a series of posts about Pitti Fragranze, from different aspects.

The 16th edition of this fine exhibition at Stazione Leopolda is a great stage for the niche perfumes industry, together with numerous events throughout the city: unveiling perfume and industry news, featuring returning houses and debuting brands, workshops, perfume raw materials, and events dedicated to olfactory culture.

So much to see, learn, and sniff!

People. People from all around the World. Perfumers, buyers, brand managers, distributors, journalists, photographers, sales managers, vloggers, bloggers, perfume lovers: around 2.150 members of the trade, from over 50 countries! 190 Maisons and brands! Celebrating perfumes…

Here’s to you, wonderful people of Pitti! Since we are talking about niche, indie, artisan perfumes, I feel that the people behind the perfumes deserve our full attention.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the humans of Pitti, mostly by the order of stands in Stazione Leopolda from the main entrance onwards. Please have patience if your favorite person is not mentioned in this blog post! More will follow.

First of all, thanks to Ilaria and Olga from Pitti Immagine Ufficio Stampa/Press Office for taking care of my application. Big thanks to young ladies working at the wardrobe too, for their patience when I dropped by every now and then…often. Very often.

Let’s take a closer look:

Louison David Grajcar – Techique Indiscrete

Louison David, born and raised in Antwerp, Belgium was summoned to exhibit at Pitti just a few days before it opened! He managed to decorate his stand in a couple of hours, picking up some flowers and herbs just outside Stazione Leopolda. He did well, just being himself. Jerusalem is his newest addition to the Extract d’Emotion range.

I could relate to his interpretation of one of the cities I remember so well and long to return to. That’s not all: he is kind, gentle, and keeps reminding people that bees matter! Upon purchase of his perfumes, a certain percentage is given to a bee preservation foundation. He is greatly concerned about preserving Nature. He also makes candles, soaps, and teas. A very dear and special young man. Take care, Louison!

Andy Tauer – Tauer Perfumes

Everybody loves Andy! Why? First of all, he makes extraordinary perfumes. Secondly, he is a self-made man, working in his little perfume factory, driving deliveries to the post office with his bike, he writes a blog, actively posts on IG, issues a magazine…Tic-tac work, like a precise Swiss watch, and he embodies values we (yap, bloggers – we had our talks, too…) discussed as being the most important: authenticity, creativity, credibility. He follows himself only, speaks his mind, and instinctively delivers beautiful works of perfume art. Plus a big smile and beautiful blue eyes as a bonus! Honestly, I don’t know how he manages to do everything he does on a daily basis. Swissness at it’s best, I guess. And love. For perfumes.

Yes, everybody loves Andy. Which made it difficult to have a meaningful conversation with him at his Pitti stand, but even that is OK. After Pitti, he made it known on his IG account: Tauer, the candles, is launching this October! And Les Annees 25 are almost gone, so better hurry up  – if you can order online. Because one thing makes me crazy: I can’t even order Tauer Mag with a sample online, let alone any of the cute-little-familiar-shaped-bottles! Nothing, nada, niente, zip, zero: Croatia is not on the shipping list!

Dear Andy, please do solve this issue soon! We love you. You can do it! 😀 (Why do I keep imagining his little perfume factory like a Santa’s Workshop, with elves and marmots helping him? Why?) <3

Filippo Sorcinelli – Filippo Sorcinelli Brand

Most people know Filippo for his fragrances released under the UNUM, Nebbia, and SAUF brands (inspired by individual organ stops on the Grand Orgue of Notre Dame de Paris, connecting music and perfumes, incense music…). Or LAVS. There’ve been some changes here: a new website and SAUF has been renamed into Extrait de Musique (this seemed to confuse a lot of fans, so let’s clear this out). Packaging has been redesigned, take a look at the new bottles: the lower part is now transparent. 2 new additions: Unda Maris 8 and Violin Basse 16! One other thing: new 10ml travel spray size! Priced at 35EUR, for all UNUM perfumes! This is just a quick intro, as I will write in more detail about two fantastic events Filippo and his team organized! The debut of but_not_today perfume was something to be remembered!

Filippo is a painter, photographer, graphic designer, and organist. Creator of sacred vestments for Popes.  (Atelier LAVS – L’Atelier di Vesti Sacre). An artist, searching for beauty everywhere, in constant creative Flux. If you take a look at his FB posts each day, he starts with „Buongiorno Amici“ (hello friends), only to follow with „Buongiorno Nemici“ (hello enemies), turning his other cheek. Do I need to mention authenticity, creativity, and credibility again?

I feel only love for him, and his creations. A big thank you to his whole team and kind Cristina Brolli who handled all our communication.

Santiago Burgas Bou – Santi Burgas

Santiago is the creative director of the brand Santi Burgas, born in and loving Torroella de Montgi – dedicating one of his newest perfumes after this city. A multitalented person, too. A graduated textile designer, lover of nature and insects, especially ants – behold the new, ant-hill themed perfume!

Santi is sweet, gentle, and kind, at first he might seem a bit shy, but when he starts speaking about his perfumes, his eyes sparkle! Art inspires him, ever since high-school. Santiago is a rebel, rebel as well: I think he enjoys greatly his creative freedom, doing some perfumes by himself and some in collaboration with certain perfumers.

We have a saying in Croatia: Quiet water wears down mountains. Carry on, Santiago Burgas Bou: you shine!

Romy Kowalewski – 27_87

Yap, you’ve probably heard her story: she was born on 27th, in 1987. She won’t disclose the month, you really don’t need to know her horoscope sign. Romy lives in Barcelona, where I first met her.

Millennial hype? She IS a Millennial. Studied hard, wrote her project, made it happen: she invited some perfumers to make something new, not existing on the market. She is determined, hard-working and yes, I loved her #hashtag: seems simple, with sparkling aldehydes. She uses hi-tech materials by Givadaun, obviously enjoys playing with molecules, so I guess Daniela Andier here made quite a hit.

GENNEXT theme goes on with her new addition, Genetic Bliss. Go, Romy, go!

Murat Katran and Mert Guzel – Nishane

Murat Katran and Mert Guzel – Nishane

Istanbul. Just one word: Istanbul. If you’ve ever visited this city, a lot of things about Nishane are much clearer.

Tradition, modern and cosmopolitan structure, Europe and Asia connected: this is the first perfume house from Turkey!

Are you enjoying Rumi’s poems? Well, Nishane gave us a perfume inspired by his poetry: Fan Your Flames. Little Prince? Nishane covered this, as well: Le Petit Prince Collection, Vain&Naive still sitting on my desk, a review half-written. They team up with chosen perfumers, collaborate, create, move, and shake. And they are both ever so sweet and friendly, maybe sometimes overwhelmed by all the interest they’ve attracted.

Love you guys, aferim! <3

Sarah McCartney – 4160 Tuesdays

A lady with thousands of names for her perfumes. Bewitching. Funny and relaxed. Open, eccentric, having fun while mixing up and creating her perfumes.

I really think she is enjoying all this jazz enormously, employing her vivid imagination. Have you seen her FB post featuring a short video of her dancing and singing while shaking up a big bottle, mixing her new perfume? Amazing, to me – that’s Sarah.

She is a self-thought perfumer, scent lover, marketing-wise, fast-thinking, and a just a little bit a  perfume fairy. She is quite active in FB perfume lover’s group and I was really looking forward to meeting her.

Keep rockin’ Sarah: I can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with next!

Francesca Bianchi

She made me cry. One of her perfumes, to be exact. Under My Skin. Well, some perfumes do make me cry, but this one? I was sobbing. Intense, sensual, intimate. Triggering memories.

Talking about authenticity again? Francesca is Francesca is Francesca, take it or leave it. She has her personal view of perfumery and she is boldly hitting your emotions, yet in a very elegant way. She is intense and so are her perfumes, captivating. What a personality! Love her. As I love Sex on the Beach: after so many Summers spent at the beach, that sultry, warm, sun-bathed, sun-tanned, salt-on-your-skin erotic vibe is something I can definitely relate to.

Italian, self-taught, now living in Amsterdam. You bring sunshine wherever you go, Francesca! Thanks for all the tears and laughs!

Nick Steward – Gallivant Perfumes

Gallivant may be a relatively new indie perfume brand from London, debuting at Pitti Fragranze, but Nick, the founder, has twenty-and-some years of experience in the perfume industry. Yes, you know him, he is a veteran: if not from big companies, then as ex-creative director of the house L’Artisan Parfumeur.

Like many great noses, he decided to get back to basics. He is well-read, well-traveled, elegant, and interesting. When people ask him „that“ question: „Whom are your perfumes targetting?“ he simply answers: “People. With skin.”

Gallivant is all about cities he knows and loves, atmosphere, a feeling: my kind of thing, definitely. His perfumes come in 30ml bottles: easy to pack and take on your flight.

His newest, 7th perfume is Tokyo: a tribute to Kodo, calming, easy-going, with a whiff of wasabi! Loved it! Immediately set my mind that I have to meet the person behind it!

I tried to find Nick on his distributor’s stand at Stazione Leopolda, but failed and didn’t manage to return to it later on (it’s easy to get distracted!). Well, as some things are meant to happen, while talking to Lucca Maffei standing in the crowd on the street, attending the opening of the new Essential Store Capomarzio70 – surely enough, there was Nick! We finally met, yeeey! And had fun. And meaningful conversations.

Do I have to mention authenticity, creativity, and credibility again? Nick is doing it his way and what an extraordinary journey he is taking us on! Congratulations! P.S. I really really don’t like selfies, naah, next time I’ll ask someone to take our pic. 🙄

Pissara Ploi Umavijani – Parfums Dusita

Much has been written about Pissara: she grew up in Thailand, surrounded by books and poetry. Self-taught, she began creating her perfumes, blending, dreaming…Working. Her passion is noticeable: she translates the poetic world into scents, taking you to Dusita, a paradise where you can be yourself, express yourself. Her value system? Integrity. Uniqueness. Quality. Philosophy of the brand. Her Siamese heritage is strongly present, her talent exceptional.

Say what you will, but Pissara is authentic. She walks her talk. With an irresistible smile, warmth, and kindness. She is living her dream, loving it, and that is contagious!

This year at Pitti, Pissara exhibited her well-known perfumes range but we also got a peek preview of surprises that will be announced: Dusita has a boutique in Paris and the Perfume Creation Atelier starts now! Blend your own perfume with Pissara!

I was like: just give me one reason to return to Paris, just one little reason…

Thank you for all your smiles, kindness, and patience! Yes, personality matters!

I was also thrilled to meet (again) fellow bloggers/perfume critics/writers: it is so much fun to know who is (often) behind a nickname, to talk, to exchange opinions, to explore together, support each other…We had so much fun! Chapeau! Things we do for our love of perfumes, things we do…

I am looking forward to seeing you again, beautiful People of Pitti!

The Plum Girl

Elena Cvjetkovic

Photos: The Plum Girl Archive

Opinions of my own.