Aurelien Guichard, co-founder and creative perfumer of Matiere Premiere (which literally means “raw material” in French), comes from seven generations of perfumers. Born in Grasse, where his grandparents grew rose, verbena, and jasmine, he grew up surrounded by these natural ingredients.
Before launching his own brand in 2019, he created fragrances for luxury labels like Valentino, Issey Miyake, and Burberry. Every scent reflects not just his impeccable craftsmanship, but also a deep respect for nature and local know-how.
Like Matiere Premiere’s new Vanilla Powder extrait de parfum. With the extrait series, Guichard endeavoured to “reach a balance between olfactive richness and edginess. More palpable textures, profound quality, deeper comfort.” For Vanilla Powder, he didn’t just increase its perfume concentration as well as its dosage of vanilla absolute, but also introduced the tonka bean to bring a voluptuous facet to the note.
Vanilla is one of the most iconic ingredients in perfumery. Is there a new story you wanted to tell with Vanilla Powder extrait de parfum?
Traditional vanilla perfumes created by French fragrance brands tend to be dark, leathery, and woody. We want to create scents that are different, where people can feel the texture of the ingredients. So I envisioned for Vanilla Powder extrait de parfum a white vanilla.
My adventure began with the Fair for Life-certified natural vanilla from Madagascar. Grown, harvested, and dried over 27 months, it was very soft, very pure, and not overly sweet. I wanted to amplify the powdery facet further with a more sensual impression. So I added tonka bean, which we crushed into powder before turning it into an absolute.
I also looked at ingredients that brought more light to vanilla, like musk, palo santo, and ambroxan. I wanted to create a fragrance that smells as if one was surrounded by a cloud of powder. It’s very special and magical.
What makes the vanilla from Madagascar worthy of its starring role here?
This vanilla is grown as part of the Fair for Life programme, so the money it earns is reinvested in the community, example, through building schools and installing solar panels. To further amplify the benefits, beans are extracted locally, as opposed to other business models, where they are exported to other parts of the world for the process. Vanilla Powder allows us to contribute to this ecosystem.
Can you share a memorable moment during creation when you knew Vanilla Powder extrait de parfum had finally come alive?
That’s a good question. I have a group of close friends—about 10 of them—who aren’t all perfumers or French. I got them to wear Vanilla Powder extrait de parfum, and some called me to say, like, “You know, I got stopped by a girl when I was shopping in the supermarket, and she asked what scent I wore.” That was the moment I went, “Ok, we are there.” Matiere Premiere’s fragrances don’t just smell good; they are also long-lasting.
Our fragrances are built around our love for raw materials; they are not inspired by, say, my walk in the garden. We also don’t conduct any tests with our perfumes, because we believe people know what’s good for ourselves and can appreciate good vanilla. Our fragrances are never created with just one person in mind. We follow our instinct.
The way I see it, a perfume comes alive when it is worn by someone.
What’s keeping you busy these days?
I’m working on lavender, which I planted some on my farm two years ago. I’m also working fine-tuning the design and experience at our boutique in Rue Saint-Honoré, Paris, which opened two months ago. We are planning to open in London and Berlin too.
We missed you in Singapore when Matiere Premiere launched in Escentials in May.
I saw all the pictures! But my wife was going to give birth to our boy so I couldn’t be there. But I promise to visit at the next opportunity. Singapore is really important for our brand.
Will there be a perfume inspired by your baby?
Well, yes, but this one I won’t be selling. It’s my secret perfume!
Vanilla Powder extrait de parfum is available at Escentials. More info here.
