The world of fragrance has a new name in its olfactory landscape, but the man behind MATIERE PREMIERE is no newcomer. Before launching his brand in 2019, Aurélien Guichard was creating scents for Gucci, Burberry and Issey Miyake, applying a seventh-generation legacy passed down from his family of French fragrancers.
But MATIERE PREMIERE (“raw materials” in French), is a more minimalist endeavour. Founded together with Cédric Meiffret and Caius von Knorring, its perfumes celebrate single notes with a contemporary twist—focussing on exceptional, quality ingredients, and allowing their raw beauty to shine through.
From his base in Grasse, France, at the time of the harvest, Aurélien Guichard reflects on refinement, reinvention, and smelling the roses.
You have a rich family history in the field of fragrances, but have in some way departed from tradition. What led you to let go of the “rules of the craft”, and forge your own approach?
I am a 7th generation perfumer: My grandparents cultivated roses, jasmine, and verbena, and my father is a perfumer. My mother is a sculptor. Growing up in a family of perfumers and creatives, I was immersed in a rich, aesthetic environment from a young age. Much like in art, mastering the traditional techniques of perfumery provides the freedom to innovate and deviate from established rules. Throughout my career, I’ve sought this freedom by both adhering to and breaking these rules. MATIERE PREMIERE is a mix of traditional craftmanship and a modern take on creation. We grow some of our own ingredients – rose centifolia, tuberose and now lavandin – with respect to local know-how and tradition. However, I formulate our fragrances in a more disruptive way by overdosing one central natural ingredient, and highlighting its most beautiful facets with short, modern and understandable formulas.
In my family, I was always taught that quality is intricately tied to craftsmanship and that I should follow my creative intuitions. In that way, I think I’m on the right path.
Your approach is “minimalist yet maximalist”, how so?
MATIERE PREMIERE actually means “raw material” in French, and our goal is simple: to turn an ingredient into a fragrance. My composition style is a minimalist one: I use a one natural ingredient at its highest dosage, faceted with few, equally carefully chosen ingredients. However, I compose our perfumes to offer a maximal olfactory impact, to stay on your skin, to have unparalleled diffusion without being overpowering. The kind of diffusion that makes people stop you on the street to ask what you are wearing.
During our visit to the atelier, you mentioned having very specific personas in mind while creating each fragrance. What do these fictional or real characters have in common, and what sets them apart in their inclination to each of your most infamous fragrances?
When I work for other brands, the person I create for, or the idea I develop entirely depends on the creative universe that the brand or the designer wants to convey. When I work for MATIERE PREMIERE, I don’t think about a specific person, but rather, my creative inspiration focuses around the ingredient: its different facets, textures, qualities… To me, the quality of an ingredient is very much linked to its sourcing, which is why I like to say that for MATIERE PREMIERE, sourcing is my first act of creation.
For Vanilla Powder for example, I discovered an exceptional vanilla absolute from Madagascar, issued from a Fair for Life agricultural program, which protects local know-how and minimises any negative impact on the environment. Vanilla is a classic ingredient in perfumery, and there are many existing masterpieces exploring the richer, darker side of vanilla. With Vanilla Powder, I wanted to go in the opposite direction, and create a different, even surprising take on vanilla that would be far from the sweetness that one could expect.
Your work unites two professions that might at first seem opposed: that of an artist and creator – drawing from the imagination with anything possible – and that of a farmer – bound to what the earth supplies and in a battle with the elements. Can you speak more to how you navigate between these two?
I don’t see my professions as opposed – rather, growing my own ingredients is just a part of my work as a perfumer. I initially planted the first roses to allow me to be closer to the ingredient. Having this exceptional proximity to a raw material is how Radical Rose was born for example – the idea came to me during the 2020 harvest, in the middle of lockdown in France. As we harvested roses every day, the smell of the resinous sap on my hands after picking inspired me to create this genderless rose with a floral, but dark and spicy character.
