What made you decide to start Scented, and how did the idea originally come about?
I have always had an interest in fragrance and used to own designer scents when I was younger. Then I discovered that the same perfumers behind these iconic fragrances of the 90s also created scents for lesser known “niche” houses and I realised there was a whole other world of fragrance to explore. The inspiration to open Scented came from having visited cities like London, Paris and New York with independent perfumeries where you can sit at a bar and be guided to find a new scent, and I thought Glasgow needs a store dedicated to contemporary perfume.
What do you like about being based in central Glasgow, and what do you think makes the city’s independent scene so strong?
Glasgow has long been renowned for having amazing shopping, thanks to iconic stores such as The Warehouse throughout the 80s and 90s. Being in the City Centre, specifically The Italian Centre, is such an honour for us as it has a strong connection to the retail heydays of the late 80s/early 90s and we try to acknowledge that within the store. We are surrounded by similar independent businesses such as Drosten, helping to champion the City Centre as a destination for shopping.
There’s obviously a lot of crossover between fragrance, clothing and personal style — how do you think the two work together?
Fragrance can be as much of a way of expressing yourself as clothing. I feel that the two go hand-in-hand. It’s not uncommon to have a fragrance “wardrobe” which you can pick a scent from depending on the occasion. Some days I like to dress simply in all black and my fragrance equivalent of that is an easy wearing sandalwood - something you just put on and don’t need to think too much about. If I’m getting dressed up to go out, I like to choose something more expressive, usually a spicy amber.
What are some of your favourite brands or scents at the moment, and what are you reaching for yourself?
We recently launched a new brand from South Korea called “nown unown”, which we are the only stockist of outside of Asia. The perfumers behind the 6 scents are Mark Buxton and Géraldine Ignesta. Mark Buxton created the first Comme des Garcons fragrance in the 90s and is widely recognised as one of the biggest names in niche perfume, so it’s exciting for us to stock the brand. My current favourite from nown unown is “zen”, by Géraldine Ignesta, which has notes of rice bran, iris, frankincense and cedarwood.
What’s next for Scented? Anything exciting coming up that you can share?
We are just about to open the downstairs area of our store, expanding our offering of home, body, skincare, haircare products. We have existing brands which we will be offering more of, such as sans [ceuticals], F. Miller, 39 BC, Morris Motley and are excited to be launching BAINA’s towelling and new Apothecary bathing range. It’s a cosy lounge space with a sink for customers to try these products out.
