Premium Beauty News - How did the investment partnership with LVMH Luxury Ventures come about?
David Benedek - I was looking to raise capital to support the brand’s next stage of growth. In such a competitive market, scaling requires significant resources — particularly to attract talented people with diverse expertise. Today, our team in France has grown to 26 people, compared with around ten just a year ago. This fundraising round will also allow us to accelerate our retail expansion, open new boutiques, and deploy a more sophisticated digital strategy.
I was introduced to LVMH Luxury Ventures through Joël Palix. Until now, I’ve overseen every aspect of the Maison myself — from product development and production to distribution and sales — almost like a conductor leading an orchestra. As the company evolves, I’m building a stronger team around me so I can devote more time to the creative vision. That’s where I bring the greatest value to the brand: in the products, the formulas, and the image we create.
Premium Beauty News - And how is the collaboration going?
David Benedek - LVMH Luxury Ventures operates with a brand-building and deployment approach. They are committed to respecting the work done so far, without interfering with the brand’s creative vision. It’s this approach that made me want to move forward with them.
With a shared focus on long-term growth, these discussions encourage a more strategic approach to refining projects and shaping the brand’s vision across image, product development, and retail. It is ultimately a pursuit of overall coherence — something essential to any creative endeavor. I feel that LVMH Luxury Ventures and I share the same language. This new dynamic naturally demands greater rigor and involvement, but it is a path I chose deliberately. The support of an institutional investor of this caliber inevitably comes with ambitions for growth — though always through carefully chosen projects.
Premium Beauty News - What are these upcoming projects?
David Benedek - Over the next three years, the pace of launches will slow, with around one new release per year compared to the two or three we introduced in recent years. The brand already has several iconic creations — from Gris Charnel to Impadia — and our ambition now is to reveal new dimensions of these fragrances over time. I want to bring these creations to life through campaigns, anniversaries, and artistic collaborations. The development of new perfumes will therefore follow a more long-term rhythm. It’s a deliberate choice, rooted in the desire to further strengthen the brand’s identity before opening new creative chapters.
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of BDK, we are preparing a special event in June, which we’ll be revealing more about very soon.
We have also just unveiled the Studio Collection, a line that explores the dialogue between fashion and fragrance through textures, raw materials, and sensory contrasts. It is a theme particularly close to my heart, as fashion has always been a passion of mine. The collection is built around three highly concentrated absolutes, created by Jordi Fernandez (Givaudan).
Premium Beauty News - What impact will this investment have on the retail side of the business?
David Benedek - Retail is the physical expression of our identity — it reflects the image we project, the story we tell, and the experience we want our clients to have with the brand. That is why our Paris boutique is currently evolving, both in its design and in the level of personalized service we offer, in order to respond even more precisely to our clients’ expectations.
At the same time, we are planning openings in several of our key markets, including the UK, the Middle East, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, and the United States. Over the next five years, our ambition is to open between eight and twelve boutiques inspired by the spirit of our Paris flagship.
Premium Beauty News - And what about the evolution of the product offering?
David Benedek - The niche fragrance market is in constant motion, which means you have to continually reinvent yourself without ever losing your soul. I firmly believe that longevity comes from resisting trends rather than chasing them. It is equally important to maintain a highly selective distribution strategy. LVMH Luxury Ventures brings very specialized expertise in retail, along with a thoughtful vision that gives brands the time to build on the success of their iconic creations. That is also why I am no longer accepting new project proposals before 2029 — the upcoming launches have already been defined through then.
The brand is also entering a phase of greater coherence in its positioning. As part of this evolution, the Exclusive Collection and the Matières Collection will be unified. I also intend to further expand the Extraits line — a category in which we were among the early pioneers, with the launch of Gris Charnel Extrait in 2021 — as it offers an opportunity to reveal new dimensions within an existing fragrance signature.
Premium Beauty News - What about your creative independence within this new framework?
David Benedek - I retain complete creative freedom. One of the greatest advantages of this support is precisely the ability to build a stronger structure, allowing me to devote more time and energy to the creative dimension. At the same time, the brand is evolving into what I would describe as a perfume creation studio. The term reflects a broader vision — one that connects fragrance with art, avant-garde culture, fashion, and materiality. We are creating bridges around the idea of perfume as a lifestyle. And just as a creative studio collaborates with different artists, we work with multiple perfumers.
