Back in 2011, when he was the Global Product Manager of Comme des Garçons (Puig) during the day, and a musician at night, Pierre Guguen sensed an opportunity to combine the two worlds on stage. And the experience was positive, as it magnified the emotional power of the gig. He then continued his marketing and development journey in the perfume sector at L’Oréal, still clarifying his project, until in 2018, he founded a brand to make music beautify perfume.
A synaesthetic quest
For L’Orchestre Parfum, he imagined a brand new space in perfumery to explore the alchemy between the senses of hearing and smell. These two worlds share a similar language and the ability to spark memories and emotions. Guguen designed his brand as a dialogue between perfumers and musicians. This highly sensorial approach to perfumes was key to its success: it is now distributed in about 30 countries.
With 14 fragrances in its catalogue, L’Orchestre Parfum now boasts a broad palette of olfactory facets associated with as many sound frequencies to discover in store. Then it only remained for him to find the place that could fully embody this synaesthetic experience.
A first audiophile perfume store in Paris
Guguen dreamt of a venue that could express the very essence of his brand. During his many trips to Japan, where L’Orchestre Parfum is much popular, he discovered Jazz Kissa, the listening cafés that emerged in the country in the 1950s. In these soothing refuges, high-fidelity sound feels like an actual presence. He wanted his first store to blend the intimist atmosphere of these places with the perfume world.
The project took shape with the support of Matthieu Roustan, a friend and the co-founder of the brand, and through a collaboration with U Interiors. The design embraces the hushed codes of the Jazz Kissa cafés, with dark wood shades, soft light, concrete, turntables for vinyl records, and a highly sophisticated audiophile system. This set-up is designed to experience a fully immersive journey.
A place for sharing
Beyond a retail experience, Guguen imagined this space as a cultural refuge, a cocoon where people can come and revitalise themselves, gently rocked by the sound of a vinyl record, and the story and smell of a perfume. “It is more like offering a performance than selling a product,” he explains. This gathering place is opened to all the curious and enthusiasts, and it will eventually be punctuated by various events.
It is no surprise the store is in Paris’s central Marais quarter. “It is a lively, trendy, cultural and cosmopolitan neighbourhood visited by various types of people open to this type of experience. Its artistic vibrancy is in line with the spirit of the store, and even the kimono store next door, KIMONO ARCH and Y. & SONS. This ecosystem is consistent with our audiophile perfume store,” explains Guguen. “It is a place where people can talk; some come with their own vinyl records, while others evoke their travel memories and stories about music. There is a sense of authenticity which goes beyond the purchase of a fragrance,” he adds.
A concept in tunes with the times
The synaesthetic experience, between the senses of hearing and smell, has also inspired other perfume players, as can be seen with Maison Diptyque, also in central Paris: an ephemeral species has turned into a listening station dedicated to jazz to launch the Orphéon Eau de toilette (opened until March 30th), a nod to the eponymous jazz club which used to adjoin the iconic store on Boulevard Saint-Germain. The audience can discover a selection of 40 vinyl records on self-service turntables orchestrated by Parisian record shop owner Superfly Records.
The trend also resonates with Initio: the brand keeps forging links between smell and emotion, this time through sound. With The Initio Mixtape, a playlist set up by pop group Kid Francescoli, available on Spotify, it unfolds each collection into a musical world, a sensory connection crafted to amplify perception, memory, and desire.
As opposed to standardised retail, these synaesthesic experiences offer a different way to discover and enjoy perfume, a fertile ground that sparks a new bond with consumers seeking exclusive and authentic experiences. Plus, this approach embraces the current trend focused on fragrances’ emotional benefits.
