In an industry that has become somewhat standardized, French brand Henry Jacques – a haute perfumery – stands tall, handcrafting exotic elixirs and scents to satiate even the most demanding noses.
In the region of La Motte in the South of France, just over a half-hour drive from Saint-Tropez and the French Riviera, lies a hidden gem: Henry Jacques. This incredible haute perfumery is one of the world’s best-kept secrets, as it is one of the few truly high-end, handcrafted fragrance houses that remain following a perfume exodus to more mainstream production.
For just about 50 years, the family-owned company has been concocting custom fragrances exclusively for wealthy clients. With those bespoke fragrances in the ‘Sur-Mesure’ (custom) service starting at approximately $111,000, the creations have only the sky as their price limit. Everything – from ultra-rare ingredients to diamond and gemstone-adorned, custom-made crystal bottles – is made available to fulfill the dreams of clients.
You would think that with this pedigree, Henry Jacques would not create fragrances for the general public. But, about 15 years ago, its management – namely, the daughter of the founding couple, Henry and Yvette Cremona – opted to design exclusive luxury fragrances available to very discerning customers of the world.
“I came back to the company in 2010 to help grow it,” says CEO Anne-Lise Cremona. “It has been a long path, but our motto is ‘no compromise’ and it is serious.” In fact, she says, every detail is considered and reconsidered in the making of the perfume, the opening of its 10 boutiques worldwide, the design, decor and more. “The perfume industry is huge, but most brands moved toward globalization. We understood our heritage and put our past and our passions first, remaining true to being bespoke. We won’t rush anything. No matter how long it takes.”
Today, the Henry Jacques’ Les Classiques line – which includes about 50 fragrances all made in limited quantities – ranges from $755 to $3,065 per bottle, depending on the fragrance and size. Of those approximately 50 scents currently produced, each Henry Jacques boutique carries several that are exclusive to that city, further culling down the availability.
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With headquarters in Paris, Henry Jacques previously produced its fragrances in its laboratory in the home of Henry and Yvette near Grasse, France, but recently purchased land in La Motte, where it has meticulously transformed one original building into a complete lab and workspace with sweeping views of the fields below. Those fields are planted with roses, and the brand is increasing the rose-growing production, planting specialty roses whose petals could be harvested by hand and made into a secret elixir for rose-inspired scents.
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Almost four acres of land are dedicated to growing roses, a feat that takes three to five years from planting to harvesting. This year alone, the brand planted 10,000 Centifolia rose bushes; the petals of that crop will only be harvested toward the end of the decade.
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The roses are organically grown, with the land tilled by horses, not tractors; the plants watered by the river that runs through the property; and the harvesting of petals done strictly by hand.
I spent a few hours in the rose fields picking petals and could not even fill 1/100th of the apron that the pickers fill dozens of times over in a single day. In fact, it takes hundreds upon hundreds of bags of freshly picked petals to yield a few ounces of liquid that becomes the elixir (or rose base) for many of the brand’s perfumes.
With its expertise in growing various rose species and the creation of different scents arising from those petals, Henry Jacques opted to launch an annual special-edition collection of perfumes, Collection de l’Atelier. This year’s series (unveiled in April 2024) is the result of the brand’s first signature harvest in 2023, from which it created an elixir called Rose de Mai. The Collection de l’Atelier is a boxed set of three coveted scents (each containing Rose de Mai) that offer a glimpse into the captivating magic that is Henry Jacques. Each has its very own bouquet with distinctive starting notes, mid-notes and final lingering finishes. Just 500 numbered sets were made for 2024, and these scents, like the finest wines in the world, will never be replicated.
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The care that Henry Jacques takes with its Collection de l’Atelier and Sur-Mesure series is administered across all of its fragrances. It can take years from start to finish to conceive of and create a single fragrance, with months being spent on just developing a single scent alone. Nothing is spared when it comes to acquiring raw materials either, and the brand uses some of the rarest and most expensive ingredients.
“Our ingredients set us apart,” says Cremona. “For instance, I could have used a different alcohol, but it would compromise the fragrance over time. So instead, I opted for the more expensive organic alcohol. Additionally, our fragrances are very complex and can’t be replicated. Some can have up to 250 components.”
Once the scent is perfected, each perfume is crafted totally by hand. In the actual composition of each fragrance, a specialist follows a distinct formula laid out by the scent artist. After a designated number or mixture of ingredients is added, drop by drop to ensure precision and continuity, the formula macerates overnight before the next steps are taken. In total, it can take many days just to mix the formula, which then has to be blended with the organic alcohol and poured into vats that are stirred for at least five minutes per day every day for three to six months or longer.
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Even the bottling process is done by hand in the laboratory at La Motte. And each and every crystal flacon is hand-designed in-house by Christophe Tollemer, artistic director and famed architect, and then produced by local family-owned crystal makers. Additionally, Henry Jacques doesn’t believe in diminishing the intensity of its scents, so it deals only with elixirs and essences – no Eau de Toilette here.
Henry Jacques perfume is not about huge vats, coils of liquid running from place to place and scientists in white coats. It is about handcraftsmanship, carefully guarded knowledge, rare raw materials and skillfully executed mixtures, much like the making of the world’s most complicated watches or most captivating glass of wine.
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This article appears in the 27 Aug 2024 issue of the New Statesman, Fall 2024
