ALEXANDRE HELWANI

Alexandre Helwani discovered perfumery during his school years in Dubai, where visits to a traditional Indian perfumer introduced him to attars, bakhur, and the disciplined study of raw materials. After moving to Paris to study theatre and drama, he supported himself partly by creating incense blends for churches, while deepening his knowledge through independent experimentation and writing. His website, The Perfume Chronicles, expanded that research into interviews and historical study. Rather than following a conventional perfumery-school route, Helwani developed through an artisanal master-apprentice tradition, later transforming historical formulas and cultural research into olfactory exhibitions and, eventually, commercial fragrance creation.

His first commercially launched perfume, Makeda for Parfumeurs du Monde, appeared in 2021, followed by Tong Ren for Elementals and the ambitious PERSONNE project for Iconofly. Helwani approaches composition through history, anthropology, literature, and music, often treating perfume like a symphonic structure whose elements unfold and reunite over time. PERSONNE translated the botanical world of Homer’s Odyssey into an all-natural fragrance, while The Song of Songs, created with the French Biblical and Archaeological School of Jerusalem, drew on plants and interpretive research surrounding the ancient text. His work is distinctive for intellectual depth, rare natural materials, cultural sensitivity, and a willingness to embrace demanding, unconventional briefs.