Part 2 – Brands of Interest

This second part of my three-part series on Perfumery in New Zealand turns more towards other brands of note, those who are making an impact both nationally and internationally, again exhibiting that ‘kiwi ‘tenacity and drive. New Zealand is a country that for many decades lay in the quiet, coolness of its shadow, a geographical limit, content to be an enclave of insular contentment. Life was good and in fact, still is, relatively speaking in a world of global tensions. With low population density and a leisure fuelled culture it was for a while, a little apart from the rest of the world, viewed perhaps as being behind in arenas of high fashion and perfumery, Europe being the focus of all attention for so many decades. In recent years however, certainly the last decade there has been an upsurgence in global interest in New Zealand founded brands and perfumers, because perhaps, like the wine industry that was my previous employment, new world wines from countries outside of the traditional wine centres of the world were not considered ‘serious wines’ at the beginning, the same can be said of Perfumery brands. It was only after time that the serious wine producers started taking notice, viewing beyond the platform of ‘tradition’ and seeing the benefits and new knowledge that was arising in the New World sector, merging innovative techniques and improvements to already tried and true methods. Perfumery is now being viewed in the same light, innovations and new developments unrestrained by traditions are seen as coming from regions like New Zealand.

Applied to Perfumery, there was a time when the notion of a New Zealand founded perfume brand or perfumer would have been frowned upon and quietly tutted about as not a ‘proper’ perfume. All that has changed. Kiwi Brands and perfumers are taking their place amongst the world’s best and striving forward with dynamism.

Exploring Abel, founded by fellow ex-winemaker, Frances Shoemack (yes, I was also a Winemaker in NZ), One Way Bridge, founded by Elise Walraven and Frater Perfumes and Fraterworks, founded by Jamie Frater, brands both recent and established, stretching across a broad spectrum of perfumery.

Abel was founded back in 2011, as Abel Vita Odor when Frances Shoemack, ex- winemaker from Canterbury in New Zealand was residing in Amsterdam with her young family. Frances searched to find for herself perfumes that were outside the trends, that were light on the environment and the wearer, with an ethical backbone and a sustainable footprint, natural perfumes, she discovered they were rare, if not non-existent. Her revelation that most perfumes were not in this category and that there was a huge lack of elegant, sophisticated wearable natural alternatives was the catalyst that propelled her into creating Abel Vita Odor as a brand. 14 years on, still growing in a sustainable way her perfumes are available not only in NZ, but in Europe and the US. Her creations are born from a natural curiosity, love of the natural world and the desire to create as ‘cleanly’ as possible. These are, by their own definition, ‘Radical’ fragrances, slow – perfumery and meticulous in the provenance that sits behind them, they challenge the premise that ‘natural’ cannot perform. Her partners in this enterprise are New Zealand Master Perfumer, Isaac Sinclair, based in Brazil before, now Paris but trained in the classical sense by Michael Edwards and Maurice Roucel, creating perfumes for several well – known brands, fragrances for Guerlain, DKNY, Lancôme, L'Oréal and Natura, before joining Abel along with Dr Fanny Grau, a Biochemist, between them creating with scientific precision and artistic expression. The sensory instincts that Frances utilised during her winemaking career are in evidence in Abel also, it’s a finely drawn line between the two disciplines as I well know.

Always the driving force for Abel is innovation, exploring the boundaries of current practices, the regions outside the formulaic traditions of perfume making. Here is where Abel sets itself apart, not only in packaging and presentation, ensuring all components are sourced with traceability but also the recycling practice after use. Bottles, caps and outer packaging all designed to be recycled. It’s a mantra, but more so the actual composition of the perfume itself, as far removed from the petrochemical industry as possible, striving for alternative solutions to conventional raw materials.

Frances gives examples: ‘Every ingredient earns its place. Natural essential oils and absolutes bring complexity, personality and a beautiful evolution on skin. The biotech molecules bring more of the precision and modern perfumery element to the fragrance.’

The tart upcycled cherry (a food industry by-product) in The Apartment brings a juicy, modern twist without the artificial sweetness of traditional cherry notes.

A beautifully complex seaweed absolute in Cyan Nori creates that briny oceanic salinity that is so evocative and transports you instantly.

A biotech aldehyde in Laundry Day gives that sparkling aspect that brings the fragrance to life.

Biotechnology is at the forefront of their combined quest for cleaner, more accountable and transparent perfumery, the perfumes in the Abel Collection sit close to the skin, merging with it and elevate over time, never fading or slipping into edgy, sharp or unpleasant territory, the story is in the wearing. Recently in October 2025 after years of working on reformulations and packaging, the new impression of the Abel collection was released, Isaac and Frances had been working on reformulations at 37 percent strength for all the perfumes, this slight twist of hand has lent a depth, subtle yet persistent to the perfumes bringing out nuances that were previously just whispers and the new style evident in the packaging and bottle design is a work of art, bringing back the art of presentation to Perfumery, it reflects a bold modernity, an item that would sit quite well within a modern art gallery installation, with absolute integrity.

In Isaac’s own words, "We have used the latest biotechnological advances to push the boundaries of what is possible in natural perfumery. The scents remain bold, nuanced and instantly recognizable, but now with even more hold," Biotechnology has transformed what is possible. We now have access to plant derived molecules with incredible purity and precision, produced through fermentation rather than petrochemicals. Combined with high concentration natural extracts and upcycled ingredients, we rebuilt every formula from the ground up. The result is more strength and longevity while remaining 100 percent natural and zero petrochemical. It's a performance that still feels alive on the skin.”

Biotech ingredients are fragrance molecules created in a laboratory, using plant sugars as the starting material. Living organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and yeasts are used to ferment the plant sugars into scent molecules, much like the process of making wine. This process provides us with precision natural molecules that enhance performance and longevity. All achieved with minimal environmental impact, by keeping the supply chain small and controlled. At the forefront of fragrance innovation, we pioneered the use of cutting-edge biotechnology.

Abel has just released Miami Split which personally I find delicious and addictive, fascinating not only as a perfume but in the components itself, a ‘Warhol-esque banana meets rebellious labdanum white-oud.’ The green banana, an innovation from Symrise, is completely eye-opening ‘“The banana symtrap came from the flavour division. It’s a molecule we literally couldn’t extract until a few years ago. That’s what natural and innovative looks like at the same time.” – Isaac Sinclair, Master Perfumer

The top note in a new perfume called Miami Split comes from an unexpected place: a banana processing plant in Ecuador. The fragrance is extracted from banana-scented water, a byproduct of washing fruit, that was previously thrown away. Miami Spilt also is described as an edgy white oud, it exhibits the warmth and amber depth of three extractions of labdanum and oud complexity but here indeed the oud intention is bright and less dense.

Frances and I share our common ground within winemaking and also with our chosen tangent in Perfumery, she along with Isaac and Dr Fanny Grau are, I sense at the forefront of the wave of change within the perfumery industry, New Zealanders have a reputation for pushing boundaries and exploring new territory, I, personally am excited for what comes next. Abel always had feet in both worlds, a base in Amsterdam and a family life and atelier near Wellington in New Zealand, Frances and her family and members of the team will soon be making a strategic move back to Amsterdam as the brand develops even further. There is only an upward trajectory.

One Way Bridge Perfumes. ‘On a personal level, life should be lived like a one-way bridge: no matter what happens, you need to find a way to keep going forward.’ – Elise Walraven.

A New Zealand brand that came to my attention at Esxence in February 2025 when I had a hastily organised meeting with Elise Walraven of One Way Bridge Perfumes. As a fellow New Zealander, she had reached out to let me know she was in Milan and we would have the opportunity to finally meet. Mention of her name and her brand had been swirling around on my periphery for a while. Elise started One Way Bridge in 2019 and it immediately found a following in New Zealand, of course, just after, Covid hit hard and put everything on a slower rhythm, this was however another silver lining as it gave Elise the time to carefully continue her development at a different pace.

Easy and comfortable to be with, and infectious energy, she is a singularly determined woman, turning a concurrence of difficult moments in life and family tragedies into the catalyst that propelled her into finally creating her own perfume brand after years of personal passion and learning. One Way Bridge is clearly firmly rooted in New Zealand cultural references, affectionately termed ‘Kiwiana’, coupled with a vintage aspect, the perfumes are full of hints of nostalgic glimpses for me and other New Zealanders but also contain unique notes that draw in the uninitiated from outside.

During our session together in early 2025, which now seems like years ago, we shared collective memories as each perfume hinted at aspects of kiwi life, since then her trajectory has been nothing short of astronomical. Little known outside of New Zealand at that time, she took chances; some would say risks, by travelling to Italy with her collection of bottles, some might call her crazy to bring her brand into the greater niche perfumery sphere, but having undergone personal difficulty it seems she had nothing more to lose. That personal leap of faith has paid off. Her collection is unique in its use of New Zealand botanicals; these are small batch creations that use native extracts familiar to all Kiwis. Names that evoke nostalgic reminiscences, Elise has called her creations ‘Brutal’, in the sense that they are raw and intense, no holds barred expressions of her life and emotions. Like so many women she has been through rough moments but has channelled her emotions into creativity, self-taught perfumer and self-driven to succeed, she is based in small town rural Wairarapa in the North Island where she creates small batches with a 20-25% concentration. As she herself says ‘Wearing her scars like Jewels’, there is a toughened whimsy about her perfumes.

‘Date with a Dame’ contains native Kumerahou, ‘Top Shelf’ – NZ Totara extract and NZ sourced Ambergris, ‘Haute Horopito’ – one of her runaway successes contains NZ Horopito and essential oil of Ravensara, ‘The Forgotten Highway’ - NZ Fern, NZ grown Lavender, Pohutukawa, ‘She’s a Kiwi Hunny’ – NZ Honey and a Kiwifruit note, ‘The Typographers Daughter’ – my personal favourite, it contains a note of NZ Feijoa fruit that adorned my mother’s kitchen windowsill to fully ripen in Autumn its a scent I adore, NZ Pear and NZ Haraheke extract. Her formulas are as quirky and curious as her brand, something that stands out from the overcrowded niche market, ‘Queen of Rings’ is a prime example; Rhubarb, Bergamot, Pink Pepper Tuberose, Stout, Vinyl, Vanilla and Civet.

Her attention to detail and staying true to her origins and culture are nourishing a brand with places to go, you can find them already in Shanghai China, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Dubai to name a few, Elise and One Way Bridge, you have come a long way. She describes OWB as ‘Artfully rustic and uniquely refined’, a wonderful example of taking New Zealand to the world.

Frater Perfumes and Fraterworks – Jamie Frater

Jamie and I first met in person in December 2022, with an arranged meeting in Wellington City NZ at the World Beauty Store, where Jamie’s brand Frater Perfumes were on display, it gave me the chance to meet him and his partner but also to go through the entire collection with him. His is an interesting and unique story, a path to creating his own brand, Frater Perfumes in September 2022, after meticulous years of background research and analysis. Jamie has a deep reverence for the historical aspects of Perfumery, its ‘Golden Age’ in the 20th century and a respect for the highest quality raw materials, this is now evident in the developments of Frater alongside Fraterworks and The Frater Foundation, a natural progression once you consider the values of its Founder.

Jamie had always been passionate about perfumes, especially vintage masterpieces but he did not follow a traditional pathway into Perfumery. Although born and raised in New Zealand, originally a software developer, he left for Postgraduate study in Opera at the Royal College of Music in London and later on became a tech entrepreneur as the founder of ‘Listverse’ authouring five books. All the while the passion and interest for Perfumery remained, an avid collector, the journey to making perfume was a fortuitous accident, a vintage bottle purchased on EBAY, arrived broken and the package was filled with the rich and complex materials that had made up the formula, his fascination was hooked. Jamie wanted to discover how these perfumes were created, what lie within the formula, so this polymath turned towards the chemistry within, he began to realise as he unravelled the secrets behind legendary perfumes that perfumery had radically changed from its ‘Golden Age’, a lot of the magnificent perfume bases and rich natural materials were no longer available or had completely vanished. Legends of the High Art of Perfumery like Ernest Beaux and Edmund Roudnitska had utilised these precious components in their creations.

Jamie with Frater Perfumes wanted to recreate and enliven again this lost aspect of Perfumery, he amassed a large private library of some of the rarest raw materials, forgotten formula books and bases, long forgotten. His core philosophy is unwavering in its dedication to excellence, never compromising on quality.

Frater Perfumes are in fact the only perfume house granted the Fernmark license in New Zealand, from the government, a recognition certifying that the perfumes are in fact 100% designed and manufactured within New Zealand.

His collection is vibrant and diverse with particular references for me; Dynasty is the scent of faraway empires. He created this to capture a concept of ‘Milk of Paradise’, inspired by the Coleridge poem of 1797, Kubla Khan. It is a rich, dense, regal and highly narrative perfume, blending intense florals with dark and animalic bases. High concentration of Damask Rose extract is a distinguishing feature.

Miyama is a long-lasting masculine fragrance of leather, precious woods and incense combined with a carefully selected floral heart of sweet Parma violet, fruity osmanthus and Bourbon geranium. Shapeshifting in its wearing, the darker smoky aspects yield to a suave elegance.

Menagerie is an exotic and mysterious gourmand fragrance, a whimsical twist, Jamie describes it as an ‘olfactory storm’ a scent that constantly shifts its mood, its dreamy and nostalgic, the leather jacket warmed by an autumn bonfire, scent of wet fields and village chimney smoke, its gourmand facets given edge.

Cherry Pop is a unisex perfume combining the scent of spiced wild cherries, boozy tobacco and marzipan with a floral heart of sweet acacia, jasmine and heliotrope. , it balances high – camp playfulness with vintage luxury, skipping over the too sweet or too heavy gourmand trends, it has a distinctively smoky and velvety texture. Classy, Jamie has elevated Cherry Gourmand into something sexy and complex with a sophisticated edge.

Currently the perfumes on the Frater website are marked as ‘Coming soon’, there are several reasons for this; the growing popularity of Frater Collection and Jamie’s dedication to slow-perfumery and high-quality materials. He is meticulous in all aspects of their production. He also refuses to use mass production methods so each batch has a 4-month window, once a batch is sold out there is a lag time for the next as maceration and aging take place. As of last year, there is also a rebranding exercise occurring when new perfumes will be introduced from a collaboration with Bertrand Duchaufour.

And now, for the significant twist in the tale, the tale not just of a multi-talented man with an obsession for historical perfumes, but one who not only founded a brand but at the same moment in 2022 launched Fraterworks, an international supplier of raw materials, lost bases and historical components to the fast evolving independent and artisanal perfume industry globally. Over the past 4 years, Fraterworks has gained a high reputation within the community. His goal along with Co-founder Paul Limcango and his sister, Sarah Frater was to democratise high -end perfumery by supplying brands with rare and difficult to obtain raw materials along with restored historical accords. Their mission is Uncompromising Quality, Preservation of Perfume Heritage, Integrity and Transparency, Collaborative Excellence and Preserving Historic Bases and Masterpieces for the Global Perfume Community. They operate mostly out of their production facilities in Wellington, New Zealand with selected processes in Grasse, France. ‘Ghost Bases’ long disappeared are ‘reverse – engineered’ using gas chromatography and recreated in line with current industry regulations, IFRA compliant. It has become a ‘go to’ for smaller creators and people with a passion to create perfume as well as larger brands, smaller minimum orders make it very accessible. Fraterworks ensures that the legendary bases and scents of the ‘Golden Age’ survive in modern-day creations. Alongside this constantly expanding enterprise, Jamie Frater is also a philanthropist ensuring that young generations have access to higher learning despite financial constraints with The Frater Foundation – cultivating excellence in the fine arts and classical education.

Certainly, these three brands are prime examples of a trend, an upsurge in interest in perfumers and brands coming out of New Zealand, no longer out of the loop, it has become a centre of attention. Perfumery is no longer the elite property of those countries with a long history of the art as it once was but an arena open to all, where innovation and creativity abound. In my last chapter of this trilogy, I will explore the perfume market in New Zealand with particular reference to a couple and their business partners who pioneered the Indie/ Niche / artisanal entry to the country.