Perfume was admittedly very low on my priority list during my trip to Taiwan in the second half of December 2024. I had brought my travel spray of Tom Ford Ombré Leather Parfum and small bottle of Akro Infuse, ending up wearing the former for the first several days in a row and the latter the rest of the time. The tea theme of Infuse happened to be in keeping with what seems to be the current predominant trend in Taiwanese perfumery.

Still, I encountered a lot more perfume than I expected, even opportunistically. The last time I was in Taiwan, I wasn’t specially interested in perfumery yet, but from my research, it seems to have blossomed along a similar timeline as my interest in recent years, culminating in its present ubiquity—not simply a matter of me noticing it more. A pleasant observation, either way.

Niche perfumeries

Nose Way

Nose Way (written as two words on storefronts and as one word on their house brand perfume bottles) is the only niche perfumery I had looked up before I went and made sure to visit. They were established in 2019 from what I gather (though registered as a company in 2018) and have multiple stores, mostly within various department stores in Taipei. The one I made a point to check out was in the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi nearest Taipei 101.

Nose Way stocks most if not all of the well-known niche brands, and their partner store Pure Way specializes in the smaller niche brands, including some independent perfumers (I asked to smell Osmanthus by Olibanum and they misheard me and brought out Olympic Orchids!) The staff are extremely knowledgeable about the stories of each brand and the composition of each perfume. They also write the name of the fragrance, translated into Chinese, on the blotter before presenting it to the customer.

I saw bottles by the Swedish brand Pana Dora for the first time and thought they were Penhaligon’s at first—apparently that’s a common mistake made by visitors. Glad there isn’t a monopoly on deer antler cap designs.

This was also my first opportunity to smell anything by Puredistance, and Nose Way is currently the only perfumery in Taiwan authorized to sell this brand. Not surprisingly, White is the bestseller in Taiwan, with a delicate, musky rose that projects innocent happiness and reminded me of high-end lotion. I was more intrigued by Rubikona, in which I think I picked up the “solar notes” most strongly, with a shimmery, metallic feel, which I realize isn’t what most people get based on reviews.

The store also has its own line of perfumes, also mostly based on tea and embellished with florals or peach notes, on the lighter side.

Cyrano

Cyrano was a serendipitous discovery for me in the Bellavita Shopping Center near Taipei 101. I was instantly drawn by the interior design, from the displays of specific brands to the luxurious sofa and private liquor collection of the owner (what a missed opportunity—I thought they had capitalized on the business idea of hosting a cocktail bar inside a perfumery!)

Since Atelier Cologne pulled out of the US market in 2022, I haven’t been aware of their new offerings, so it was nice to try their latest release, Camélia Intrépide, which was explained to me as built around a type of tea harvested during winter. It was indeed a light green tea to my nose. I also tried a couple of oudy fragrances from Filippo Sorcinelli, including the neon-bottled Luce Dei Cuori.

10X

I’m not sure exactly what this shop in the Breeze shopping center (also near Taipei 101) is about, as it seems to project an edgy image and promote skincare as well as niche perfume products. Its motto is “Imagination is more important than knowledge” and its keywords are “Xtraordinary​, Xciting​, Xcellence, Xploration”… OK, that’s four words—where are the other six?!

Center stage was DGAF by Korean brand BORNTOSTANDOUT^®, leading the juvenile naming game. This local bestseller was an innocuous powdery floral, more bark than bite, and did not inspire me to go out of my way to explore the rest of the range.

Standalone niche brand boutiques

Well-known international brands are well represented with standalone storefronts or counters across the various department stores.

Mass-market perfumery

Niche brands are thrown in the mix with designer and mass-market brands at less specialized vendors, such as sale stands in department stores. It feels like duty free shopping, only more liberal.

Vefume in Taichung was established in 2017 and sells skincare products as well as a wide selection of niche and popular brands of perfume. They also have an extensive line of products under their own brand, although a pair of their lotions are named Duchess Rose and The Duke, with others going by White Musk, Terre, and Sutileza, so I question their sense of originality.

This segues into perfume that’s either made in Taiwan or sold under Taiwanese brands, which I’ll cover in the next post.