Niche Night in Florence

Oh what a night! In celebration of niche perfumery and Pitti Fragranze international fragrance expo, Robert and I hosted an olfactory event at the beautiful, new W Florence hotel lounge. The evening centered around our popular eau de parfum, aétai, inspiring the dj set, cocktails and scent installation to introduce the fragrance and our brand to those attending Florence’s annual event.

More than just a casual get-together, we decided to demonstrate a behind-the-scenes look of how we created the alluring aétai fragrance. An installation decked out in our black and white pattern showcased the building blocks of aétai. From single ingredients to the main accords and, finally, the finished unisex eau de parfum, it was a peak into our creative process and a reveal into the “simple complexity” of fragrance composition.

W Florence was the perfect host in more than its stylish, mid-century Italian inspired deco. Like our own brand, W was born in New York and now with impressive roots globally, including our “second home”, Tuscany! There is a longtime, personal affection for W since I had been art director for the brand some 15 years ago working from its New York City offices. Since leaving my official duties with W and sister brands in hospitality, I have continued design work with them in a freelance capacity. The brand has evolved into the international luxury space but without loosing its cool factor and the W Florence is no exception. A personal affinity for mid-century Italian design makes the new Florentine location an immediate favorite of mine - beyond the genuine warm hospitality and professionalism they offered for Niche Night.

Additional accolades go to the “wild side of Tuscany” gin maker, DIN’s, who contributed to the event with their beautifully barrel-aged and delicious Senior gin. The “aétai cocktail” conjured up by W mixologists welcomed attendees to the event. The blend of DIN’s Senior gin, cedar essence, chinotto, ginger, rose and verbena was a beautifully fragrant and spicey cocktail to complement the floral, spice and woody notes of aétai.

Robert and I would like to thank everyone who attended the first Niche Night. It was a blissful evening to celebrate perfumery and to have fun doing it! It was our first time organizing such an event but, after a little time to rest up, it sure could be a fun thing to do again, right?

Stay tuned…