Art of Aroma

Master Perfumer Roja Dove talks about his fascination with fragrance and his successful brand. Anastasia Wibowo writes

oja dove is truly a well-dressed gentleman. Walking in to the Shangri-la Hotel, Singapore, Dove was clad in blue jacquard blazer, white shirt, black trousers and black shoes with white tassels. His accessories included a white gold necklace, a leather belt with a gold snake buckle, a diamond brooch on his lapel and two large diamond rings. And he smelled really good... Naturally, of course.

Dove, who recently collaborated with whisky brand The Macallan for its Edition No. 3, is a fragrance expert and master perfumer. Born in England in 1957, Dove started his career in French perfumery house Guerlain, where he worked for 20 years. Then, in 2011, he decided to launch his own perfume brand, Roja Parfums. Indonesia Tatler recently had an exclusive opportunity to have an intimate talk with one of the world’s greatest noses.

How did you discover your interest in perfumery? When I was 6, my mother came to my bedroom to give me a goodnight kiss. She wore a dress made of gold lamé. As the light hit her, it was like my mum had metamorphosed into an angel. I remembered her smell and that image stayed in my mind. It was the first time I made a connection between the moment and the person.

I would go to my mum’s bedroom to open the drawer where she kept bottles of cologne and smell them. I used to save my pocket money to buy tiny bottles of perfume. Scent became an obsession for me.