‘We make products, big decisions and children together’
HUSBAND-AND-WIFE TEAM DAVID AND KAVI MOLTZ HAVE DISTILLED THEIR LOVE OF TRAVEL, LITERATURE AND ART INTO A CULT FRAGRANCE BRAND
Perfumery got its own meet-cute when David and Kavi Moltz met outside a bar in Manhattan’s East Village one summer night in 2007. Unlike most meet-cutes, this one came with an uncommon twist. He was a waiter and musician; she was an architect with great taste in music; both had an urge to make something from scratch. So yes, they married, but they also created a line of remarkable and beautiful fragrances, candles and even hanging car fresheners. D.S. & Durga (D.S. for David Seth, Durga for David’s nickname for Kavi) is now sold worldwide and stocked in the bathrooms of boutique hotels – although when Kavi and David began distilling perfume oils six months after meeting, they planned only on making small batches of fragrances for friends. ‘Our lives are fully intertwined,’ says David. ‘We make products, big decisions and children together. That being said, we have very clear roles in the business. We give suggestions and discuss ideas, but the final say on scent and word is with me; for visual and graphics, it’s Kavi. It’s cool to see each other’s vision come to life.’ The couple’s love of travel and books is central to everything they make. With David formulating the fragrances and Kavi on design, they aim to take the wearer to very specific places in time – from the American Wild West (Cowboy Grass, with sage and leather) to the New England Coast (Rose Atlantic, with saltwater, musk and roses). Their latest, Pistachio, is creamy, smokey and – unusually for D.S. & Durga – a tiny bit sweet. For once, it has no story – it’s just toasty and lovely and it’s been one of their most popular yet. After all, as David points out, everyone loves pistachios.