Abel Leading Clean Fragrance Charge

Much like clean beauty, clean fragrance is often touted as being free from “nasties” – certainly phthalates – and formulated so as to not irritate the skin. There is no clear-cut definition of what “clean” encapsulates, but a clean scent is believed to be vegan – and therefore animal and planet-friendly – and comprises sustainably-sourced ingredients. The Evening Standard provides its readers a list of “sustainable scent supremos”, which includes Abel, a brand founded by New Zealander Frances Shoemack.

Shoemack founded her clean fragrance brand Abel in 2013, in a bid to create “the world’s best natural perfume.”

After watching a video of perfumer and fellow New Zealander Isaac Sinclair waxing lyrical about the similarities between perfume and wine, Shoemack knew she’d found her Nose.

The pair now work together on creating Abel’s sustainable scents, which have garnered a cult following.

“Sustainability is like teenage sex; everyone’s talking about it, no one’s actually doing it!” Shoemack jokes. “Every time we produce – which is several times a year – we are finding new ways to increase sustainability and efficiencies.”

Abel was founded in Amsterdam in 2012.

Original article by Naomi May, Evening Standard, April 7, 2020.