INDIE PIONEERS PODCAST — Perfume revolutionary: CEO of Maison 21G on how her brand is shaking up the fragrance world

Monange is the former fragrance creative director of IFF for Asia, who left the company in 2019 to start Maison 21G.

Based in Singapore, the company was founded Monange, who has over two decades of experience under her belt working with the big beauty houses like L’Oréal.

In 2019, Monange left her role at IFF as its fragrance creative director for Asia to launch Maison 21G, which she believed had the potential to shake up the perfume world.

Maison 21G seeks to disrupt the fragrance industry with its unique technology called La Source.

“It allows you to take the concentrate of the perfume and dilute it into a bottle of perfume in 30 seconds – it’s like the Nespresso of perfumery.” ​

Monange told CosmeticsDesign-Asia​ that she started the company to recapture the ‘soul’ of perfumery.

She lamented that with the way perfumery operates today, the market was full of perfumes that “everyone likes, but nobody loves”.​

Since its inception, the company has been growing at a rapid pace and currently has three stores in Singapore, one in Sydney Australia and more exciting plans in the pipeline.

Monange explained that her success boiled down to her consumer-centric approach to selling product.

“People are hungry to try new things… Especially now with COVID-19, when people go outside, they really want to have an experience.”​

This principle extends to the online realm as well, where Monange has managed to build a successful e-commerce business selling bespoke perfume.

The company managed this feat by developing two techniques that would essentially reassure consumers and allow them to make mistakes without paying for it.

Furthermore, Monange has designed her business around sustainable practices to cater to the growing consumer interest in conscious consumerism.

“The consumer is really waiting to see what you do for the planet. We need to be conscious about the packaging and how we source our products. Most of the natural products are sourced from the poor countries...you need to make sure those people are treated well... it’s important to source your ingredient from the right person,” ​she said.

To learn more about Monange and Maison 21G, check out the podcast above or on Apple Podcast​.