Premium Beauty News - L’Entropiste was launched a few months ago with an initial range of six fragrances and four candles. What is the concept?
Bertrand Duchaufour - The niche perfumery market is saturated, and standing out is a challenge. Moreover, the line between selective and niche fragrances is becoming increasingly blurred. That’s why I wanted to create a brand with a bold stance, both conceptually and olfactorily, to break away from the norm. It’s a way to elevate the discussion and take a dreamy perspective on creativity.
Through this brand, I wanted to embody my vision of life - namely, cycles that repeat themselves from a human and organic perspective. Entropy is "a physical dimension that characterises the degree of disorganisation in a system." I therefore sought to emphasise the notion of imbalance, this movement, this tipping point that’s essential for life to evolve. Hence the concept of the "Perfumer, Master of Disorder," imagined by the design and branding agency Centdegrés. Because that’s the only way life progresses—by throwing itself off balance, by creating danger to evolve. Order comes from chaos, just as light can only exist when it is surrounded by darkness.
So I crafted this first collection around chaos, structuring certain natural materials with the help of synthetic notes to create something new. In particular, I worked with very straightforward, evolving, opulent, and contrasting combinations. This approach constantly oscillates between order and disorder, a concept reflected in the off-centre shape of the bottles designed by Centdegrés and manufactured by Verescence.
Premium Beauty News - How do you achieve this ambition?
Bertrand Duchaufour - Total consistency - from the concept to the fragrances, including the design of the bottle and the boutique - is essential, in my opinion.
For example, Semence Douce is inspired by the world of Robert Mapplethorpe, whose photographs show a fleshy tulip with an almost provocative curve. I’ve translated his vision into a tension between boldness and softness, naturalness and abstraction. A green and watery tulip accord, carried by the power of saffron, adorned with a sweet almond facet. It’s a very distinctive fragrance with a generous sillage, oscillating between the sharpness of aldehydes and the softness of milky notes. Each fragrance thus tells a powerful story.
Premium Beauty News - Does the boutique also embody this concern for consistency?
Bertrand Duchaufour - The space reflects the brand’s DNA through three colours that represent this idea of cycles that are essential to life: red, black, and white. Black symbolises the earth, white embodies the world of spirits and the dead, and red represents life. These three colours are found in the design of the boutique as well as in the secondary packaging, which is made from recycled bamboo pulp.
The boutique is steeped in my universe, with a space dedicated to exhibitions, where you’ll find the drawings and paintings I made over the past thirty years, as well as objects I collected during my travels that express my passion for African and Japanese art.
To stand out from the crowd, you also have to offer a real customer experience! That’s why I’ll be in the shop on a regular basis, along with Alexandra Mettetal, a young perfumer I’ve been training for the past four years. Customers will also be able to have their bottles refilled, as the space includes a laboratory where the formulas can be weighed.
Premium Beauty News - Which markets is the brand targeting?
Bertrand Duchaufour - L’Entropiste will first establish itself in France, particularly in Paris. The brand will then expand to Europe and the Middle East, before moving to the United States and Russia, and later Asia. The "Made in France" label is crucial for the Asian market. That’s why incense is the leitmotif of this first collection. It’s one of my favourite materials, but it’s also very popular in China!
Premium Beauty News - Will you continue to invest in other projects?
Bertrand Duchaufour - While L’Entropiste indeed represents a culmination of my career, I will continue to work with TechnicoFlor, whose support was crucial in the creation of the brand. However, apart from a few projects such as those with Amouage, I will be scaling back my work as an independent perfumer.
