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Exclusive: Perfumer H Secures Fresh Investment

Former Aesop leaders Michael O’Keeffe and Thomas Buisson have invested in Perfumer H, buying out Natura & Co’s stake to back the niche fragrance brand’s next phase of growth.
Perfumer H
Perfumer H's store in Seoul, opened in 2025. The brand is known for its curated scents, homeware and glass-blown vessels. (Sooin Jang)

Perfumer H has received a £3.4 million ($4.5 million) investment from Elixir 1 Investment, the firm led by former Aesop chief executive Michael O’Keeffe and Ilyos Capital, which is headed up by Aesop former general manager Thomas Buisson, The Business of Beauty can exclusively reveal.

O’Keeffe and Buisson bought out the minority stake previously held by Fable Investments — Natura & Co’s venture investment arm — following the Brazilian giant’s refocus on the South American market since it sold Aesop to L’Oréal for $2.53 billion in 2023. The duo has also injected an additional sum of capital beyond the buyout.

Founded in 2015, Perfumer H is known for artisanal fragrances, homewares and pantry staples like tea. Each of its fragrances and candles are housed in blown-glass vessels crafted by master glassblower Michael Ruh. In 2025, the brand saw a 30 percent year-over-year revenue increase and is predicted to exceed $20 million in annual revenue by April 2026, said brand co-founder and chief executive Christophe Michel.

Perfumer H will use the investment to continue expanding its global footprint, Michel added.

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The brand operates nine standalone stores globally, having added two locations across Shanghai and Seoul in 2025, with plans to open an additional three across Asia and Europe in 2026. It will also be strengthening its wholesale presence, adding London’s Selfridges to its list of distributors in July, said brand co-founder and renowned nose Lyn Harris.

Perfumer H stores
Perfumer H stores have a "lab" element, where Harris can educate visitors about perfumery. (João Sousa)

Investment will also be allocated to bulking up the brand’s backend team, said O’Keeffe. “Now is a really good moment to get expertise, and get the right people,” added Harris.

Further expansion across categories and high-profile collaborations are also in the short-term pipeline. In Oct. 2025, the brand expanded into bathing products, while the Feb. 2026 launch of Soap Eau de Parfum in partnership with British apparel label Studio Nicholson was its most successful to date, said Michel. O’Keeffe sees a particular growth opportunity in home products.

Perfumer H Bathing Range
"I'm delving into how people should bathe, and immerse themselves in nature," said Harris. "Having honest and real ingredients, along with the science, is really important." (João Sousa)

The investment marks O’Keeffe’s first since leaving Aesop in Dec. 2024. A longtime collaborator with Harris, he highlighted Perfumer H’s ability to world build within a crowded niche fragrance market.

“There’s still a lot of sameness in the industry, with brands just doing variations on the same thing, Lyn creates something that’s much richer than that,” said O’Keeffe. “She’s the top nose in the UK, and one of the top noses in the world, quite frankly.”

Learn more:

Exclusive: L Catterton Invests in Ex Nihilo

The LVMH-backed private equity firm has taken a large minority stake in the high perfumery brand, which looks to push deeper into the US market.

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