Book Information
Title: Kaori × Nōkagaku de Shigoto wa Umaku Iku! Ichiryū Bijinesuman wa Naze, Kusakunai no ka? (Scent × Neuroscience Makes Work Go Well! Why Don’t Top Businessmen Smell Bad?; English rendering of the Japanese title)
Author: Chihiro Murai
Publication year: 2018
Publisher: Jitsugyo no Nihon Sha
Book Review
Chihiro Murai, the founder and perfumer of R fragrance, originally worked as a perfumer at a company, designing scents for spaces and other applications. After becoming independent, Murai recommended fragrances to many business professionals through consultations: a perfumer with hands-on experience in the field. While many perfumers, perhaps, only serve customers or sell the scents they themselves have created, I think Murai is somewhat unusual in having worked with customers in many different situations and recommended a wide variety of fragrances.
Written by Murai in plain, conversational language, this book is extremely easy to understand. I recommend it to a broad range of readers, from beginners interested in the world of scent to perfume sales staff. As you might expect from someone who researched fragrance at a company, Murai approaches scent from many different angles, and you are sure to read it in one sitting. However, bear in mind that the subject matter promised in the title is not supported by the detailed evidence or references you would find in an academic paper: this is, after all, a book for general reading.
