Escentric Molecules: A Pioneer of “Anti-Fragrance” at the Intersection of Chemistry and Art

“It was as though I had spent my whole life sensing an animal moving through a forest without ever seeing it. Then one day, that animal steps into the light. Iso E Super was that animal.”
— Geza Schoen​

Imagine someone who has spent a lifetime sensing an animal in the forest without being able to see it, then suddenly witnesses it step into the light. Escentric Molecules began with just such a personal revelation for perfumer Geza Schoen.

Basic Information

Founded: 2006
Founder: Geza Schoen, perfumer
Co-founder: Paul White, creative director
Official website: https://www.escentric.com

The Founders and the Origins of the Brand

A Boy Standing Before Glass Bottles

Geza Schoen was born in Kassel, Germany. With an art-teacher father and a kindergarten-teacher mother, he grew up in a creative environment. His interest in fragrance emerged early, and by the age of 13 he was already collecting men’s fragrances “quite obsessively.”

“I began collecting men’s fragrances quite intensely at around 13, and by the time I was 16 I had established contact with Haarmann & Reimer, one of Germany’s major fragrance companies.”
— Geza Schoen

At 16, Schoen took a train alone to the offices of Haarmann & Reimer, now Symrise. He had neither an appointment nor a connection, simply announcing that he wanted to speak to someone. Initially turned away, he returned several times until he was finally given the chance to shadow a perfumer for half a day. That perfumer recognized his genuine interest and encouraged him to stay in touch. After finishing school and completing an obligation equivalent to military service, Schoen formally joined Haarmann & Reimer in 1992.

“[Being given the job] was like being a child in a candy shop.” — Geza Schoen​

Encountering the Animal in the Forest: Autumn 1990

With time inside the company to explore materials freely, Schoen began repeatedly experimenting with smelling molecules on their own. One day, one particular molecule stopped him in his tracks: Iso E Super (in Japanese).

This synthetic aroma molecule, which does not occur in nature, was created in 1973 in the laboratories of the major fragrance company IFF, International Flavors & Fragrances (in Japanese). At the time, it was used in very small amounts as a “secret ingredient” in many fragrances, yet its existence remained almost entirely an industry secret.

In autumn 1990, Schoen first smelled Iso E Super on its own. That evening, he had a friend spray on just this molecule, and they headed to a local bar. Before long, a woman approached them and asked, “Who smells so good here?” As Schoen continued the conversation, she named two particular favorites: Dior Fahrenheit and Lancôme Trésor. Though seemingly very different perfumes, both contained substantial amounts of Iso E Super: 25% in Fahrenheit and 20% in Trésor.​

“The very first moment, when everything began, was in autumn 1990. When I first smelled Iso E Super at Haarmann & Reimer, I realized there was a kind of olfactory magic in it.”
— Geza Schoen

London and a Turning Point

In 2001, or 2002 according to some sources, Schoen became disillusioned with the fragrance industry’s rapid commercialization, left H&R, and moved to London. He tried to make a living as a freelance perfumer, although freelance perfumers were practically an endangered species. Even so, London brought unexpected encounters.​​

He met Boudicca, the brand led by fashion designers Brian Kirkby and Zowie Broach, and spent several years working with them on its fragrance Wode. During this period, Schoen became deeply involved with the worlds of design and contemporary art, developing his conviction that “fragrance is art.”​

Meeting Paul White

In London, Schoen met another crucial figure: Paul White, from the graphic-design collective Me Company. A designer, White had reportedly used chemical formulas in place of signatures on his artwork since his younger years. Standing at the intersection of art and chemistry, he immediately understood the value of Schoen’s idea.​​

“I think the idea of a fragrance that evoked German techno was something I could understand instinctively.”
— Paul White

Schoen would handle the “juice,” the fragrance, while White handled the design. Escentric Molecules was born.

“We were a group of anarchists in scent.”
— Paul White

From a London Garage to the World: The 2006 Launch

Escentric Molecules officially launched on March 29, 2006, with a private dinner at Harvey Nichols. Behind the scenes, however, the two had been carrying out the painstaking task of filling and crimping, or sealing, 10,000 bottles by hand in a London garage.​

“One iconic moment was filling and crimping the first 10,000 bottles by hand in a London garage. By the next morning, I had no feeling in my hands!”
— Geza Schoen

Their initial expectations were far from optimistic. Their best-case scenario was apparently “a brief flash of brilliance, followed nonetheless by fading away.” Reality proved quite the opposite. Escentric Molecules generated the longest waiting list in Harvey Nichols’ history and later achieved the highest sales of any single item at the historic London department store Liberty.​

“I thought this would only appeal to artists and eccentrics.”
— Geza Schoen​

Schoen’s own assessment was spectacularly overturned.

What Defines the Brand

The Philosophy of “One Molecule”

At the heart of Escentric Molecules lies a proposition regarded as almost heretical within the industry at the time: a single aroma molecule can stand on its own as a perfume.​

Traditional perfumery had been described through pyramidal structures, carefully layering dozens or even more than a hundred materials. Its value lay in a “story” of top, middle, and base notes. Schoen questioned that grammar at its foundations.​

“Molecule 01 played an important role in changing perceptions of what a fragrance could be. Until then, the focus had largely been on naturally derived ingredients, which also dominated fragrance descriptions. Instead, we placed a single aroma molecule, Iso E Super, in the leading role. Molecule 01 made synthetic fragrance materials appealing.” — Geza Schoen

A Distinctive Format: Releasing Two Fragrances Together

Every fragrance from the brand is released as part of a “pair.”

• The Molecule series: A particular molecule bottled on its own. There are no other additives whatsoever.
• The Escentric series: A complex fragrance built around the same molecule, combining it with materials that bring out its character.

Schoen describes the relationship as follows.​

“The secret of Escentric Molecules is that the molecule itself tells me how to create the Escentric. Each Molecule fragrance is a single-element composition, but these molecules are special. While many molecules possess only a single note, these have three or four, like a musical phrase. The Escentric fragrances are my improvisations on these molecular riffs. Every element in the fragrance is there to interact with the molecule itself.” — Geza Schoen

Scientific Evidence: The Connection with Pheromone Receptors

Schoen’s extraordinary enthusiasm for Iso E Super also has scientific backing. Research by German olfactory scientist Professor Hanns Hatt has confirmed that Iso E Super activates the human VN1R1 receptor, an olfactory receptor associated with pheromone signaling. Professor Hatt described the molecule as “soft and human. The scent of which dreams are made.”

“Scientifically, the discovery that Iso E Super is the only aroma molecule confirmed to activate a human pheromone receptor was truly groundbreaking. I am deeply grateful to Professor Hanns Hatt for this research.”
— Geza Schoen

It is important to note here that Iso E Super is not itself a so-called “pheromone.” What has been confirmed is simply that it activates a receptor associated with pheromones.​

The Philosophy of Bottle and Packaging Design

“Packaging that embodies what is inside”: this is Paul White’s absolute design principle.​

The brand took inspiration from independent music album sleeves. With no marketing budget and shop shelves as the only advertising medium, the packaging itself had to speak.​

“By embracing and responding to the idea of the binary, coding became an important element of the brand. We broke words and brand expressions down into binary form and embedded that binary in the packaging, incorporating messages into the packaging itself.”
— Paul White (creative director)

The bottle labels are printed with binary code. For example, the lid of the portable case is engraved with “01100101,” the binary code for “e,” and the corresponding number. There is no cap. Even the bottle names do not sound “perfume-like.” All of this amounts to a quiet rebellion against the established fragrance industry.

Packaging colors and textures change with the material. Molecule 04, for example, built around the sandalwood material Javanol, uses pink and gold because of its connection with India. Its bottle design was inspired by images of particle collisions at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, or LHC.​

“Molecule 04 is probably the first fragrance bottle inspired by the Large Hadron Collider.”
— Paul White

The Fragrance Lineup

The Molecule Series

Five fragrances under the banner “pure and singular.” Each explores the character of a molecule capable of functioning as a perfume on its own.​

Name	Central Molecule	Olfactory Character
Molecule 01	Iso E Super	Velvety woody and cocooning. An almost “phantom” fragrance more noticeable to others than to its wearer.​
Molecule 02	Ambroxan	Sunlight on skin, sea saltiness, and a mineral quality.​
Molecule 03	Vetiveryl Acetate	Green and woody, like grass roots. A more refined greenness than natural vetiver.​
Molecule 04	Javanol	Sheer, transparent sandalwood. It has the radiance and persistence of natural sandalwood, with greater lightness.​
Molecule 05	Cashmeran	A complex single molecule that is musky and woody, yet also spicy and resinous. Like cotton infused with pine resin.​

The Escentric Series

Compositions combining materials that bring out each molecule’s character: “love letters to molecules,” one might say.​

• Escentric 01: Uses Iso E Super at the unprecedented concentration of 65%, adding lime peel, green jasmine bud, orris, balsamic notes, and fresh musk. “Quietly magnetic, never overbearing.”
• Escentric 02: A playful fragrance built around 13.5% ambroxan, blending a sparkling gin-and-tonic accord with “the smell of unboxing a brand-new Apple laptop.”​
• Escentric 03: A composition dedicated to “three roots in perfumery”: vetiver, ginger, and orris.
• Escentric 04: Built around Javanol, with an effervescent burst of pink grapefruit, lime, and juniper. “An award-winning fragrance.”​
• Escentric 05: An abstraction of a Mediterranean summer built around Cashmeran. “Like a cozy cashmere sweater dipped in the Mediterranean.”​

The Molecule + (M+) Series

An experiment in minimalism that adds just one natural material to the Iso E Super of Molecule 01. Eight versions are currently offered:​
M+ Patchouli, M+ Iris, M+ Mandarin, M+ Guaiac Wood, M+ Black Tea, M+ Ginger, M+ Cistus, and M+ Champaca.

Each variation is built around Iso E Super as a dialogue with a “second protagonist,” the individual material.

By the Way…

• Geza Schoen’s awards: He received the Outstanding Artist Award in the interdisciplinary category in 2016 and 2017. In 2017, he also received the Sadakichi Award for Experimental Scent Work for Osmodrama/Smeller 2.0, a joint project with artist Wolfgang Georgsdorf. Smeller is an “olfactory organ” that audiences can play like a piano; Schoen created 64 scents for it.
• The man who bottled the smell of paper: In 2012, he launched Paper Passion in collaboration with publisher Steidl, designer Karl Lagerfeld, and Wallpaper* magazine. An unusual creation, it transformed the distinctive mingling of printing paper and ink that gives books their smell into a perfume. Schoen ultimately completed it with just four or five materials, compared with the 20–100 used in an ordinary perfume. Lagerfeld called it “the silent smell of paper.”
• A scent that stops the scroll: Molecule 01 has the curious quality of being unnoticed by its wearer yet detectable to others. This is attributed to the mechanism by which Iso E Super binds to human olfactory receptors, with adaptation making it harder for the wearer to notice. This quality, also described as an “invisible aura,” has generated many legendary stories around the brand. Reports of “being chased down the street by strangers asking what fragrance I was wearing” are said to be among the customer experiences Schoen is proudest of.