Jovoy Paris: Fragrances from One of Paris’s Leading Perfume Boutiques

“I am not a collector, but a curator. I believe perfume should tell the story of the person who wears it.”

— François Hénin, founder of Jovoy Paris

Essential Information

• Founded: 1923 (original house) / 2006 (revival)
• Founder of the present-day house: François Hénin
• Official website: https://www.jovoyparis.com

The Founder and the Origins of the Brand

1923: The Emergence of Blanche Arvoy

Jovoy’s story goes back to Paris in 1923. Its founder was a woman named Blanche Arvoy, at a time when it was unusual for a woman to establish an independent perfume house.
The name “Jovoy” combines Blanche’s nickname, “Jo,” with the “voy” from her husband’s name, Arvoy.

The perfumes Blanche created were distinguished by their bottle designs. Rather than the classical decoration common on perfume bottles of the time, hers were known for their animal shapes and playful forms, designs one might call “whimsical.” Her creations are said to have included Allez Hop and Gardez-moi.

Blanche’s house, however, subsequently entered a long slumber. Over the course of the twentieth century, the brand ceased operating, and the name “Jovoy” was all but forgotten.

An Encounter with François Hénin: “Discovering the Name”

The year was 2006. A Frenchman named François Hénin would uncover this dormant brand name.

François Hénin grew up in a traditional French household, with a mother who was a university professor and a father who worked in finance. After boarding school and graduating from business school, he traveled to Vietnam as though setting out on “a slightly longer trip.”

That trip, however, became a four-year stay.

Based in Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, Hénin established a small trading company connecting French buyers with Vietnamese businesses. Gradually, he turned his attention to the country’s botanical resources. He became involved in distilling essential oils for fine perfumery from Vietnamese leaves, roots, bark, and flowers.

“I think the entrepreneurial DNA in me was too strong. I simply was not born to work in a large organization.”

— François Hénin

After returning to France, he joined Argeville in Mougins, near Grasse, working with perfume raw materials. Known as the “capital of perfume” in southern France, Grasse is a center of production for ingredients used in fine fragrances around the world. Spending five years there gave Hénin an intimate understanding of both fragrance materials and the industry behind them.

Five years later, he moved to Paris and began working toward a perfume project he had in mind: reviving the name of Jovoy, the brand that had fallen dormant in 1923.

When Hénin discovered the name Jovoy, he is said to have sensed in it “the memory of Parisian perfume culture.” Rather than creating a vanished brand “from scratch,” he chose to breathe new life into a name with a history.

2010: Reborn as a Boutique

The form in which Hénin initially revived Jovoy was not a brand selling perfumes he had composed himself, but a multi-brand boutique selecting and selling niche fragrances from around the world.

In 2010, he opened a shop in the first arrondissement in central Paris, close to Place Vendôme, creating a space filled with the work of rare fragrance houses that shoppers would not encounter in major department stores.

At the time, this was a highly forward-looking concept in Paris. In an era when the idea of niche fragrance was not yet widely understood, Hénin worked as a curator to broaden awareness of perfume culture, guided by his belief that “perfume is not a mass-produced commodity, but an art with a personal story.”

“What I wanted to do was become a ‘translator’ for the world of perfume: someone who connects customers with wonderful fragrances that are not yet known.”

— François Hénin

The Birth of an In-House Fragrance Line

As the boutique’s reputation grew, Hénin developed Jovoy beyond a “place to sell” into a maison de parfum, a house of perfume, creating original fragrances. Its in-house perfumes were made in collaboration with renowned perfumers from around the world and came to be distributed as “Jovoy” creations through specialist retailers worldwide.

It is also known as a European shop from which customers in Japan can import products for personal use, offering a safe, reassuring place to buy unquestionably authentic goods.

The Birth of Jeroboam

Hénin’s business interests extend beyond Jovoy. Around 2015, he launched a separate brand, Jeroboam. Positioned as Jovoy’s sister brand, Jeroboam specializes in more exotic, sensual fragrances and has a distinctive format: it offers only 30 ml extraits de parfum, the most highly concentrated form of perfume.

The Brand’s Commitments

The Philosophy of “Curation”

The philosophy underlying Jovoy has consistently been curation. Hénin defines himself not as a perfumer, but as a “curator of fragrance.” This remains true when he creates perfumes for his own line: he values the process of talking with perfumers he trusts and having them translate his vision into scent.

“I am not a nose, a perfumer. But I know what makes a beautiful fragrance. I think that difference is precisely what my work is about.”

— François Hénin

Hénin has also been a forceful advocate for the importance of independent houses in the face of the growing influence of large conglomerates in the perfume industry. As major capital absorbs the niche fragrance market, he has remained steadfast in his conviction that “independence itself has value.”

Bottles and a New Identity in 2025

In 2025, Jovoy underwent a major visual renewal, introducing a new bottle design and a refreshed brand identity. According to the official blog, the change was presented as a sign that the house had “entered a new phase,” marking a shift toward more refined packaging.

Just as the original founder, Blanche Arvoy, used playful animal-shaped bottles, Jovoy has continued to imbue its bottle designs with a certain message.

The Fragrance Lineup

Jovoy’s in-house line consists of perfumes created in collaboration with a variety of perfumers. Here are some representative creations.

La Liturgie des Heures

Meaning “The Liturgy of the Hours,” this perfume has one of the most poetic concepts in Jovoy’s lineup. Centered on resinous materials including frankincense, it is known as a woody-incense fragrance with a meditative, solemn atmosphere.

Incident Diplomatique

An incense-style creation whose name means “Diplomatic Incident.” Its smoky, spicy contours are distinguished by a deep, complex structure.

Fire at Will

A relatively recent creation released in 2021, composed by perfumer Vanina Muracciole. Built around vanilla, mimosa, and white musk, it is a sweet, sensual gourmand fragrance.

Psychédélique

A creation with a spicy, woody impression, it stands alongside La Liturgie des Heures as one of the representative perfumes of Jovoy’s “deep” fragrance range.

The Petits J Line

Officially announced in 2025, this line is based on the concept of “Jovoy-quality fragrance at a more accessible price.” It serves as an entry-level line, part of an effort to broaden the brand’s reach.

The Jeroboam Collection

Jovoy’s sister brand, Jeroboam, offers only 30 ml extraits de parfum, with a lineup that foregrounds sensual materials such as musk, amber, and oud. It is positioned as a darker, more adult fragrance world, with a distinct identity from Jovoy.

About the Boutiques

The main Paris boutique is located in the first arrondissement, around Rue de Castiglione in the Place Vendôme area. Stocking hundreds of niche perfumes, it is nicknamed the “embassy of rare perfumes.” The house also has a shop in London’s Mayfair and is expanding in the Middle East’s GCC region.

By the Way…

• Blanche Arvoy, whose name gave rise to Jovoy, was one of the few pioneering women to run an independent house in the Parisian perfume world of the early twentieth century. Hénin’s choice of her name seems to express his respect for the history of Parisian perfumery.
• “Jeroboam” is both the name of an Israelite king in the Old Testament and the name of a large, three-liter Champagne bottle. The choice can be interpreted as expressing a commitment to offering “an almost excessively concentrated experience” through perfume.
• The new fragrance Ha Long Bay, released in late 2025, was inspired by Vietnam’s World Heritage site of Ha Long Bay. Although no detailed published interview information about Hénin’s personal connections with Asia, particularly Vietnam, could be confirmed at the time of writing, the name suggests an affinity with Asia.