The Perfume House: More Than a Shop, a Library of Perfume

“I will have the finest perfumes that I can possibly get.”

— Chris Tsefalas, co-founder

On Hawthorne Boulevard in Portland, Oregon, a perfume shop has been in business since 1984. The Perfume House is a multibrand retailer carrying classic European perfumes alongside contemporary niche and independent brands.

The business began by importing perfumes from overseas and supplying them to retailers. The house that served as its base was opened to the public, becoming not just a place to sell perfume but a place to learn about scent. Even after the founder’s death, the work of meeting customers across the glass cases continues.

Contents

At a Glance
From Importing to a Perfume Shop on Hawthorne Boulevard
A Selection Connecting Classics and Contemporary Niche Perfume
1. From Caron to Zoologist Under One Roof
2. Keeping the Perfumer’s Name in the Work’s Description
Service Across Glass Cases and Time to Try a Scent
1. A Long-Serving Manager Guides Customers Through the Choices
2. Trying Perfume on Skin and Through Samples Rather Than Deciding on the Spot
The Current Portland Store and Online Sales
References

At a Glance

Name: The Perfume House
Founded: Summer 1984
Co-founders: Chris & Christina Tsefalas
Main physical store: Portland, Oregon, United States
Address: 3328 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214
Business: A specialist retailer of classic, niche, and independent perfumes, also selling online
Official website: The Perfume House

From Importing to a Perfume Shop on Hawthorne Boulevard

Growing Up in Portland and Learning About European Perfume

Chris Tsefalas was born in Portland on August 10, 1926. He graduated from the city’s Franklin High School during the Second World War. After joining the Navy, he worked in a program for people who had lost limbs at Mare Island Naval Hospital in Vallejo, California. After the war, he studied at the University of Wisconsin and then Marquette University.

The import-export career he subsequently chose took him around the world, from perfume oils made in European monasteries to the scent traditions of the Middle East. As he worked in the distribution of these goods, he also built his knowledge of the backgrounds of perfumes.

In Europe, his mentor was Dr. Walter Lauschner of 4711 in Cologne, Germany. He went on to handle international marketing for several perfume companies, then shifted his focus to importing and distribution after returning to the United States. His work with Oregon retailer Norm Thompson was another important experience during this period.

Opening a Wholesale Base to the Public in 1984

In the late 1970s, Chris founded the importing company Tamak, Inc. A house on the corner of Hawthorne Boulevard and SE 33rd Avenue became its base, supplying perfumes to local retailers.

In the summer of 1984, Chris and his wife, Christina, opened the house to the public. This was The Perfume House. Perfumes previously delivered to retailers could now be explored together with the people who would wear them. It gave him a place to put his knowledge of importing to use in conversations at the counter.

Chris envisioned a shop that would be both a retail space and a library or museum of perfume. Longtime perfume lovers and people discovering an interest for the first time could talk through scent. That idea became the foundation of the shop he built with his family.

Passing Perfume Knowledge On to Others

In 2006, Chris was telling perfume stories with expressive gestures in a small alcove lined with glass cases. He wore a gray tweed jacket over a white shirt, with a dark-red silk tie. The record preserves not only his knowledge of perfume but also a portrait of the person welcoming customers.

“Nothing is for everybody in perfume.”

— Chris Tsefalas

He did not see extensive knowledge as a reason to decide someone else’s preferences for them. No single perfume could be the right bottle for everyone. His words succinctly distinguish the work of collecting rare perfumes from the work of attending to an individual customer.

“Every fragrance is a memory.”

— Chris Tsefalas

One person who learned this approach firsthand was Tracy Tsefalas, who would later open another Portland perfume shop, Fumerie. After marrying, she began working with her father-in-law at her husband’s family shop, where she encountered classics from houses such as Guerlain and Caron. Her knowledge grew through his passion and kindness, and she has said that discovering Molinard’s Habanita firmly established her own passion for perfume.

Chris died on June 2, 2020, at the age of 93. The current official website preserves the story of his working life alongside a tribute to him.

The Perfume House Timeline

Period	Event
1926	Chris Tsefalas is born in Portland.
During and after the Second World War	He serves in the Navy and then attends university, later entering the import-export business.
Late 1970s	He establishes Tamak, Inc., supplying perfumes to retailers from the house on Hawthorne Boulevard.
Summer 1984	Chris and Christina open The Perfume House to the public.
2020	Chris dies on June 2.
2026	The shop remains on Hawthorne Boulevard, with manager Mark Liebman and the staff continuing to serve customers.

A Selection Connecting Classics and Contemporary Niche Perfume

From Caron to Zoologist Under One Roof

The classic perfumes collected by the founder are part of the shop’s memory. Chris’s own selections in 2011 included Caron’s Montaigne, Amouage’s Dia and Gold, and perfumes by Rancé. For him, special bottles and the stories of their makers were as much worth discussing as the scents themselves.

Yet the shop today is not simply a place to preserve celebrated perfumes of the past. As of October 2026, its official catalog includes Amouage, Parfums de Marly, Xerjoff, Zoologist, Maison Crivelli, and D.S. & Durga. Names such as Caron, Guerlain, and Houbigant appear in the same catalog as newer independent brands including Clue and Malka Sima.

Houbigant’s Fougère Royale, for example, is sold as a perfume that reworks an earlier creation for the present day. A historic name can provide an entry point, or a contemporary maker can lead someone toward an unfamiliar form of expression. This breadth across periods is a distinctive part of the shop’s selection.

Keeping the Perfumer’s Name in the Work’s Description

The official website follows a policy of naming the perfumer in product descriptions whenever possible. The aim is to treat perfumers as artists and acknowledge their contributions by name. Where the identity cannot be verified, it is marked “unconfirmed.”

The shop offers more than an opportunity to compare scents across brands. It also makes clear that perfumes sharing a shelf have different creators. The founder’s commitment to communicating the backgrounds of perfumes is reflected in the online product information too.

Service Across Glass Cases and Time to Try a Scent

A Long-Serving Manager Guides Customers Through the Choices

As of February 2026, manager Mark Liebman had been involved with the shop for almost 30 years. He remembers a time when imported perfumes were rarely found outside department stores. Inside the shop, classic perfumes and independent creations sit alongside ornate antique bottles intended only for display.

The perfumes are kept behind gilded glass cases, and staff guide customers according to what they are looking for. Unlike a sales floor where visitors can pick up everything themselves, trying a scent begins with a conversation. Liebman sees the breadth of the selection as an opportunity for customers to discover perfumes they might not have considered on their own.

“Fragrance, these days, is truly an all-encompassing art form.”

— Mark Liebman, manager

He says that boys aged 12 to 18 have also been visiting in recent years. New generations are finding their way to this long-established shop, and the range of people choosing perfume continues to change.

Trying Perfume on Skin and Through Samples Rather Than Deciding on the Spot

The shop recommends sampling before buying and allowing time to wear a perfume on the skin. Customers can try fragrances on their skin in the shop, and samples of almost every perfume it carries are sold both in-store and online. Its approach leaves room to discover how one responds to a scent rather than rushing the choice of a bottle.

It does not provide coffee beans to smell between fragrances. Instead, it suggests taking a break by stepping outside for fresh air or smelling one’s own unscented skin. Rather than focusing on raw materials for making perfume or regular perfume-making sessions, it is a specialist shop for discovering and choosing from a wide range of finished creations.

The Current Portland Store and Online Sales

As of October 15, 2026, the main physical store listed officially is at 3328 SE Hawthorne Blvd in Portland, Oregon, United States. The present-day shop that members of the public can visit is in Portland, not in Cologne, Germany, where the founder studied.

Opening hours are noon to 6 p.m. on Monday and Wednesday through Sunday, with the shop closed on Tuesday. Holiday hours may differ. Visitors can check the latest information on the official store information page.

The official online shop is also operating, but the FAQ states that shipping is limited to the United States, excluding its territories. Information about ordering from Japan should be distinguished from information about a shop one can visit in Portland.