It is a great pleasure to celebrate the second anniversary of the IPF Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy Courses. These Academy courses are a true success story for many reasons, but the most important one is seeing natural perfumers building successful businesses. For all teachers of the Academy, it is the most beautiful reward and the response we anticipated when we decided to begin this project.
In this article, we will share why the Academy is so dear to us and give examples of our natural perfumers' success stories.
 
The Natural Perfumery Teachers Academy Courses started with only three courses in 2021; we are the most significant natural perfumery learning academy led by 11 teachers, with 7 courses and 30 masterclasses today, increasing the number of masterclasses monthly. The idea is to respond to all needs and questions from our students, teaching them natural perfumery and leading them to create not only their perfumes, scented products, and brands and guiding them to very successful businesses.
 
The Need for Natural Perfumery Education
In teaching Olfaction Training and Aromatherapy it is valuable for perfumers to understand the importance of the olfactory sense and the beneficial power of nature. It is also essential to re-educate perfumers who have completely forgotten the real meaning of perfume. Most perfumers working in a laboratory today are chemists and have little knowledge of botanicals. Unfortunately, this natural know-how is on the verge of completely disappearing.
Most natural perfumery schools need to improve, and teaching drop counting instead of weighing does not make professional perfumers. Some of these schools were losing their students along the way as their courses were either 9 or 10 months in length (much too long), or there were only workshops. None of them had aromatherapy or olfaction training in their curricula.
 
The IPF Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy Courses fill this gap by covering everything from scent formulating to marketing and branding your perfumes. One thing that sets the Academy apart from other perfume schools is its focus on sustainability. Natural Perfumers should use only ethically sourced ingredients, and the Academy teaches perfumers how to create environmentally friendly perfumes. This commitment to sustainability has helped the Academy attract perfumers and aromatherapists who are passionate about creating fragrances that are beautiful, natural and responsible.
 
We are proud to share knowledge and help perfumers gain skills worldwide thanks to our home-learning experience. Via email and zoom meetups, we always stay close to our perfumers to help them grow their passion.
 
Let me share with you some of their success stories!

Dolores Burns, Sealore Natural Skincare - Ireland
Dolores Burns is trained in Natural Skincare and enrolled in the Fall 2022 session with Vennie Chou. In March, she developed a luxurious skincare and sustainable brand Sealore that won the Beauty Shortlist Award in Europe. Sealore delivers the most luxurious marine concentrates that soothe, nourish, and strengthen even the most sensitive and delicate skin while supporting each body system for optimum health.    www.sealore.com

Michelle Palmer, It Makes Perfect Sense - Australia
Michelle Palmer is a natural perfumer based in Australia. She enrolled in the Natural Perfumery Academy's courses in the Fall of 2022 and has since become a successful perfumer with her line of natural perfumes called It Makes Perfect Sense.
Michelle credits the Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy Courses with giving her the knowledge and confidence to start her own business. The New Luxury Award 2023 nominated Michelle's brand. 
www.itmakesperfectscents.com.au

Elizabeth Rowe, Elisheva - Australia 
Elizabeth Rowe is a well-known psychotherapist and hypnotherapist in Paddington, Australia. She enrolled in the French Natural Aromachology Course last January to gain knowledge for creating her brand of aromachology skincare Elisheva Wellness. In a few weeks, Elizabeth will launch her line of unique products which is a 100% natural skincare range (cruelty-free, vegan, free from parabens or SLS, etc., ethical, and sustainable) that aligns with the New Luxury Code set by the International Perfume Foundation. Her next goal is to learn Olfaction Training and French Natural Perfumery to bridge her knowledge of aromachology with natural perfumery to complete her line of products. 
 www.elishevawellness.com

Jan Kusmirek, Fragrant Earth - UK
Jan Kusmirek has been our first Perfumotherapist, after following Aromatherapy, Olfaction Training and French Natural Perfumery.
He is the founder of Fragrant Earth. He just released a book called A Nose Through History where he mentions page 169 "The International Perfume Foundation based in Paris works to keep the natural tradition alive and trains specialist perfumers"
​www.fragrantearth.com  

​Sri Kudaravalli, Xia Apothic - India
Sri Kudaravalli is a natural perfumer based in India. She enrolled in the Natural Perfumery Academy's courses starting in the Fall of 2021 and has since become a successful perfumer with her line of natural perfumes called Xia Apothic.
Sri has followed the curriculum of perfumotherapy, business and marketing, and aromachology . She credits the Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy Courses with giving her the knowledge and confidence to start her own business. Xia Apothic won the Jury Special Prize at The New Luxury Award 2022, and has two fragrances nominated for The New Luxury Awards 2023, in the brand and perfumer’s categories.
www.xilaapothic.com

Saeed Alqarni, Yafoooh - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Saeed Alqarni is a Certified Perfumotherapist, following Aromatherapy, Olfaction Training and French Natural Perfumery Courses. He has been nominated several times as a perfumer and as a brand in the New Luxury Awards.
His brand Yafoooh, specialises in oud, and is very successful in the Middle East. www.yafoooh.com


The Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy and natural perfumers successes are a testimony to the power of Natural Perfumery.
​Using only pure, plant-based ingredients, natural perfumers can create scents that are beautiful, sustainable, and environmentally friendly. In addition, the Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy Courses have played a crucial role in helping develop the skills and knowledge natural perfumers need to create successful businesses worldwide. As more and more people become interested in natural perfumery, we can expect to see even more success stories like those of Sri Kudaravalli, Michelle Palmer, Elizabeth Rowe, Dolores Burns, Jan Kusmirek, Saeed Alqarni. The next success may be you!
Intensive "Study from Home" Courses and MasterClasses are starting each first Monday of the month at the Natural Perfumery Teacher's Academy.

The extraordinary beauty of Australia and its botanical richness are an advantage for natural perfumery. From the lush, aromatic and botanical forests to its vast plains, its turquoise-fringed coasts and its dramatic red ocher-colored desert, each fragrance expresses the ultimate olfactory destination. 
By combining the science of Australia's most authentic native essences with centuries of French expertise in the art of perfumery, Australian natural perfumers offer us the ultimate olfactory experience. 
Australian indigenous botanical essences and Australian perfumers introduce us to these new and bewitching Perfume Roads. A dream of scorching deserts, sparkling coastal vistas and deep, beautifully scented forests. With natural elements rarely used in modern perfumery, this olfactory richness of a woody depth can only be extracted from the purest Australian essences. 

How do you see the Natural Perfumery Market in Australia?
​The Australian outback is a place of vivid and infinite scenery. Sunlight radiates from clear blue skies baking the landscape during daytime, and reveals a carpet of twinkling stars with unimaginable clarity and detail at night.
Seemingly uninhabited, the region is a zoo of native wildlife including the remarkable Australian Kangaroo. Hidden from the hot sun during the day, they emerge in the cool of evening ready for their nightly foraging and nocturnal bounding. In Australia, we call this “The Outback.”
Amongst this picturesque environment, we undertake sustainable harvesting of natural timbers. This is where we distill the essence of Wild Wood Oils.
Our Buddha Wood Oil and our Sandalwood Oils are spoken about very favourably 
There are many comments on how lovely our range is.  I still think that the industry here is not big in terms of how the rest of the world is but it is growing and there is always interest in natural, chemical free products.  That can only grow.  It is a good time to promote such interests.
 
What are the olfactory preferences of consumers in Australia?
Australia is such a diverse Country with many likes and it would be hard for me to identify the olfactory preferences
but the Sandalwood aromas, citrus aromas and spicy aromas go well.  Also, the lighter fragrances for a percentage of the population that are not so keen on heavy perfumes.

It is the Certified Natural Perfumers trained in France, living in Australia who talk about it best:

How do you see the Natural Perfumery Market in Australia?
Still a niche market, it is a growing market, the general consumer is more and more interested in education of health or ethical implications.
 
What are the olfactory preferences of consumers in Australia?
Depends on the demographics – the older, savvy shopper loves old world perfumes, they love the extravagance of buying nostalgia. 
Young buyers are more conscious of the natural, ethical aspect but affordability is a big problem with the yuppies. 
 
How are you developing as a Certified Natural Perfumer in Australia?
I am concentrating on the wellness side of my practice. 

How do you see the Natural Perfumery Market in Australia?
There is currently no data for Natural Perfume sales in Australia, and natural perfume is not regulated.  Therefore, there are many different strengths of natural perfume being sold, with some businesses using just a few essential oils and on the other end of the scale businesses use complex formulas with both essential oils and unique tinctures etc.  The price generally determines the quality and complexity of the product.  

What are the olfactory preferences of consumers in Australia?
Consumers are still unaware of what a natural perfume is and confuse it with pure essential oils.  Olfactory preferences appear to be vague and may be persuaded by the advertising of large companies rather than seeking out individual natural perfumeries.  Making one's own perfume via a workshop is quite popular however as this gives an educational insight to the world of perfumery..

How are you developing as a Certified Natural Perfumer, Skin Care Expert, Olfaction Trainer and Perfumotherapist in Australia?
I have a PhD in the field of biodiversity, health and the skin microbiota so my knowledge base is good and I enjoy writing courses etc.  My challenge is in the marketing of natural perfume and I plan to hire a marketer for 2023 and also develop a new themed natural perfume range as a relationship to a book I am currently writing 'Western Australia - Living in the Light'.

How do you see the Natural Perfumery Market in Australia?
I experienced and report there is a massive potential for a genuine organic perfumery in Australia and NZ regions by exploiting global natives from India, Australia and Europe for a unique olfactory blend in the form of perfumes for beauty, health and wellness which will cater home, body and mind vis a vis linked emotions. 
My work with team at IPF has given solid directions and I am ready to launch my brand in early 2023 for Australia, NZ, SE Asia. I have got my pilot formulation standardized and a full market potential is studied and established. All elements of my propriety formulation are knitted very soundly and will need ongoing searches with partnerships in procurement. My brand in Lifestyle Organics will cater in beauty, health, wellness by engaging plant oils, superfoods, wellness food, skin care product for infants and human adults and will scope the pet industry at later stages. I see to scope this in our global niche high value essence communities and will net a revenue of 500K AUD alone in year 1 and we will extend to supply ethical traceable raw materials and oils to manufactures as APIs, I am aiming for a very new but holistic market in this emerging sector. I will be sharing our purpose and vision of our formulations very soon, and key point of difference is I will create and cater a formulation which would have global horizontal olfactory index from natives and will not desensitized olfactory lobe with mono olfaction regularly using one essence of your memory olfaction.

What are the olfactory preferences of consumers in Australia?
Australia’s primary focus is to rely on Australian native as a choice in natural perfumery in this sector, primarily floral and woody which have limited choices and a right blend of global native can be a great marketing tool. I would still say citrus and floral is still a key element on local made perfume in the sector with some native oils which may not yield many olfactory aromas. I feel use of local native is a great market tool here at home, and body products in organic sense, like Lemon Myrtle, Australia Sandal wood, and Kakadu plum. 
 
How are you developing as a Certified Natural Perfumer, Skin Care Expert, Olfaction Trainer and Perfumotherapist in Australia?
My training at IPF imparted a depth of knowledge in different sections of the trade, and is helping me fast track my brand launch. I have presented my experience at national platform with confidence as I have knowledge and training in depth which is supported by my academic training and global business acumen in nutraceuticals. The pilot project in perfumery and international presentation has already initiated our registration process in India, and The Philippines alongside our own national markets Australia and NZ. I am still very keen to extend and get training with Francoise Rapp at IPF on perfumery and emotions (new logical trends) and Candle Making with Andrej Babicky in new year and my purpose is to have a product range which must serve holistic market niche for humans and pets but my system on olfactory principles with a common olfactory stream from my preferred plant sources and have emotions in function. 

How do you see the Natural Perfumery Market in Australia?
Natural Perfumery is definitely emerging in Australia, in a big way. 
Consumers are definitely looking to make the change to natural perfume and skin/body care, as well as natural remedies such as aromatherapy and naturotherapy, particularly in the 30-40 age range.
 
What are the olfactory preferences of consumers in Australia?
Olfactory preferences seem to be classic florals, marine and unisex fragrances.
 
How are you developing as a Certified Natural Perfumer in Australia?
My goal as a Certified Natural Perfumer is to educate people on the benefits of using natural perfume. My aim for 2023 is to complete the olfaction training and  the aromatherapy courses as I think the three platforms go hand in hand. 

How do you see the Natural Perfumery Market in Australia?
It ebbs and flows. I think consumer sentiment here is overwhelmingly positive towards using naturals in scent but currently it is being suppressed and overridden by sophisticated marketing campaigns by the industry heavyweights. Clever use of language and imagery has the general population believing they are engaging with naturals when they are not. This creates confusion in the consumer about what natural scents are and what they smell like so when they do encounter them there is a dissonance and negative reaction. My point is its not an easy market but worthwhile if you can gain followers.
Another point of view is from the scent design perspective where my clients who are creating their brand have a positive ideology that involves the use of naturals but the issues of availability, consistency and cost creates a compromise and ultimately they settle for the more general appeal and budget friendly synthetic option. 
Australia is a market with huge potential but is still battling with shipping issues and rising costs of obtaining high quality naturals and covid has isolated us even further.
 
What are the olfactory preferences of consumers in Australia?
Short answer is I think they are looking for natural scents but due to lack of exposure to high quality sophisticated perfumery in this area they associate natural perfumes with aromatherapy blends and they discount them as not on the same level as the commercial ranges. I think that the majority think most commercial perfumes are natural so when they encounter the real thing they don’t understand what they are smelling and the complexity is confusing and negative. However there is an ever growing niche market of perfumistas who both know what natural perfumes are, seek them out and enjoy them. This is encouraging.
Australia is a diverse market but generally influenced by USA in fashion so they mostly look for clean and smooth fragrances.  Scent preference here moves in cycles like fashion and generations are influenced negatively by the saturation of common scents overused in everyday products. Consumers here like to move against those trends. 
My workshops in perfume creation give me a unique insight and perspective as we see what people reach for and prefer.
Currently we are seeing a desire for scents that are clean and simple versions of naturals (nature identical synths or nature derived synths). By clean I don't mean fresh scents, I mean easily identifiable. When these same people experience my range of natural perfumes they don’t know how to assess, describe, or decide if they like them. 
 
How are you developing as a Certified Natural Perfumer in Australia?
My final musings on the Australian market for Natural fragrance is that consumers want it but anyone hoping to do well needs to approach it like selling wine to Australians. 
They want to understand it, they want it to be comparable or better than product around the world. They like a good story behind the product and a pretty package but most of all they want it to be easily chosen and consumed and ultimately give them a good time. If a natural perfumer can offer all this they should do well.