An Exclusive Interview with Perfumer Michael Boadi

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A perennial success story, Michael Boadi has transcended his hugely successful career as a stylist for some of the world's leading fashion magazines and firmly established himself as one of the leading lights of British fragrance. His previous perfume ventures with Illuminum and Boadicea the Victorious have found favour with the elite of popular culture, beloved by celebrities like Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and Kate Middleton. Now with the launch of his new house, Bohdidharma, Michael has turned his olfactory attention further afield, pioneering a range of scents based around the ancient art of the Buddhist tea ceremony. We sat down with Michael for a quick chat about this exciting new project, and to learn more about his ethos in creation.

1. What was it about Bodhidharma that first attracted you to the story?

I was attracted to his story of inventing the concept of meditation and drinking tea to be able to stay up for long periods of time in a meditative state of mind.

2. How has working with tea notes been different to your previous experience of creating fragrances?

With Bohdidhamra it was a bit of a long process as each fragrance had to be skilfully blended for the notes to perfume as they were written in the copy.

3. The collection features a number of exciting notes drawn from around the Far East, did you come across a new favourite ingredient while creating the range?

Well yes I did actually! When I created 'Black Lapsang', I got to use ingredients like Birch, Tar, and Cade which were incredible materials to work with.

4. Tell us a little bit about the packaging.

With the packaging for Bohdidharma I wanted to do something completely different to the previous brands I created. When creating Bohdidharma I was inspired by the metal tea caddys that loose leaf tea is stored in, and I was also inspired by leather as well, hence the leather like skin on the boxes. In China, red and yellow are colours that are very symbolic of good luck, abundance, and wealth. They were also colours that the Buddhist monks still wear to this day.

5. What is your 'go to' scent from the collection?

I basically like all of the fragrances I made for the collection, as they all have their own little stories of when they were made, so it would be difficult for me to pick just one of them honestly.

6. How has the reaction been to the fragrances so far?

The reaction so far has been absolutely incredible just because it's the first fragrance brand in the world that is solely dedicated to the art of turning tea that we drink into an olfactory sensation .

7. Finally, what next for yourself and Bohdidharma?

Well the goal is to launch Bohdidharma globally and successfully so everyone can experience the same joy and feeling I experienced when I created them!

The Bohdidharma range is available exclusively online at Roullier White. To find out more about this fantastic range of scents, visit our perfumery, here.

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