Erwin softens up a little more when talk turns to the three fragrances he created with his father, master perfumer Olivier Creed. He reluctantly names Tom Hanks as one of those who bought Original Vetiver. With a straight face (though did I detect a hint of pleasure/pride there?), he reveals that Angelina Jolie bought not one, but two bottles of Love in White, Creed’s latest creation for women, which is proving to be another runaway hit. Jolie probably needed backup for her extensive global travels, and didn’t want to stop smelling like flowers whether she was deep in Cambodia or darkest Africa. (In one of those moments of synchronicity, how weird is it that Love in White is built around a rice note sourced from Vietnam, where Jolie is now applying to adopt another child?)
For young Erwin, that’s not bad in terms of bragging rights, for how many 26-year-old guys can claim to have touched the skin of La Jolie?
Erwin is much happier, though, talking about perfume. Like his father, he feels that the fragrance industry today is focused on all the wrong things: yearly turnover, celebrity endorsements, and fleeting smells made from cheap, synthetic ingredients.
"We are like chefs," he says. "If we don’t have good meat or good vegetables, we can mix it as best as possible, but at the end, it will be not good. It would be like making food for people in jail. For us to make a fragrance, the first is to find the best ingredients."
Easy to say when your company is wholly family-owned and has been passed from father to son since 1760. At Creed, every fragrance is a dream fragrance because cost and rarity are seldom considerations. "We have no budget," Erwin says matter-of-factly. If, say, inspiration strikes Olivier Creed as he strolls through the Fontainebleau forest (as it did with Love in White), or skis through the splendor of the French mountains (as he did with Silver Mountain Water), the finest ingredients from India to Morocco are flown in to Grasse, essences extracted using the classic infusion method (which has been abandoned by the rest of the industry due to its cost), and the fragrance blended and poured largely by hand into leather-capped flacons.
Since Creed uses the highest concentration of all-natural essences in the industry, it created its own classification, Millésime (mill-eh-SEEM), just as wineries classify their wines by vintage, or year. Composed of over 60 percent perfume oil, a Millésime is therefore richer and deeper than an ordinary eau de parfum. It’s also more expensive than most perfumes on the market (average price is P8,800 for 125 ml at Rustan’s), but that hasn’t stopped scent aficionados from seeking out their holy grails, or Creed’s pedigreed customers from selecting it for its quality and couture exclusivity. One reason Creed never advertises is because they can’t mass-produce.
"For us it costs a lot, for example natural roses, the price is multiplied by 500 more than synthetic roses," says Erwin. "It’s like a car: you can have a mass-market car or a Rolls-Royce. We prefer to have the reputation of a beautiful perfume than a big, big brand."
After James Henry Creed founded the House of Creed in London in 1760, it rapidly became a favorite with the royals, and Queen Victoria appointed Creed the official perfumer of the British Court. All the courts of Europe followed suit, from Empress Eugenia to Franz-Josef and Elizabeth of Austria-Hungary.
In 1854, the House of Creed moved to Paris because "it was more the center of Europe," according to Erwin. "Paris was growing more as a fashion city, and for our customers it was more easy to be in Paris than in London."
From its new home base, Creed created over 200 exclusive perfumes over six generations, with the appointed Creed son trained as a nose and becoming the house’s master perfumer. The reigning Creed, Olivier, is frequently called "the world’s greatest living nose," who instigated Creed’s introduction to the rest of the world.
Creed’s timeless creations include Fleurissimo, commissioned by Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956 for his bride Grace Kelly. The flowers in Kelly’s bouquet inspired the resulting classic, worn by the likes of Jackie O and Madonna.
The dramatic, heavenly Angelique Encens was commissioned by Marlene Dietrich in 1933, and remained her favorite fragrance for the rest of her life. Cool yet fiery Fleur de Thé Rose Bulgare was created for screen legend Ava Gardner in 1948. The heady, exotic Jasmal was made for Oscar-winning actress Natalie Wood in 1959.
The elegantly feminine Spring Flower, created for Audrey Hepburn, now trails from the wakes of Julia Roberts and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Royal Water, a fresh yet spicy unisex blend, was inspired by Princess Diana and is now part of Victoria Beckham’s spicy aura.
On the men’s side, tobacco-based Tabarome, originally mixed for Winston Churchill, was later adopted by another famous smoker, Humphrey Bogart.
The manly Cuir de Russie, which mixes leather with sexy ambergris, was created for swashbuckling hero Errol Flynn in 1938. Royal concoction Millésime Imperiale now anoints Hollywood royalty like Harrison Ford and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
Creed is now available in 1,000 outlets in over 30 countries, with Erwin currently overseeing distribution. The younger Creed, whose earliest scent memory is that of the fig trees near their house in the South of France, started formal training as a nose at 19. "My father and I fight, but he really enjoys it because he says I have my own ideas," Erwin says. "He can say I’m a leader and not a loser."
Before it was agreed he would continue the brand, he dreamed of becoming a race-car driver. Now Erwin just tools around on a motorbike around Paris, or express-delivers perfume bottles from their factory to the Paris shops in his Range Rover, which he can floor to 310 kph.
For our tropical climate Erwin recommends Creed’s fresher compositions with hesperides and citrus, like Silver Mountain Water, Millésime Imperiale and Royal Water. "Fleurissimo is also very nice," he adds. "Maybe a little bit warm."
The House of Creed will turn 250 in 2010, and father and son are already thinking of a limited-edition fragrance in a crystal bottle to mark the occasion. But no pressure; as with all Creed creations, they can do what they want, when they want: "We don’t want to be in a rush to make a fragrance, because it’s not good for the inspiration."