Locations are by no means an innovative theme for perfumes, but Memo Paris swerves from the trodden path with a real commitment to representing the spirit of places through fragrance.
In the time of AI generated slop images, it’s heartwarming to see the high level of importance that Memo has given to art in perfumery. Each perfume has a story behind it and an illustration to accompany it. Most fragrances using the names of places lean into stereotypes for the benefit of western and European audiences, but Memo takes the effort to really know the city or town that inspired them to create said perfumes.
It’s refreshing to see in a time when people, places, and their cultures have become nothing more than a trend. Names and culturally relevant symbols become empty marketing tools devoid of the true essence of what it takes from.
It wasn’t surprising for me to know that the founders of Memo are avid travellers themselves. Today, we explore three of memo’s perfumes that transport you elsewhere on this planet– Marfa, Lalibela, and Abu Dhabi.
Marfa
We journey to a desert city in Texas, USA for this perfume. The city Marfa is most known for its mysterious phenomenon called The Marfa Ghost Lights. It’s also home to the famous fake Prada store art installation that critiques consumerism. The city began as a water stop and is now a surprising hub for architecture and modern minimalist art. But its cowboy ranchero heart still shines through.
The bottle with its many eyes on a golden background feels a little eerie. Many floating eyes out in the open golden desert evokes the feeling of being watched in a remote area. It connects well both to Marfa’s art and the theories surrounding the ghost lights being of alien origin.
Memo’s Marfa is a tuberose scent, not the typical sweet tuberose but more complex with green and spicy facets. Tuberose is native to Mexico. Political boundaries change, but nature doesn’t, making the heady flowers a perfect representation of the small town just an hour and a half drive away from Mexico. It evokes the sunny desert along with the cedar and the sharp greenness of agave. I have never visited Marfa, but this fragrance makes me wanna go.
Lalibela
Lalibela is a holy town in Ethiopia, famous for its medieval rock-cut monolithic churches. Eleven churches curved out of earthy pink rocks are so perfect that some find it hard to believe it could’ve been built by humans, crediting angels instead. Worship continues in Lalibela, people from Ethiopia and all over the world taking up pilgrimage through mountains to get there.
Memo’s Lalibela is a sophisticated floral, embodying all the rich history and present of the town. It’s a sweet floral, the rose reminding you of Ethiopia’s popular roses. The sweet rose along with the vanilla and watery coconut bring a kind of bright, angelic kind of feeling that makes you believe in the angel from the tales about Lalibela’s churches. Labdanum and incense represent these churches through smell. It’s warm and bright like the sun that shines down on the pink rocks carved into places of worship. It’s a beautiful contrast to the cold dampness of the usual churchy scents.
Abu Dhabi
Most people haven’t heard of Abu Dhabi outside of Sex and the City and Formula 1. The capital of the UAE and a cultural and economic hub, Abu Dhabi can be seen as the more relaxed and easygoing sister to the busy Dubai.
Seeing an Abu Dhabi inspired scent worried me a little about the brand going the stereotypical spice market route. But Memo has allayed my fears with a pleasant, simple scent that stay away from stereotypes. The perfume brings the juicy sweetness along with the heavier one of dates. Cardamom and saffron introduce bitter accords that enrich the sweetness. They don’t overdo the desert themes, keeping only to the dry vetiver to invoke it.
Memo feels very special to me as a brand, as a company that takes their art seriously while also having fun with it. I hope to explore more of memo’s travels, so stay tuned to Perfume Mag. For scented stories from all around the world.