Independent Botanical Perfume Houses Worth Knowing

For Strange Women was founded by Jill McKeever in Kansas City in 2010, starting as a handmade perfume oil project inspired by natural environments and folk herbalism. The brand remains genuinely independent, with McKeever formulating and producing every fragrance herself in small batches using botanical raw materials. Their solid perfumes and oil-based formats are particularly suited to skin — warmer and more intimate than spray alcohol-based fragrances.

Founded by Douglas Little in Los Angeles, Heretic Parfum was built on the conviction that natural fragrance could be as sophisticated and provocative as anything the mainstream industry produced. Their Dirty Hinoki — a Japanese cypress and vetiver composition — became a cult reference for what botanical perfumery could achieve. Little works with high concentrations of natural materials and does not apologize for the cost or the complexity.

Ellis Brooklyn was founded by Bee Shapiro, a beauty journalist turned perfumer, in 2016. The brand operates at the intersection of clean beauty and fine fragrance — predominantly natural ingredients, transparent labeling, and a design language that feels more downtown art gallery than department store. Their Ylang 49 and Ropes have developed strong followings among fragrance-curious clean beauty shoppers.

Dedcool launched in Los Angeles with a commitment to clean fragrance that did not sacrifice character for compliance. Founded by Carina Chaz, the brand has built a cult following for its Taunt and Milk fragrances — both plant-forward compositions with a distinctive California warmth. Dedcool also makes fragrance-infused laundry detergent, extending the scent philosophy into the everyday objects in your home.

Snif was founded in 2020 by Bryan Edwards and Phil Riportella with a model built specifically around the problem of buying fragrance online without being able to smell it first. Their try-before-you-buy model lets you sample multiple fragrances and return what does not work. Beyond the commercial model, Snif's fragrances themselves lean botanical — clean, plant-forward compositions that sit comfortably in the independent perfume space.

Portland-based Imaginary Authors was founded by Josh Meyer, who builds each fragrance around a fictional novel complete with title, author bio, and plot summary. The concept sounds gimmicky but the execution is serious — Meyer trained formally in perfumery and his compositions are among the most original in American natural fragrance. The Cobra and The Canary and The Soft Lawn are particular standouts for botanical complexity.

Phlur was founded in Austin in 2015 by Eric Korman with a mission to bring sustainability and transparency to the fragrance industry. Every formula is published in full, every ingredient is rated for safety, and the brand uses renewable packaging throughout. Their fragrances are clean and plant-forward without being the herbal-incense type — modern compositions built around botanical materials in wearable, socially acceptable formats.

Strange Invisible Perfumes — known as SI Perfumes — was founded by Alexandra Balahoutis in Venice, California, and operates as one of the most rigorously botanical fine fragrance houses in the US. Balahoutis sources organic and biodynamic botanical materials and formulates using traditional perfumery methods. The resulting fragrances are complex, genuinely plant-derived, and priced to reflect the cost of the raw materials. Her Black Rosette and Musc Botanique are considered benchmarks in natural perfumery.