Vilhelm Parfumerie

Vilhelm Parfumerie is a niche fragrance house founded in New York in 2015 by Jan Ahlgren, a former Swedish model and handbag designer [4][5]. The company builds narrative-driven perfumes in collaboration with established French perfumers, and its name carries a Swedish accent over its New York roots. It was acquired by Creative Perfume Company SA and now operates from Paris, though it continues as an active label rather than a standalone independent [5].

The house traces back to Ahlgren's earlier career designing leather handbags. He has said the idea came from reading about glove makers in 18th-century France who scented their leather goods, which led him to seek out a perfumer. Through a mutual friend he met the New York-based perfumer Jérôme Épinette, and the first collection launched in May 2015 [4]. The brand name was drawn from Ahlgren's grandfather, who wore a custom-blended scent every day.

From the outset the label positioned itself as a bridge between two cities. Vilhelm Parfumerie describes itself as "a creative bond between past and present, between imagination and reality... between New York and Paris." The company frames its fragrances as layered and evolving, meant to shift over the course of a day and to tie into memory. As Ahlgren put it, he wanted the scents "to be complex and layered, as they are in memories or imagined scenes."

Vilhelm Parfumerie was acquired by Creative Perfume Company SA, which took over its global distribution and retail development while Ahlgren stayed on as creative director [5]. The timing of the acquisition is reported inconsistently: a dated BeautyMatter editorial from December 2018 records it in 2018 [5], while a later web aggregation drawing on Fragrantica gives 2022 [9]. The acquirer is named consistently across both accounts.

The house presents itself as an art studio producing limited, storytelling-led collections rather than a broad commercial range. Its stated values center on surprise, contrast and "bold emotions through deep sensations," with each scent meant to recreate a moment a wearer can step into. This artistic, niche framing sits alongside a luxury price position, with individual fragrances retailing in the low-hundreds of euros.

The catalogue is built around eaux de parfum, several of which have gained wider recognition in the niche community. Dear Polly, launched in 2015, is an aromatic composition with bergamot and apple over black tea, black amber, musk and oakmoss. Mango Skin, released in 2018, pairs mango, blackberry and black pepper with orris, jasmine and lotus, over vanilla and patchouli. Other named fragrances include Dear Lord, Great Lord, Room Service, Basilico & Fellini and Morning Chess.

Production is distributed across France. According to the company, the fragrances are created in Paris with perfumers Jérôme Épinette, Bertrand Duchaufour and Marc-Antoine Corticchiato, drawing on the Grasse-based manufacturers Technicoflor and Robertet. Maceration takes place at a second facility in central France, with bottling and final assembly before goods move to a warehouse in Normandy for distribution.

The label has been covered within the niche perfumery press. BeautyMatter reported its acquisition in 2018 [5], and Fragrantica documented the 2018 launch of its fragrance "Don't Tell Jasmine" as part of its niche coverage [8].

The brand is classified as acquired: it was bought by Creative Perfume Company SA [5] and now operates from a Paris base, with Ahlgren retained as creative director. It remains commercially active, running live European and US storefronts and a boutique opened in 2021 at 58 rue Pierre Charron in the 8th arrondissement of Paris.