When I sat down with Marc Chaya, Co-Founder and President of Maison Francis Kurkdjian, the conversation quickly reveals itself as more than an introduction to a new fragrance at the time. It become a reflection on creation and authorship.
A house shaped by encounter
Maison Francis Kurkdjian was founded in 2009, following the meeting between Francis Kurkdjian already responsible for numerous acclaimed fragrances, and Marc Chaya. From the outset, Chaya explains, they shared a desire to build something different: a house dedicated to a sensual, generous and multi-facetted form of olfactory free expression.
Rather than starting from marketing intentions, the maison was designed to allow the perfumer’s vision to lead. Everything, Chaya says, originates from the creator.
Reframing the role of the perfumer
A recurring theme in the conversation is language and how it shapes perception. Chaya speaks at length about the term “nose,” which he considers reductive. For many years, perfumers have been presented as technicians or chemists, their role narrowed to technical execution.
In reality, he explains, great perfumery is conceptual. The vision comes first. Ingredients and technique are tools used to realise that vision, much like a painter choosing colours to translate an idea onto canvas. To overlook this, he argues, is to ignore the creative intelligence at the heart of fragrance.
Baccarat Rouge 540: creation before intention
Chaya points to Baccarat Rouge 540 as a clear example. Created to mark Baccarat’s 250th anniversary, it was originally intended as a limited edition of 250 bottles. There was no ambition for mass success.
What followed, he recalls, happened naturally. People reacted instinctively. Strangers asked each other what they were wearing. The fragrance took on a life of its own without being driven by marketing strategy. For Chaya, this is what happens when a creation connects directly with people.
On copying and recognition
The discussion then turns to a more difficult subject: copying. Chaya explains that the lack of intellectual property protection in fragrance has allowed imitation to become widespread. Because a scent cannot be adequately protected, others can reproduce it without investing years of training, development, or resources.
He also questions the role of media and industry in this cycle, noting that when original works are not clearly acknowledged, the perfumer’s role becomes further obscured.
Kurky: a lighter response
Against this background, the introduction of Kurky feels intentionally different. Chaya explains that “Kurky” is Francis Kurkdjian’s nickname, and that the fragrance is inspired by a personal habit: gifting a scent when a child is born. Kurky is not a children’s perfume, but an adult expression of that idea.
He describes it as a response to what he perceives as heaviness, both in the world and in contemporary fragrance, where intensity and power dominate. Kurky, instead, was conceived to express lightness, playfulness and joy.
The composition, he explains, brings together fruity notes with musks, woods and white flowers, creating a versatile fragrance that sits easily within the maison’s existing collection.
(70 ml | € 195)
Fragrance as expression
Asked how he personally relates to fragrance, Chaya describes it as uplifting, and often compares it to music. Like clothing, he says, fragrance amplifies mood and personality. He chooses different scents depending on how he feels and what he wants to express.
He reflects more broadly on scent as one of the senses originally linked to survival, later transformed through human creativity into a form of expression. In this way, perfume becomes a way of bringing harmony to smell, just as music brings harmony to sound.
He also points to the COVID period as a moment when many people became acutely aware of how important scent is. Its ability to evoke memory, provide comfort, and create emotional connection.
As the conversation comes to an end, what lingers is not only the story of Kurky, but the clarity of vision behind the house itself. I left the interview genuinely energised by the conviction, the coherence, and the refusal to dilute creative authorship. Maison Francis Kurkdjian is not just a fragrance house with a strong point of view; it is one to watch, closely and with curiosity.
Find Maison Francis Kurkdjian HERE