When Chriselle Lim speaks about the Phlur scents, her first inclination isn’t to discuss top notes or accords, instead she describes emotions. She references memories and moments that define who we are and how we want to show up in the world. “I tell stories through scent,” she says as she pulls out a bottle of Missing Person.
She sprays it in the air and describes how when the fragrance was being created she was missing the feeling of being loved. “That was when I was going through my divorce,” she shares.
It’s that emotional transparency, rare in an industry built on mystery and mood boards, that has made the Los Angeles–based perfume house such a success since she bought it three years ago and relaunched the label. Lim has transformed the brand from a niche clean beauty label into one of the most exciting players in the modern scent space. “We took a year to map everything out, work on the new juices, and repackage everything — it’s a completely different brand now,” she confirms. “We relaunched it in early 2022, so it’s really only been out in the world for about three years now.”
Lim’s rise, from fashion influencer and YouTube personality to thought leader of a multimillion-dollar perfume business, feels as cinematic as her perfumes smell. But behind the success lies a story of meticulous intention. “The previous owners no longer wanted to continue the business, and there was an opportunity to give it new life,” remembers Lim who saw huge potential in creating a fragrance company that tapped into fragrances that could spark memories.
And give it life, she did. Phlur’s rebirth under Lim has been one of the industry’s most talked-about transformations. Just four years after she acquired it, the brand was sold to TSG Consumer Partners, a major player in global beauty investments, in July of this year. “Never in our wildest dreams did we think that we would be able to do that in four years,” she says. “It’s quite unheard of.”
“I love telling stories through scent,” she says. “It’s like composing music, you just want people to feel something.”
For Lim, it was the right partnership at the right time. “We knew how to take a brand from zero to a hundred million, but it’s a completely different skill set to go into a billion-dollar business. So we were ready for that growth. We want to bring Phlur into new categories, new sectors, new regions — but we couldn’t have done it with our small team alone.”
That global ambition has now brought Lim to the Middle East, which is considered by many to be the world’s true capital of fragrance. “The Middle East has been something that we’ve been eyeing,” she says noting that the sophistication of the Middle Eastern consumer when it comes to fragrances is unmatched in the world. “You really need to be here if you’re a pure fragrance brand. But before now we felt it was too early. Now we felt like it was the right timing.”
Launching in Dubai this year marked a major moment for Phlur and one that Lim admits came with nerves. “I was very nervous about launching here, just because, again, you guys have the best of the best,” she laughs. “It’s a different market, a different region. I was hesitant — like, how is it going to do? Is it going to be as loved as it is in the States and the UK?”
She needn’t have worried. “Up until the day we launched, I was anxious,” she recalls. But right from her first in person appearance at Sephora at the Dubai Mall she saw how warmly the brand was being received by consumers. She immediately saw great sales numbers and very positive feedback both from the beauty advisors and customers. has been incredible. “The Sephora beauty advisors here are so engaged; they truly love fragrance. It really reassured me that this was the right decision and that we were in the right market.”
The Middle East’s passion for layering scent also aligns perfectly with Phlur’s philosophy. “We’re a playful brand, sophisticated but playful,” Lim shares. “We don’t want to be a delicate brand that just sits on your shelf, precious. There’s a vibe we want to create, sometimes by mixing the scents, depending on what mood you’re in, where you’re going, and who you’re seeing. I view fragrance like fashion, it’s the last accessory to your outfit.”
That sense of self-expression, of wearing fragrance as an extension of personality, is what Lim believes sets Phlur apart. “We allow our customers’ emotions to dictate how they want to play that day with fragrances and who they want to show up as,” she says. “If I’m in a suit and want to feel confident, I’ll throw on Father Figure. For us, its fundamentally about emotion – who do you want to be today?”
Perhaps that’s why Father Figure – Lim’s personal favorite of the seven Phlur scents – has resonated so strongly in the region. “It’s my most beloved child,” she admits. With notes of fresh greens and soft woods grounded in oud, Father Figure has a depth that mirrors its muse – fresh at first blush but underneath, as it dries down, it proves itself to have a hidden strength. “It was inspired by my story of having to play both mother and father figure roles for my girls,” shares Lim. “It begged the question: women, we do it all now, there really are defined no roles. So I created a scent that’s not too masculine, not too feminine, gender neutral, commanding but tender.”
Now, as Phlur expands globally, Lim is introducing new compositions that push the boundaries of what fragrance can be. Her latest, Cherry Stem, is a rather unexpected fruit scent. “You smell the cherry at the top, but it’s a dark lacquered fruit with a soft leather accord at the base. It dries down very lived-in, rich, and warm,” she explains as she sprays some on a proffered scent blotter. “A lot of people who typically don’t like cherry scents really love this one.”
Another favorite is Vanilla Smoke, a sultry body mist that nods to the region’s love of incense. “It never really had its big moment in the US,” admits Lim, “but it’s so sophisticated that you’d never think it’s a body mist. There’s something about the smokiness and incense that we want to explore more as we develop Phlur within this region.”
In the end, Lim’s unique skill set as a brand founder and Creative Director lies in her ability to translate life’s most intimate emotions into fragrance, to distill heartbreak, resilience, and hope into a bottle. “I love telling stories through scent,” she says. “It’s like composing music, you just want people to feel something.”
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