- Craig Andrade Perfumer:
Craig Andrade is a remarkable figure in the world of perfumery. After a 25 - year career as a private equity and capital markets lawyer across New York, London, South Africa, and Australia, he made a bold transition to pursue his passion for fragrance.
He learned the art of making scented candles from Elise Pioch Balzac, the founder of Maison Balzac. To further his knowledge, he attended the prestigious Grasse Institute of Perfumery, where he studied the key natural and synthetic ingredients used in fine fragrance and mastered the techniques of fragrance formulation and structuring. Intrigued by the beauty, complexity, and deep connection to nature of natural ingredients, Craig decided to specialize in natural perfumery. He turned to Mandy Aftel, one of the world's leading natural perfumers, to refine his skills. "Mandy is a great teacher and mentor of mine, and it has been an extraordinary privilege to be taught by her," he said. He is even qualified to teach Mandy's introductory natural perfumery course.
In 2017, Craig founded The Raconteur, an artisanal luxury fragrance brand based in Sydney, Australia. The brand aims to tell the story of Australia's native botanicals through scent. Australia, with its over 18,000 unique native botanicals, has a wealth of scents that were relatively unknown in the global fragrance industry. Craig is dedicated to raising the profile of these native botanicals. He has developed "world first" fragrances, such as using a CO2 extract from Tasmanian mountain pepper for Troye Sivan, the rare Kimberley heath for Paspaley, and the recently discovered native Byron Bay rose myrtle for Cult Design.
Craig's perfumery practice is multi - faceted, straddling beauty, art, history, science, botany, geography, and physiology. His focus is on creating natural fragrances that combine these elements, providing both pleasure and purpose. The Raconteur's fragrance collection includes soy candles, reed diffusers, oil burner blends, eau de parfums, and perfume oil serums. All products are hand - poured in Australia, vegan, cruelty - free, and gender - neutral. They are made with high - quality, plant - derived ingredients, with the candles using 100% soy wax. Through his work, Craig Andrade is not only crafting unique scents but also sharing Australia's rich botanical heritage with the world.
