Written by Kristina Kybartaite-Damule

It seems that everything Marc-Antoine Barrois touches turns to gold, and I'm not talking about the color of his perfume bottles. Since the release of B683, every new perfume from the brand has garnered waves of attention in the community. Unique yet still appealing to many, the founder revealed his secret to achieving this in an interview for PlezuroMag.

It's funny that Marc-Antoine Barrois hadn't even planned to create a line of fragrances—the designer initially only wanted a signature scent for his house. Fast forward to now, and the collection of six fragrances has made a significant impact in the perfume world. One of them, Ganymede, even started a whole new fragrance family: mineral leathers. The duo of Marc-Antoine Barrois and perfumer Quentin Bisch seems unstoppable.

For me personally, Ganymede is a very important fragrance, as it used to be my signature scent. I have been following and enjoying every new creation from the brand, so needless to say, I was a little more nervous than usual before the interview. But, despite the tremendous success, Marc-Antoine Barrois isn't arrogant or self-centered. In the interview, which lasted almost an hour, he came across as kind and down-to-earth, very ambitious, and passionate about his work.

In the conversation, he told about his connection with Quentin Bisch, his point of view on business models in perfumery, the importance of sustainability of the brand, and the new fragrance, Tilia.

Could you tell us a little bit about your backstory? You started as a designer in couture and have worked with famous brands and designers. How did this influence your career?

I don't come from a fashion background; my family has been in textiles for four centuries. They work with textiles and fabrics. So, I didn't know anything about fashion, just textiles. When I told my parents I wanted to be a designer, they said it wasn't an option because, in our family, if I wanted to work in textiles, I had to be an engineer. But I had the ambition to be a designer, not a textile engineer. So, to please my parents and because I had the skills, I went to school. But outside of school, I was trying to create my own designs. Initially, I was dressing myself and trying to bring a new vision to fashion and couture.

This led me to attend a fashion contest in 2004, where I met couturier Dominique Sirop. I told him my dream was to be a designer and work in haute couture, but I couldn't get an internship. He offered me an internship a week later, and two months after that, he offered me a job. I stayed there for two years, doing haute couture.

I loved focusing one hundred percent on quality and serving our very privileged clients. Haute couture dresses are extremely expensive. After that, I worked at Hermès and with Jean Paul Gaultier, which was also a great experience. But I realized that doing ready-to-wear is basically creating fashion but not thinking of the clients. I loved when we did some designs for Madonna's concert in Paris. From that point, I knew I would get back to haute couture at some point.

I launched my fashion house a few years later, determined to do things differently. I wanted to encourage men to buy less but better. In a world driven by consumption, I wanted to bring something different to the industry. It wasn't easy at first, but it became easier over time. Passion is very important to me.

I'm sharing this because it also relates to what I do with perfume. Initially, I became more successful and met more people, including perfumers. Some were very experienced and talented but not the right fit for me. Then, in 2015, I met Quentin Bisch. I told him I wanted a signature fragrance, but it was too complicated to create because I had no time. I was rushing to the atelier from morning until late at night, serving my clients.

Taking good out of bad situations is a life philosophy for me. After the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015, my clients from abroad couldn't come to Paris anymore, freeing up my schedule. I contacted Quentin Bisch and told him I now had time to work together. We created B683, a signature scent for my house and me. At first, we thought it would be the only perfume, but it was so much fun to work on and so successful that we decided to continue working together.

Your collaboration with Quentin Bisch is fascinating. You mentioned in previous interviews that you consider him like a twin brother. How did you two connect?

We met through a mutual friend. I didn't know if I saw in Quentin at the time that he would be super successful. We are the same age, born six months apart in 1983. The friend who introduced us said we were both perfectionists and had much in common, but I did not think there would be so many common points. I have four brothers and sisters. And I feel there's so much difference between me and my brothers and sisters. I love them, but I feel there's so much difference. But when I met Quentin, I realized he was just like me, but in the perfume industry. We share so much in our vision of life, even though there are some differences, but I would say 95 percent is the same.

What works between Quentin and me is that we take our time and respect each other. These values are often ignored in our society, where business usually comes first. For me, no business is worth disrespecting anyone. If Quentin needs more time, I trust that it's because he wants to perfect something.

The perfume industry today is very fast-paced, with many brands releasing fragrances frequently. What's your perspective on that?

I create fragrances as signature scents that are timeless and make people feel confident, elegant, comfortable, and happy. These scents need to be perfect and well-crafted. We need to smell them in the winter and in the summer. Because even though the scents of Ganymede or Tilia are inspired by sun and by light and by something summery, they're made to be worn all year long. We need to test them in different seasons.

So we have to take the time to create perfumes. I don't believe in creating a fragrance in two days. It cannot be well done. Sometimes just changing a very little ingredient in very little proportion in the fragrance totally changes the scent.

I'm happy to have met Quentin because he's as much a perfectionist as I am. He will never say, “Oh, I'm bored working on your project, we've been working too much on it, you should accept one of these samples.” So as long as I'm not happy, he continues. As long as he's not happy, I accept him to continue working on a perfume.

I don't understand brands that constantly release new perfumes. There were 1,500 new niche perfume launches last year, which is way too much. When I see other niche brands launching 1–4 fragrances the same year, and sometimes even more, I think – how do you give time to your clients to get to know you and to know your fragrances, to get used to it? It might be the business model of some other people, but I don't follow business models, I follow my gut. I follow what I believe to be the DNA of my brand. And we need to continue to take time to create something that is beautiful for years and not for a few months.

Before your career in fragrances, did you enjoy perfumes yourself? Did you have a collection or a favorite perfume?

I never had a collection of perfumes because I never believed in a collection of perfumes. When I launched B683, one of my biggest clients in Belgium told me it was like the Aventus of Creed. I told him that I don't understand. Aventus is selling millions; I'm selling a few hundred pieces. He explained that people would come back asking for B683, not for something new. That's always been my approach to perfumes, and I'm happy my clients are like that too.

I never had a collection of perfume. I can tell you every perfume that I've worn during my life. When I met Quentin Bisch, I was wearing Kelly Calèche of Hermès with Poivre Samarcande from the Hermessence collection layered on it. And Quentin came and said, "Oh, nice, I know exactly what you're wearing." And I said, "Well, that's probably not possible because it's a layer of two perfumes." He said, "Yes, I know. I'm wearing those same two." I had been wearing that combination for at least five years.

Could you tell me a little about sustainability? How do you ensure it in your work, as I know it's very important to you?

I think that sustainability is a priority for everyone. We live on a planet with finite resources, and we need to consume and waste less.

It wasn't always the case for me, I must admit, but at the age of 30, I read an article about the decline in insect populations over the past 30 years. The article was saying that the population of insects went down by 90%, and I thought, "Wow, that's a great extinction, and I was alive during that period and did not do anything." I started with small gestures at home and then at work.

For example, we removed the plastic wrapping from our perfume boxes. The second thing I did was to change the supplier for my boxes – not to buy them in China, but to buy them in France to shorten the transportation. After that, we took a bit of time to change the plastic foam inside the box to paper. The first tries were not successful; the boxes were always damaged inside. And it was disappointing, but we did not want to go back to plastic inside the box, so we tried more and more, and we spent more money to find a way to get a good cardboard so that it's all 100 percent recyclable. And it's always trying to do more and more. It's addictive.

Now, our 30 ml bottles come in pouches made by women working for a charity. This gives them their first jobs and helps integrate them into society. For example, this woman (showing a video) is a Ukrainian refugee. They all have a story that makes life difficult and makes it hard to get into jobs. Some boxes are made by disabled people. I want my kids to be proud of me. I don't want them to say, "Wow, dad's company was a mess for the planet."

It seems that every one of your fragrances has to be a success. When I lived in Vilnius, at one point, I could not go on the street without smelling Ganymede. It was everywhere. When I visited Vilnius last month, it was the same with Tilia. In a way, I could call you a man that scented the streets of Vilnius. What is the key to this success?

We do our best, we take our time. Tilia was a challenge because it was a new collection. It might also be because we don't do it with the pressure of seeking commercial success. No, it must be a pleasure for us to create it. It must be fun, it must fit us, and we must be proud of it.

Ganymede was a trendsetter with its use of Akigalawood and mineral leather. It was reinterpreted so many times by other brands. How do you feel about it?

I only realized Ganymede was a trendsetter when the Osmothèque said it was the first in a new family of fragrances: mineral leathers. We always try to create something that doesn't exist. Sometimes people ask me what the trends in perfumery are, and I always tell them, I don't know. I don't follow trends; I just try to do new things.

For example, with Tilia, we wanted to bring a different vision of flowers, something simple and natural, even though we don't use only natural ingredients. We aim to evoke the feeling of being in nature, being in the countryside, and enjoying being with your friends, enjoying the moment. I think luxury can be a very simple thing.

How did you decide to create such an optimistic, bright scent? Was it a reaction to current events in the world?

That's exactly what happened. We were working on three different florals, all beautiful. But as a designer and creative director, you also want to transmit a message.

Last year, with the war between Russia and Ukraine, it was difficult to continue working as usual. I called the Ukrainian distributor and asked them how we could help. The first thing they told me was, "If you want to help us, continue to sell your perfume to us because it brings happiness to our people, it brings some joy to them. They spray, and they're not in the bunker anymore, they're not in the war anymore."

Discussing this with Quentin, I told him that at some point, it's really something we need to focus on. I told him the inspiration was to go towards some simple, summery happiness.

You have mentioned that Tilia is the first floral in your collection. Are we going to see more florals from you?

Yes, there will be more florals. We don't have a specific date yet. I don't want to have a date until it's ready, until it's in the factory.

Thank you for your time.