UBS Monocle
Finding a common language
Johari Kazura
Founder, Sifr Aromatics
Johari Kazura smells great. The third-generation perfumer hails from Singapore’s Kampong Gelam, a cultural enclave with enduring ties to the early 20th-century spice trade. It was this neighbourhood that laid the foundation for traditional aromatics to bloom in Singapore.
While his father still has a shop rooted in Arabian perfumery, Kazura decided to create an offshoot brand, Sifr Aromatics, that distils the best of Eastern and Western approaches. “I wanted to step out of the confines of a family business and try different ideas,” he says. This venture was the fruit of his European adventures, where he trained in Grasse, France – the perfume capital of the world. Sifr, which means “emptiness” in Arabic, was his way of starting anew.
Perfume-making at Sifr is a boundlessly customisable experience, where Kazura will help sift through your favourite olfactory memories, preferences and ingredients. It’s a tailored process where he iterates with intention, a skill he picked up from his father but honed with time. “‘Fresh’ could be used to describe different things to various people,” he says. “It can refer to mint, citrus or even fresh bed sheets, so I always seek to find a common language.”
One thread that binds the experience is Kazura’s quality natural ingredients. His family ties means access to premium raw materials. “Great ingredients have long flowed through this island,” he says. “That was how my grandfather got some of the best patchouli and vetiver.” This city-state may be a tiny island, but it’s a greenhouse where ideas and ingredients converge – the perfect nexus for Kazura to sniff out new traditions of scent-making.
Create your own bespoke fragrance at Sifr Aromatics, 42 Arab Street, Singapore 199741. sifr.sg
