Francis Kurkdjian - Perfumer
Perfumer Francis Kurkdjian
Francis Kurkdjian is a perfumer and co-founder of his own luxury fragrance house, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, with business partner Marc Chaya. He was born in 1969 in Paris, France to Armenian parents. In 1990 he entered the ISIPCA fragrance school in Versailles graduating in 1993. Later than same year he joined Quest International (now Givaudan) in Paris. He became famous at the age of 26 for his Jean-Paul Gaultier creation, Le Male fragrance. Read more about perfumer Francis Kurkdjian.
In October 2021 Kurkdjian was named fragrance creative director at Dior, succeeding perfumer Francois Demachy who held the position for the previous 15 years.
Awards
2001 - Prix Francois Coty
Latest Fragrance Creations
All Perfumes created by Francis Kurkdjian
Iris Nobile - 2004
Iris Nobile 10th Anniversary Special Edition - 2014
Armand Basi
Lovely Blossom - 2007
L'Eau Pour Homme - 2010
Baccarat
Rouge 540 - 2014
Bebe - 2009
Innamorata Lovely Rose - 2013
Amber Heath - 2017
Antique Oak - 2017
Brit Rhythm Floral - 2015
Burberry Her - 2018
Burberry Her Blossom - 2019
Burberry Her Intense - 2019
Garden Roses - 2017
Hawthorn Bloom - 2017
High Tide - 2017
Mr. Burberry - 2016
Mr. Burberry Eau de Parfum - 2017
Mr. Burberry Indigo - 2018
My Burberry - 2014
My Burberry Black - 2016
My Burberry Black Elixir de Parfum - 2017
My Burberry Blush - 2017
My Burberry Eau de Toilette - 2015
My Burberry Limited Edition - 2014
Tudor Rose - 2017
Wild Thistle - 2017
Carven
L'Absolu - 2015
L'Eau de Toilette - 2014
L'Eau Intense - 2016
Le Parfum - 2013
Pour Homme - 2014
Zeste de Vigne - 2011
Custo Barcelona
Custo Man - 2009
Daniel Hechter
Black - 2015
Cuir Sensuel - 2013
Jeans Brut - 2014
Midnight - 2005
Cool Water Wave - 2017 (with Antonie Lie and Jean Jacques)
Cool Water Wave Woman - 2018
Silver Shadow - 2005
Holy Water - 2009
Pruning Shears - 1998
Cologne Blanche - 2004
Homme Cologne - 2007
Eau Noire - 2004
Cuir Absolu - 2016
Cuir Bourbon - 2016
Cuir Patchouli - 2016
Cuir Ylang - 2016
Essence No. 1 Rose - 2014
Essence No. 2 Gardenia - 2014
Essence No. 3 Ambre - 2014
Essence No. 4 Oud - 2014
Essence No. 6 Vetiver - 2015
Essence No. 7 Neroli - 2015
Essence No. 8 Santal - 2016
Essence No. 9 Tuberose - 2016
L'Eau Couture - 2014
Le Parfum - 2011
Le Parfum Eau de Parfum Intense - 2013
Le Parfum Eau de Toilette - 2012
Le Parfum Eclat d'Or - 2016
Le Parfum Edition Feuiller d'Or - 2017
Le Parfum In White - 2018 (with Jerome Di Marino)
Le Parfum L'Edition Argent - 2015
Le Parfum L'Edition Or - 2014
Le Parfum Resort Collection - 2015, 2017
Le Parfum Rose Couture - 2016
Nuit Noor - 2016
Green Tea - 1999
Iced Green Tea - 2001
Spiced Green Tea - 2001
Emanuel Ungaro
Apparition - 2004
Ungaro - 2007
Lily Chic - 2000
Gianfranco Ferre
Ferre Rose - 2007
UnFerre Rose Diamond Limited Edition - 2008
Armani Mania - 2002
Reverie - 1999
Eau de Lit - 2006
Rose Barbare - 2005
Night - 2013
Night Access - 2014
Indult
C16 - 2008
Isvaraya - 2006
Manakara - 2006
Reve En Cuir - 2008
Tihota - 2006
Classique Intense - 2014
Fleur du Male - 2007
Fragile - 1999
Fragile Eau de Toilette - 2001
Gaultier 2 - 2005
La Cologne Fleur du Male - 2008
Le Beau Male - 2013
Le Beau Male Collector Edition - 2014
Le Male - 1995
Le Male Collector Edition - 2014
Le Male Les d'Ete - 2005
Le Male Limited Edition - 2009
Le Male Love Actually - 2011
Le Male Pirate Edition - 2015
Le Male Shaker Limited Edition - 2011
Le Male Silver My Skin - 2011
Le Male Stimulating Body Spray - 2006
Le Male Supreme Edition - 2019
Ma Dame - 2008
Ma Dame Eau Fraiche - 2009
Ma Dame It - 2011
Ma Dame Rose 'n Roll - 2009
Monsieur Eau du Matin - 2008
Ultra Male - 2015
Jesus Del Pozo In White - 2007
Joop!
Muse - 2003
Lady Vengeance - 2006
Miss Charming - 2006
Eau de Fleur de Magnolia - 2008
Eau de Fleur de Prunier - 2009
Eau de Fleur de Yuzu - 2010
Kenzo World - 2016
Kenzo World Eau de Toilette - 2018
Kenzo World Intense - 2017 (with Maia Lernout)
Lancaster
Aquasun - 2005
Aquazur - 2004
Miracle Homme - 2001
Miracle Homme L'Aquatonic - 2003
Rumeur - 2006
Lolita Lempicka
LolitaLand - 2018
MDCI Parfums
Enlevement au Serail - 2006
Promesse de L'Aube - 2006
Rose de Siwa - 2006
For Her - 2003 (with Christine Nagel)
For Her Eau de Parfum - 2006
For Her Iridescent - 2010
For Him - 2007
Musc Oil for Him - 2010
Chant d'Extase - 2018
L'Extase Caresse de Roses - 2016
L'Extase - 2015
L'Extase Rose Absolue - 2017
Rose Extase - 2017
Amethyst Fatale - 2007
Eikon - 2011
Panouge
Perle Rare - 2013
Roger & Gallet
Fleur de Figuier - 2013
Fleur de Figuier Eau de Parfum - 2015
Salvador Dali
Purplelight - 2007
F by Ferragamo - 2006
Ted Lapidus
White Soul Gold & Diamonds - 2013
Les Saisons Automne - 2004
Les Saisons Ete - 2004
Jeans Couture Glam - 2003
Cerisier en Fleurs - 2014
Collection Ete - 2014
The Vert - 2015
Francis Kurkdjian - about the perfumer
Articles featuring Francis Kurkdjian:
Going Rogue - Francis Kurkdjian, a rogue perfumer himself, explores the world of professional "noses" that think outside the box - and because of that have brought us some of the world's most celebrated fragrances.
(Kurkdjian, Francis. "The Fragrance Pro: Going Rogue." Allure Mar. 2017: 82)
Francis Kurkdjian
Fragrance News - Dollars & Scents
Ignore the bottle. Ignore the name. To know whether a fragrance is good, just focus on what's inside.
Don't judge a book by its cover - or a perfume by its bottle. Fragrance experts single out the best scents under $60 (and explain why "smelling like cheap perfume" isn't the insult it used to be).
Unless you were born in Grasse, France, choosing a perfume tends to be a psychologically driven experience, shaped by everything from what the bottle looks like to the way your mother used to smell when she went out on a Saturday night. Prices doesn't often factor in to the equation, except for the pervasive feeling that inexpensive is always bad. Or is it?
What often makes a bottle of perfume so pricey is both the cost of the raw materials used to create it (oud, orris, and vanilla in particular tend to be very expensive) and the packaging and marketing (which can account for up to 90 percent of the overall cost). "But the value of a Picasso is not in the paints that were used. It's in the way he put them together. The same is true of fragrances," says perfumer Francis Kurkdjian. "It's preposterous for a fragrance company to say that a perfume is good only because it uses very expensive materials." What really makes a fragrance sing is the talent of the perfumer behind it, plain and simple. So believe us when we tell you: Some of the best fragrances - made by the best perfumers in the world - are available at the same places you buy your Advil and toothpaste. The gems of the fragrance world can be remarkably accessible - just close your eyes and inhale.
- Calvin Klein ck one - $42 (citrus)
...The scent introduced a new kind of citrus note to Americans, says perfumer Kurkdjian. "Prior ro CK One, you'd fine citrus notes mostly in a cologne, like Acqua di Parma Colonia or Guerlain Eau de Cologne. CK One set up a pattern of fragrances being sexy and fres, and before that you couldn't imagine those qualities being together."... - Bath & Body Works Forever Red - $44.50 (fruity floral)
This eau de parfum contains a synthetic material... called Rhubofix... The reality is that synthetic ingredients are not always cheap imposters. "Sometimes the chemical reproduction of a natural scent is more accurate than the ingredient from natura itself," says Kurkdjian. - Tommy Hilfiger Freedom - $50 (woody)
...According to perfume Francis Kurkdjian, the men's aisle can be a fragrance gold mine. Take Old Spice, for example: "It's an American classic, it's very inexpensive, and its spicy-floral signature is very good on certain women," he says. - Kate Walsh Boyfriend - $35 (floral woody)
"If it wasn't for the bottle, you could mistake this for a Tom Ford fragrance," [Chandler] Burr says... The thing is, a great perfume "is not just about quality - it's about aesthetics." But back to the (unfortunate) bottle. "The majority of a perfume's overall cost is in its packaging and marketing," says Kurkdjian. - Jovan Musk - $20.42 (floral musk)
...A good synthetic musk (like the one in Jovan) can smell very clean... "Jovan also has a floral quality that's very No.5-ish. - Gloria Vanderbilt - $15 (floral oriental)
...Her woody, sensual floral with the swan logo "is outstanding and has great sillage," says Kurkdjian. That's perfume-speak for "lingering"... a lot of staying power.
(Guarnieri, Anne-Marie. "Fragrance News." Allure Apr. 2013: 194-200)
Perfume is the art that makes memory speak.
- Francis Kurkdjian
Check out the Perfumers (the nose) behind the fragrances