Parfums Quartana

Key Takeaways

• Parfums Quartana is the work of Joseph Quartana, who began in fragrance with Six Scents Parfums in 2007 before channelling a very personal set of experiences into Les Potions Fatales.
• Les Potions Fatales is a collection of nine fragrances inspired by the folklore and myth of venomous plants, each incorporating elements of its namesake poison in safe, non-toxic formulations.
• The house won the Fragrance Foundation FiFi Award for Best Indie Brand in 2011 and later took the Perfume Extraordinaire award with Poppy Soma, the only category judged entirely blind.
• The creative backstory is as unusual as the fragrances themselves: a legal battle, a closed store, and a deep dive into the lore of poison flowers.

Parfums Quartana grew out of Joseph Quartana's earlier venture, Six Scents Parfums, which he founded in 2007 around a simple belief: that fragrance could encapsulate and convey the unfiltered creativity of artists. Six Scents paired emerging fashion designers with accomplished perfumers, translating visual and conceptual vision into scent. It was a logical move for someone who had spent his career at Seven New York identifying designers on the cusp of greatness. But the next chapter came from somewhere more personal.

The Story Behind Les Potions Fatales

Seven New York closed unexpectedly following a contentious legal dispute with a landlord, leaving Quartana with something unresolved and looking for somewhere to put it. He found it in the mythology of poisons. The result is Les Potions Fatales, a collection of nine fragrances drawn from the folklore and myth of venomous plants and flowers. What sets it apart is the literalness of the approach: each scent incorporates elements of the poison from which it takes its name, in safe and non-toxic formulations that still carry the character of the source material. Dark allure, legendary toxins and genuine perfumery craft, brought together by someone who had a very specific reason to go looking in that direction.

A Triumph of Artistry

The recognition has been significant. Six Scents won the Fragrance Foundation FiFi Award for Best Indie Brand in 2011. Then, with Les Potions Fatales fully underway, Quartana took the Perfume Extraordinaire award with Poppy Soma, a fragrance that reimagines the essence of opium. The Perfume Extraordinaire category is judged entirely blind, with no knowledge of brand, price or perfumer. Winning it as an independent is one of the most meaningful achievements available in the industry. That Ierofante, another Les Potions Fatales creation, later won the Art and Olfaction Award for Independent fragrance adds further weight to a house that has now been recognised across every major platform in niche perfumery.