Josh Meyer quit his job in real estate, started blending fragrances in his basement in Portland, and co-founded Imaginary Authors with creative director Ashod Simonian in 2012. The concept is singular: every release comes with a fictional book, a fictional author and a plot summary, not as marketing, but as the actual brief for the scent. Simonian's artwork gives every bottle its visual identity. The fragrances are genderless, vegan and built from essential oils, absolutes and safe synthetics. Fourteen years in, it remains one of the most genuinely imaginative houses in American niche perfumery.