James Heeley at Les Senteurs, London, in May 2014 image: Callum Langston-Bolt |
In the run-up to their 30th anniversary celebrations, the fine folks at Les Senteurs hosted an event in May at which guests were invited to enjoy a relaxed conversation with the creative forces behind some of the brands stocked at London’s venerable perfumery institution. James Heeley was one of the figures mingling with the city’s scentusiasts, and as I’d never met him before, I asked if he’d be willing to give me a brief, impromptu interview. To my delight, he accepted, so off we went to the more quiet atmosphere of the spacious basement at the Seymour Place branch. Immaculately turned out in a bespoke, grey suit, and with a subtly francophone inflection to his diction, the creator of Cardinal, Sel Marin and L’Amandière, amongst others, gave me his full attention and considered his answers carefully before speaking, as though he’d been expecting our appointment for weeks.
An Englishman by birth, Heeley has been based in Paris for several years, during which he has established a well-regarded brand and, more interestingly, taught himself the craft of perfumery. It was this aspect of his biography on which I particularly wanted to focus at the start of our discussion, so I began by asking him how he got into the perfume industry. I knew he’s a trained barrister, but had he always been interested in scent?
James Heeley: I think I was always interested in perfume. But how much of your memory is what you want it to be as opposed to what things really were? I’m not quite sure. But I’ve always been very, very picky about perfume. I’m actually very picky about a lot of things. I remember smelling perfumes as a boy, in shops. During my school holidays, I’d smell perfumes at department stores.
On a busy Monday I made some time to read your interview with James Heeley – a very honest and illuminating interview. I liked the photo of James as well – great to see some younger perfumers in this creative business. Thank you very much, Holly.
Holly, thanks very much for reading, and for taking the time to leave a comment. Heeley was certainly very gracious during the interview. I'd happily chat with him again.