A Conversation With Eden Perfumes: Ethical, Vegan, and Sustainable Fragrances

Smelling great is one thing, but have you ever thought about what your skin is absorbing? Fragrance is essential to everyone's routine, and having healthy, non-toxic products available is a no-brainer. Eden Perfume provides a collection of authentic, high-quality, and 100% vegan, cruelty-free, and ethically sourced fragrances! 

Consciously crafted to resemble your favorite designer fragrances, Eden Perfume's sustainable swaps include a refillable option to inspire recycling at a super affordable price. As a recurring customer of their botanical products, I was delighted to talk to Eden Perfumes about their incredible journey to becoming the UK's go-to sustainable perfume brand!

Hey! Thank you so much for taking the time to let me interview you. I have recently purchased your No.507 EROS Women perfume, as a dupe to my favorite Versace EROS Pour Femme and I couldn’t compliment your clean alternative enough! I’ve had so many compliments and have recommended Eden Perfumes to everyone. So, my first question is, who is Eden Perfumes?

Eden Perfumes is a Vegan family business from Brighton with expert knowledge in ethical perfumery. Every single member of the family works on a different aspect of perfume production: oil blending, refilling, and distribution. We always only use the most sustainable and planet-conscious ways of production.

We are proud to be the first perfume company in the UK to create the concept of a “recycled perfume bottle” in 2013. All our bottles are made of recycled crystal glass, and you can send them back to be refilled. All our packaging is fully recyclable and 100% biodegradable (FSC-certified cardboard). Even our test strips and flyers are made from recycled wood pulp.

Our family will leave strong foundations for future generations to carry on with our vegan message and perfume revolution. 

What sparked the idea behind Eden Perfumes, and why did you decide to create clean dupes instead of creating your own scents?

The idea started 3 generations ago, when Grandad used to make natural essential oils and Grandma was the first vegan in our family. Since then, we decided that all our production must be consciously crafted.

We have created our own scents from day one but being a small family business from the south-east coast, our selection of “clean dupes” became very popular quickly. We decided to increase our range due to customers continuously asking us to recreate their favorite perfumes, including discontinued fragrances. Our customers like to wear healthy perfumes and we have made many people happy since then.

Of all the beauty products available, why did you choose to focus on making perfumes and aftershaves vegan/sustainable?

We are perfumers, but we are also animal advocates, and we follow our ethos. We believe that by promoting a vegan lifestyle, we can change the world!

People need to be aware of what their skin is absorbing, especially with perfume. I love that Eden Perfumes is accessible to not only educate but to produce high-quality non-toxic alternatives! Has this always been your main focus? And have you noticed a change in the sustainable perfume market since you started?

It has indeed been one of our aims to keep our standards of handcrafting non-toxic perfumes, free from phthalates and fixatives. We believe what makes us famous is the quality of our perfumes more than our brand aesthetics. We are pioneers in this field, and we have seen many other companies follow our path. We feel happy to have set an example for other perfume companies.

You offer vegan candles! This is something that I have only been introduced to, could you please explain what vegan candles are? And what differentiates them to non-vegan candles?

Traditionally, candles are made of beeswax, or paraffin which is toxic. To produce this sort of candle, you will cause damage to the environment. Bees must fly the equivalent of six times around the earth to gather enough pollen to create a single pound of beeswax.

Beeswax is also a secondary food source for bees and is vital for the survival of the colony. Taking the beeswax is cruel and unnecessary. Paraffin is non-biodegradable and releases toxic substances.

At Eden, we only use soy wax mixed with our perfumes. Soy wax is non-toxic, and cleaner burning with no carcinogens or pollutants, which does not harm the environment, and this also means our candles are less likely to trigger allergies!

As someone new to clean perfumes, it was great to find a company that wasn’t only super affordable but offered refills at an equally affordable price! I’ve noticed companies increasingly providing refills as a sustainable option, why was it important for Eden Perfumes to do refills?

Firstly, to contribute to zero waste and to make it more affordable for our customers. They can choose from 400 different fragrances and mix and match whatever they want.

Secondly, to keep our clientele faithful and happy, to keep our standards high as they know they will get the same quality with each refill, and on top of all that, they will have the flexibility of choosing something different each time.

Lastly, what is your go-to perfume? And what would you recommend as a gift for a special someone this Valentine's?

My favorite unisex perfume currently is our No.502 Pura Erba – which is the vegan version of Erba Pura Xerjoff. It is a clean, fruity cocktail with a musk base. The main notes are passion fruit, mango, and pomelo. I would recommend our No.504 which is the healthier version of Baccarat Rouge 540. This unisex, vegan, and refillable alternative is our best seller. Main accords: Woody, amber, warm and fresh spicy, musky, aromatic, and metallic. You can never go wrong with this one! Everyone loves it! 

To explore and purchase Eden Perfume's products, please visit edenperfumes.co.uk.