The Scent of Oman - the Story of Amouage Perfume

Amouage Factory and Visitor Center
Amouage Factory and Visitor Center | © Deenakazoun / WikiCommons
Gehad Medhat

Amouage perfume is one of the world’s best-known luxury fragrances, and originated from the Sultanate of Oman. As exceptional as its scent, the story of how this traditional Omani perfume made its way into the world’s top fragrances makes for a fascinating insight. Here’s everything you need to know.

Background

Oman is known as the land of frankincense – small yellow stones with a fragrant unmistakable scent, which Omanis extract from special trees in the Dhofar Governorate. This distinguished essence used to be given as precious gifts to the kings and emperors of the world – ancient civilizations globally made trading routes with Oman, mainly to access its great frankincense. This incredible scent is found in every Omani house, and in the streets of Oman as people use it daily.

Frankincense

The creation of Amouage

Amouage was established in 1983, when Qaboos Bin Said, the Sultan of Oman, ordered Prince Sayyid Hamad bin Hamoud al bu Said to found a company to preserve the perfume-making traditions of Oman. He also wanted to have an authentic invaluable gift that would be given to the world’s leaders when they visited the country. The company represents itself as a royal brand, which is clearly reflected in its logo reminiscent of the Omani royal seal. That’s also why some of the perfume bottles take the shape of the Omani dagger, which is Oman’s national symbol, and others take the shape of the dome of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, the most famous mosque in the country.

As the years went by, Amouage became an international perfume brand. For its exceptional scent, it also became known as one of the most expensive perfumes in the world.

Oman traditional incense, Muttrah Souq

Local essences

Amouage opened their first shop outside Oman in Dubai early 2011. Then, they opened other stores in the Gulf region, and in different European cities like London, Milan, Rome and others. Nevertheless, the elegant perfume brand has succeeded in preserving its unique identity and occupying an exceptional position among ground-breaking international perfume brands.

This is due in large part to how Amouage uses Arabian scents and precious local essences, which include oudh, musk, frankincense and sandalwood, in its perfumes. Mixing these Arabian scents gives richness, depth and elegance that reflects Arabian heritage and culture. Amouage Gold for women and Amouage Gold for men are two of the most famous and earliest Amouage perfumes. Other perfumes include Ubar (1995, relaunch 2009), Dia (2002), Ciel (2003), and Esprit d’Amouage (2004).

Amouage perfume

Amouage today

Amouage Perfumes today is not just a fragrance company – it has expanded its production to include body, bath, home and leather goods. The bath products include lotions, body creams, soaps and gels for both men and women. Amouage also make candles, room sprays, and fine fragrances for homes. As for leather products, they include leather bags, wallets, purses and game cases.

Factory and visitor center

Marking its 30th anniversary, Amouage Perfumes established its famous factory and visitor center in Muscat in 2012. The factory was built to help with the brand’s expanding international market, and offers guided tours for visitors to get to know the brand and take a sneak peak of how perfumes are manufactured. Besides the amazing scents inside, the center is an state-of-the-art building that amazes visitors with its outstanding architecture.
Wave after wave at the entrance to our Factory & Visitors’ Centre in Oman
A post shared by AMOUAGE (@amouageofficial) on Sep 6, 2014 at 7:36am PDT

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