Since its launch in 2020, Sanoma has captivated not only fragrance lovers, but also Japanese people, especially those who have little experience with fragrance.
The fragrance's consistent underlying theme is a refined, familiar scent reminiscent of damp moss. Director Yuta Watanabe says that this high-quality scent was born from "a huge amount of communication" with Jean-Michel Duryea, a skilled perfumer from Paris.
"I met Jean-Michel during an internship I did while studying for an MBA at a graduate school in France. I always share my inspiration with him, smell the prototypes he produces, and add or subtract elements through my own filter.
As a result, perhaps it has unconsciously become more to Japanese tastes. There is a lot of back and forth during the trial production process, and I don't think there are many brands that can have such luxurious discussions with perfumers. I myself have been a perfume enthusiast since I was 18, and I think that my experience of buying hundreds of bottles with my own money is now being put to good use in my direction."
Jean-Michel (left) and Watanabe (right) at a meeting in Paris in the past. 
This is just a small part of Watanabe's perfume collection. The black bottle is JOY from JEAN PATOU, the brand Jean-Michel was a member of. 
The package graphic is a Genji incense painting. The name is written on the inside.
1-24, 2-23, 3-17...these aren't commemorative days, but numbers that indicate the scents. The numbers at the top indicate the order in which the scents were created, and the numbers at the bottom indicate the number of samples needed to complete the scent. These numbers also give an idea of the large number of prototypes that went into making each scent.
“Among them, 1-24, which is named after the bell cricket, is something I have always wanted to express. The moment when a cool breeze blows through the hot, humid air at the end of summer is a moving moment, and it has always been so. I wanted to capture that moment in the fragrance. With warm saffron and cool cardamom, it is a fragrance with depth. All of Sanoma’s fragrances capture that same emotion.”
The goal is to create a fragrance that will last through the ages, which is what we believe to be a truly "good perfume."
"While products tend to have many elements of 'celebration,' most of life is 'ordinary.' Sanoma uses both sensibility and technology to create fragrances that fit into Japanese lifestyles."
