The Heritage
The Story of Bond No 9
Bond No. 9 is a New York fragrance house that has spent over two decades translating the city's distinct neighborhoods into scent. Each fragrance captures a different borough, avenue, or cultural moment, transforming geography into something you can wear. Founded by Laurice Rahmé, the brand occupies a singular space between luxury perfumery and urban nostalgia.
Heritage
Laurice Rahmé launched Bond No. 9 in 2003, a deliberate act of urban devotion in the aftermath of September 11. A French-born perfumery veteran, she spent over a decade at L'Oréal before discovering her true calling in niche fragrance. She served as U.S. distributor for Creed and built Annick Goutal's American business before stepping out on her own. The brand opened its first boutique at 9 Bond Street in Manhattan's NoHo district, a fitting address for a house that wears its New York identity so prominently. By 2013, the brand had produced over 60 fragrances and entered a licensing partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation, creating six Warhol-inspired scents with artwork-derived bottle designs. The agreement ended that same year, but the fragrances endured under new names. The I LOVE NY collection arrived in 2011, putting Bond No. 9's neighborhood philosophy into service for the entire state, featuring Milton Glaser's iconic logo on the bottles. A Dubai collection followed in 2015, introducing the brand's scented storytelling to the Middle East. By 2019, the house had produced over 80 fragrances and opened six eponymous boutiques, cementing its place as New York's most recognizable independent fragrance label.
Craftsmanship
Creating a Bond No. 9 fragrance begins with place. Rahmé spends time in the selected neighborhood, absorbing its atmosphere and identifying the character of the people who live there before ever meeting with a perfumer. This research phase is essential to the house's method. The house works with a rotating roster of external perfumers, typically five or six major fragrance suppliers, each bringing their own strengths in florals, citrus, or woods. Rahmé selects the perfumer based on the specific requirements of each neighborhood brief. This collaborative model gives the brand flexibility and prevents stylistic stagnation across such a large catalogue. Most Bond No. 9 fragrances carry 18 to 22 percent perfume oil concentration, a deliberate return to the formulation strength of legendary 1920s and 1930s scents. The Signature scent and select pure perfume offerings push to 30 percent, offering exceptional longevity. Ingredients are sourced globally, with raw materials selected for their ability to convey the emotional qualities of each neighborhood. Custom blending is handled by in-house specialists the brand calls Bond Perfumistas, who guide clients through a consultation process to compose and bottle a personalized metro-fragrance.
Design Language
The Bond No. 9 bottle is one of the most recognizable shapes in contemporary perfumery. The sculptural feminine silhouette has become a signature in its own right, with each fragrance in the collection receiving its own colorway, cap design, and decorative details that reflect the neighborhood it represents. The bottles function as collectible objects, and the brand actively cultivates this status, with limited-edition versions adorned in Swarovski crystals for special releases. Beyond the bottles themselves, Bond No. 9 has built a distinct visual world around its New York identity. The brand's English taxi, nicknamed the Bond Mobile, is painted in the house's bottle colors and ferries customers and press around the city, turning the vehicle itself into a mobile extension of the brand aesthetic. The six Manhattan boutiques continue this immersive approach, functioning as destinations rather than simple retail spaces. The packaging for the I LOVE NY collection incorporates Milton Glaser's iconic heart-and-star graphic, while the Warhol partnership produced bottles directly inspired by his artwork. Each collaboration extends the brand's visual language without diluting it.
Philosophy
Bond No. 9 operates from a conviction that every neighborhood has its own personality, and that personality can be captured in a bottle. Founder Laurice Rahmé approaches each fragrance as a kind of cartography, mapping the spirit of a place onto the skin. Park Avenue demands discretion, she has said. Madison Avenue allows for something louder. This neighborhood-by-neighborhood framework gives each release a built-in story. Customers are not simply buying a scent; they are choosing a piece of New York, whether that is the literary quiet of Gramercy Park or the salt air of Montauk. The approach also positions Bond No. 9 as a chronicler of the city, a role usually reserved for photographers and writers. The brand also champions the idea that fragrance should be personal and lasting. With concentrations ranging from 18 to 30 percent perfume oil, Bond No. 9 scents are designed to linger. Their custom blending service, Private Bond, takes this philosophy further by letting customers work directly with in-house perfumers to create one-of-a-kind formulas.
Key Milestones
2003
Bond No. 9 launches at 9 Bond Street with 16 neighborhood fragrances. Founder Laurice Rahmé aims to restore artistry to perfumery following 9/11.
2007
A licensing partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts begins, producing the first Warhol-branded fragrance, Andy Warhol Silver Factory.
2011
Bond No. 9 releases the I LOVE NY collection, a capsule line celebrating the entire state of New York with Milton Glaser's iconic logo on every bottle.
2013
The Warhol licensing agreement concludes. Bond No. 9 retains and repackages the fragrances under new names. The house also claims the launch of the first digital scent with a scannable QR code.
2015
Founder Laurice Rahmé receives the United Nations' Women for Peace Award. A Dubai collection debuts, extending the neighborhood fragrance concept to the Middle East.
2019
Bond No. 9 introduces New York Lips, its first color cosmetics collection featuring refillable luxury lip colors made in New York. The house has produced over 80 fragrances by this point.
At a Glance
Brand profile snapshot
Origin
United States
Founded
2003
Heritage
23
Years active
Collection
2
Fragrances released
Avg Rating
3.8
Community sentiment