Romain Almairac
Romain Almairac grew up in the gravitational pull of Grasse, the French town where perfumery is less a profession than an inheritance. His father, Michel Almairac, one of the most respected noses of his generation, essentially raised Romain inside the atmosphere of creation itself. For 20 years, Romain worked at Robertet, the prestigious naturals and aromatic ingredients house, joining the Creative Centre in Paris in 2006 as a key account manager. It was a deliberate, hands-on apprenticeship: Romain worked side by side with perfumers, absorbing the vocabulary and intuition of the craft before his father formally passed on both expertise and passion. In 2023, Robertet announced his official appointment as Parfumeur, a transition that felt less like a promotion and more like a homecoming. He has since brought his vision to brands including Montblanc and Chloé, where his 2024 work on Chloé L'Eau de Parfum Intense demonstrated his fluency in the house's floral language.
The hits
Notable creations
The signature
How Romain composes
Romain's style draws from the classical Grasse tradition of respecting naturals while remaining commercially sharp. His work with Montblanc shows a preference for clean, confident structures, often with luminous top notes and a sustained warmth in the dry down. At Chloé, he operates comfortably within the house's established floral vocabulary, infusing it with a modern intensity that feels intentional rather than nostalgic. He favors ingredients with clarity and presence, and his compositions tend to reward patience, revealing different facets as they develop on skin.
Philosophy
What drives Romain
Romain's approach is grounded in the material itself. He speaks openly about his love for naturals, favoring direct contact with raw ingredients over purely synthetic composition. The mentorship of his father shaped not just technique but philosophy: that a great fragrance begins with understanding where an ingredient comes from and what it truly smells like in its purest form. He views creation as a slow, sensory conversation between the perfumer and the material, not a fast process of assembly. Romain's vision centers on authenticity and restraint, resisting the temptation to overcomplicate when a single beautiful note can carry the weight of a concept.
The houses
Maisons Romain composes for
In the same league