Tom Jansen
Tom Jansen arrived in Canada with credentials from one of the most storied addresses in perfumery. The Dutch creator trained at the Grasse Institute of Perfumery in France, the very town where the industry was born, learning the classical techniques that have defined fine fragrance for centuries. After building experience across both creative and commercial sides of the industry, he opened Denatured Lab in Winnipeg's Exchange District, introducing a new kind of space to the Canadian fragrance scene. Here, Jansen runs immersive workshops that invite participants to engage with scent in a hands-on way, treating perfume not as a luxury commodity but as something to be understood and experienced. Alongside Denatured Lab, he co-founded Piper and Perro, a fragrance brand he developed after what he describes as endless hours of research, planning, and smelling. His work has caught the attention of major industry players, leading to collaborations with Givaudan's House of Naturals. Jansen approaches the craft with a sense of mission: he believes people take scent for granted, and part of his work involves helping others rediscover what they're breathing in every day.
The hits
Notable creations
The signature
How Tom composes
Jansen's training in Grasse gave him a foundation in classical French perfumery, but his work spans well beyond tradition. He brings commercial fluency to his creative practice, understanding what makes a scent function in real-world contexts alongside pure artistic expression. His palette remains broad, though early collaborations suggest a comfort with natural materials and a willingness to explore unconventional combinations. He describes his career as having spanned both creative and commercial sides, suggesting an ability to craft scents that work both as artistic statements and as viable products. Jansen gravitates toward immersive experiences, which hints at an interest in scent as something dynamic and interactive rather than static. He builds fragrances that invite people to lean in, to pay attention, to stop taking for granted what fills the air around them.
Philosophy
What drives Tom
Jansen sees fragrance as something the world has lost touch with, and part of his purpose involves bringing people back to their senses. His work bridges the gap between industry expertise and accessible education, offering workshops that demystify perfumery for people who might never have considered how a scent comes together. He resists the idea that fine fragrance should remain cloistered or intimidating. Instead, he treats scent as a shared language, something every person has an innate relationship with even if they have never examined it. His philosophy centers on discovery, both for clients and for himself. Every new brief or collaboration represents a chance to learn something about how materials interact and how a smell can carry memory or emotion. Jansen builds his practice around the belief that understanding fragrance deepens one's appreciation of it, transforming an everyday experience into something intentional.
The houses