Heritage
A house, in its own words
Aura of Kazakhstan emerged as an ambitious undertaking to establish a distinctly Kazakh presence in the international niche fragrance market. The brand was founded by Olga Berner, who serves as owner of the perfume house, together with creative director Yulia. The timing of the brand's initial fragrance launches in 2020 suggests the house was established around that period, with multiple scent releases marking its debut collection. The timing coincided with Kazakhstan's growing interest in luxury domestic brands and cultural heritage projects. Rather than simply importing foreign fragrance traditions, Berner and her team pursued a different approach by inviting European perfumers to work directly with Kazakh landscapes and cultural reference points. The founding philosophy centered on creating a new category in the fragrance world, one where a nation's identity could be expressed through scent rather than merely adopted as marketing motif. The brand gained international visibility through presentations at trade events including Pitti Fragranze, positioning itself within the global niche fragrance conversation while maintaining its Kazakh roots. Multiple 2020 releases covering diverse subjects from urban Almaty to alpine meadows to historical figures established the brand's range and thematic ambitions early in its development.
The creative vision behind Aura of Kazakhstan treats fragrance as a medium for cultural storytelling and geographical memory. Rather than constructing perfumes around conventional Western fragrance families or trends, the brand selects subjects rooted in Kazakh experience, inviting European perfumers to interpret these references through their own olfactory expertise. This collaborative model places Kazakh narrative at the center while benefiting from the technical precision and creative traditions of European perfumery. The decision to work with multiple perfumers, including French perfumer Lucas Sieuzac, reflects an intentional diversity of creative voices united by shared subject matter. Each fragrance addresses a specific element of Kazakh identity, whether geographical, historical, or cultural, treating these subjects with the specificity usually reserved for auteur perfumery. The brand's approach suggests that national identity in fragrance requires neither local raw materials nor local perfumers, but rather authentic engagement with the cultural sources being expressed. This philosophy positions the brand as a bridge between Kazakh heritage and international fragrance audiences, offering unfamiliar olfactory references while maintaining accessibility through skilled perfumery.