Heritage
A house, in its own words
Imaginary Authors emerged in 2012 when perfumer Josh Meyer turned his fascination with books into a scent laboratory in Portland, Oregon. Meyer, who had previously experimented with independent blends, partnered with creative director Ashod Simonian to give the venture a literary backbone. Early interviews describe the launch as a response to a perceived gap between perfume and storytelling; the founders wanted each bottle to feel like a short story you could wear. The first fragrance, Memoirs Of A Trespasser, arrived that same year and set a tone of introspective, narrative‑driven composition. In 2013 the house introduced Mosaic, a scent that layered disparate notes much like a visual collage, reinforcing the brand’s commitment to experimental structure. The following year saw Yesterday Haze, a fragrance that captured the hazy nostalgia of a forgotten afternoon, further cementing the label’s reputation for mood‑evoking creations. By 2017, Imaginary Authors expanded its palette with Saint Julep, a bright, herbaceous offering that hinted at seasonal rituals. The 2020s brought a diversification into home goods: the brand began producing scented soaps and soy wax candles, all hand‑poured in small batches, a move highlighted in a Reddit AMA where the team explained the desire to extend narrative experiences beyond the skin. Recent releases such as A Cloud of Cocoa (2022), Dipped in Chocolate (2024) and Blend No.83 (2023) demonstrate an ongoing dialogue between gourmand references and literary titles. Throughout its history, the house has maintained a modest production scale, preferring quality and concept over mass distribution, a stance echoed in multiple third‑party profiles that note its indie‑spirit and Portland roots. The creative vision of Imaginary Authors rests on the premise that scent can function as a compact story. Founder Josh Meyer has repeatedly said that he treats each formula like a paragraph, arranging notes to convey a beginning, a conflict and a resolution. This literary framing guides the brand’s naming conventions, which draw from memoirs, mosaics, secrets and weather phenomena, inviting wearers to imagine a scene as they experience the fragrance. The house values authenticity, opting for transparent ingredient disclosures and encouraging consumers to engage with the dry‑down process, a practice highlighted in The Dry Down Diaries where Meyer described testing each perfume over several weeks to ensure narrative consistency. Collaboration also plays a role; the creative director works with writers and visual artists to craft accompanying stories and packaging copy, reinforcing the idea that fragrance is part of a broader artistic conversation. Sustainability is addressed through the use of soy wax for candles and a commitment to small‑batch production, which reduces waste and allows for careful quality control. Overall, the brand’s ethos blends the tactile pleasure of perfume with the intellectual curiosity of reading, positioning each launch as a chapter in an ever‑growing olfactory anthology.