Heritage
A house, in its own words
Samam was founded in 2021 in Dubai by two longtime friends, Sami Al Qaissy and Kutaiba Al Mansoor, who had spent years experimenting with home‑blended accords before deciding to launch a formal fragrance house. Their partnership began in a shared apartment where they mixed essential oils for friends, a practice that quickly attracted attention on local social media platforms. Recognising a gap in the market for modern interpretations of traditional Middle‑Eastern notes, they formalised the brand and secured a modest production space in the Al Quoz industrial district. The first public release, a limited‑edition scent called "Summer Glow," arrived in late 2021 and sold out within weeks, prompting the founders to expand their team and source higher‑grade raw materials. In 2023 Samam opened a flagship boutique on Jumeirah Beach Road, a space that doubles as a scent‑testing lounge and a gallery for regional art. That year also saw the launch of the "Kiss & Sea" collection, a quartet of fragrances that explore marine and desert motifs through accords of fig, citrus, and ambergris. By 2024 the house introduced its first oud‑centric perfume, simply titled "Oud," which was praised for balancing smoky depth with a clean, modern finish. The following year, 2025, Samam released Empressa IX, a complex floral‑amber composition that marked the brand’s entry into the global niche market, earning coverage in international fragrance blogs. Throughout its brief history Samam has remained a privately held company, reinvesting profits into research, ingredient sourcing trips to Morocco and Indonesia, and collaborations with regional artisans. The brand’s trajectory reflects a blend of entrepreneurial agility and a reverence for the Gulf’s aromatic legacy, positioning it as a distinctive voice among emerging Middle‑Eastern perfume houses. Samam’s creative vision is anchored in the belief that scent can act as a bridge between past and present, linking the aromatic traditions of the Arabian Peninsula with the sensibilities of a global, millennial audience. The founders articulate a commitment to authenticity: each fragrance is built around a central narrative, whether it is the desert sunrise evoked by "Tadmait Desert" or the maritime freshness of "Kiss & Sea Exit 10." Samam values transparency in ingredient provenance, favouring natural extracts that are harvested sustainably and blended with a restrained use of synthetics to achieve stability without compromising character. The house also embraces a collaborative ethos, inviting guest perfumers and visual artists to contribute to limited releases, thereby fostering a community‑driven creative process. Ethical considerations extend to packaging; bottles are designed for reuse, and the brand sources recycled glass wherever possible. Samam’s philosophy underscores a respect for the wearer’s personal story, encouraging individuals to select a scent that resonates with their own memories rather than following fleeting trends. This user‑centric approach informs everything from the brand’s modest marketing tone to the intimate layout of its boutique, where customers are invited to linger, explore, and compose their own olfactory journeys.