Heritage
A house, in its own words
Stephen Jones began his journey in fashion through his studies at Chelsea College of Art and Design in London. He launched his first millinery collection in the 1980s, quickly establishing a reputation for theatrical, imaginative headwear that stood apart from conventional hat design. A pivotal encounter occurred in 1984 when Jones met Rei Kawakubo in Anchorage, Alaska. This meeting sparked a creative partnership with Comme des Garçons that would span nearly three decades, influencing both his hat collections and his eventual move into fragrance. Jones's work attracted attention from the highest echelons of fashion. He has created headpieces for exhibitions at the House of Dior, reportedly restoring and crafting more than 160 unique pieces for major fashion retrospectives. His collaborations extended to Vivienne Westwood and numerous other designers. In 2008, leveraging his longstanding relationship with the Comme des Garçons universe, Jones introduced his debut fragrance under the label. This marked a natural evolution from his hat work, where he had already explored perfume as a creative theme in collections titled Parfums. His second fragrance followed in 2014. Stephen Jones treats fragrance as wearable sculpture, an extension of the sculptural sensibility he brings to hat-making. His collaboration with Comme des Garçons reflects a shared philosophy that perfume should challenge and provoke rather than simply please. Jones has spoken about finding daily inspiration in scent, noting that fragrance influences his millinery work in return. The relationship operates as a creative dialogue where fashion and fragrance inform each other. He approaches each new fragrance as he approaches a hat collection, seeking unexpected forms and surprising materials. His philosophy rejects the conventional luxury fragrance playbook in favor of something more conceptual and personal. Jones creates fragrance for those who appreciate fashion as art, for whom a scent represents a complete aesthetic statement rather than merely a pleasant smell. His partnership with Comme des Garçons, managed by Adrian Joffe, allows him to maintain creative control while reaching an audience that values the unconventional.