Heritage
A house, in its own words
Tanaïs began their career as a novelist, earning awards for works that blend myth and contemporary life. In the early 2010s the writer turned to scent as another medium for storytelling. By 2014 the first fragrance, Ancients, appeared, marking the official launch of Studio Tanaïs in Manhattan. The following year the house released a cluster of scents—Lovers Rock, Mojave, Mala and Nåmaka—each inspired by a specific place or emotional episode. 2016 brought Sándalo, a sandalwood‑focused composition that deepened the brand’s reputation for material reverence. After a brief pause, 2021 proved prolific: Nymphaea, Pilgrimage, Cosmic, Matí and several others arrived, reflecting a renewed focus on ritual and the poetic potential of scent. In late 2021 the label unveiled a refreshed visual identity, emphasizing clean lines and hand‑drawn illustrations that echo the founder’s literary background. Throughout its evolution, Studio Tanaïs has remained femme‑owned and operates out of a modest studio where the founder curates each batch, ensuring that every release retains the intimacy of a personal diary entry. The house’s growth has been documented in independent profiles such as the Dry Down Diaries feature and an IPSY interview, confirming its steady expansion without reliance on mass‑market distribution. Studio Tanaïs treats perfume as a narrative device. The founder believes scent can return the self to itself, using material, ritual and desire as entry points. Each fragrance originates from a concrete memory—a desert sunrise, a riverbank lullaby, a childhood ritual—rather than abstract concepts. The brand values authenticity, so it avoids generic luxury language and instead focuses on the specificity of experience. Sustainability informs the creative process; natural extracts are chosen for their provenance, while synthetics fill gaps where nature cannot meet ethical standards. Collaboration with artisans, from glassworkers to illustrators, reinforces the idea that scent lives within a broader sensory ecosystem. The house also embraces inclusivity, offering gender‑neutral narratives that invite anyone to find personal resonance in the aroma. This philosophy is echoed in interviews where Tanaïs describes perfume as “a surreal, psychedelic and sultry conversation between the wearer and the world.”