L’Officiel Monaco interviews Marco Vidal about his brand and experience.
What inspired you to create The Merchant of Venice?
My visceral love for Venice and the wonderful history of Venetian perfumery inspired me in the creation of my brand.
Can you describe the unique olfactory experiences that The Merchant of Venice offers?
It is an olfactory journey that combines history, some fascinating destinations in the world and a great expertise on perfume. The Merchant of Venice’s olfactory development team collaborates with the most important perfume houses in the world that guarantee the highest quality of the raw materials and the traceability of the ingredients.
How do you ensure the use of high-quality and ethically sourced ingredients in your perfumes?
Through various programs developed with our supplier partners. For example, our Accordi di Profumo collection features the sustainable ingredients of Givaudan’s Sourcing4Good and Givaudan Foundation. These programs guarantee the highest quality of natural raw materials and finances the local communities of farmers involved in this project.
What makes The Merchant of Venice stand out among other perfume brands in the market?
I would say it’s a unique brand, it has a style that is like no other. It is just like Venice, a exceptional city in the world. Thanks to its historical background, it is a cultural luxury brand, since it was born from the institution of the Perfume Museum of Venice and behind it there is an intense inspiration in the historical Venetian arts.
Could you share the story behind the name ” The Merchant of Venice” and its significance?
It was born one night when I was thinking about the name to give to this project and I thought that The Merchant of Venice was the perfect one to represent a true story of travels in search of the best raw materials in the world. It’s about cultural exchanges and today an international brand present in over 50 countries worldwide. It is also a very well-known name thanks to the work of Shakespeare and the subsequent success of Hollywood.
How do you approach the process of creating a new fragrance for The Merchant of Venice?
The creation of a new fragrance begins within our olfactory development team, led by Nicola Pozzani. We develop a detailed olfactory brief for each new perfume and share this with our partner perfume houses and their perfumers. Afterwards, we receive and evaluate various olfactory proposals, eventually requesting modifications and rework until we achieve perfection.
In what ways does The Merchant of Venice capture the essence and spirit of Venice in its perfumes?
The whole project of The Merchant of Venice is permeated by Venice, its history and its present. Even in the fragrances we have made the exercise of capturing its essence. To paraphrase Brodsky, this is the smell of frozen seaweed in winter. On the latest Gold Regatta fragrance there is a particular olfactory note that connects us to its intimate essence. I invite you to smell it to find yourself in Venice
