“Most people assume growth means New York, London and Paris,” says Chloe Mullen, the co-founder of successful perfume business Jorum Studio.
But Chloe and partner Euan McCall have decided to take a different approach for their business.
They research, develop and craft bespoke scents from their current base in Edinburgh.
Rather than expanding to one of the perfume capitals of the world, the couple have set their sights on the small Perthshire town of Dunkeld.
They intend to open a Jorum Studio shop in the town by the end of next year.
No to Paris but yes to Perthshire for perfume firm
Chloe, who moved to Edinburgh from Newcastle for university, explained why they believe the Perthshire town is a good fit.
Chloe said: “There’s something that tickles us about Edinburgh and Dunkeld being our locations.
“There are some pockets of real economic growth in other parts of Scotland outside of bigger and busier city centres.
“A lot of the economic activity is still and is set to continue to be driven by affluent tourism.
“However, there is an upsurge in financially comfortable dwellers too, individuals who have sold up in cities and moved to more rural areas.”
She said the firm knows many of its customers come from outwith the capital.
For that reason, the couple believe a shop in Dunkeld is a logical next step.
Chloe added: “A boutique in Dunkeld for example makes sense for us.
“The slower pace of life allows for more meaningful and relaxing experiences for our customers.”
Dealing with issues from Covid and Brexit
Independent shops have been hit hard over the past two years, but Euan said their perfume business has performed well.
He hopes the end of mask-wearing will make a further difference.
“Our business is all about people being able to smell the products, so wearing masks is a bit of a barrier.
“The restrictions are due to be lifted soon and we’re hopeful that will give us another boost.”
As well as Covid, the duo have experienced issues arising from Britain leaving the European Union.
Danish capital ‘a good place to expand’
As a result, they plan to open a store in Europe, with Copenhagen their favoured target city.
Euan said: “We work with some of the most cutting edge and visionary brands based in Denmark.
“Copenhagen feels like a good place to expand our operations.
“Working with multiple best-in-class operators based in Copenhagen, we are aware that a lot of our time is going to be focused there in the coming years.”
They also plan to grow the team from its current workforce of three to more than 10 by the end of next year.
The plan is to create at least two new jobs when the Perthshire shop opens.
Euan said: “We’re hoping to take on another one or two members of staff soon.
“When we open in our second location, we’ll need to take on at least another two members of staff.”
