IIUVO

IIUVO is a London fragrance and candle brand founded in 2015 by Tomi Ahmed and Leo Gibbon. Ahmed spent time on the shop floor at Dover Street Market. Gibbon is a DJ and producer whose mother is a florist. The two met in Paris and began with scented candles. The name comes from a Latin word meaning to help, to please and to delight, and the brand calls itself an artistic practice that uses scent alongside music, film, photography and other media.

The first candles, Ajon, Emmie and Woodgrain, launched in May 2015. The first perfumes followed in 2017 as Edition One: Fonteyn, Soigné and Gilot, each developed over two years with the perfumers at Robertet and built on a story about an artistic figure. Bullshit came later, and so did Madame X, a limited edition scent made with Madonna. The range has since widened to body care, garments, knitwear and home fragrance.

The perfumes are unisex and lean on clean, aromatic and woody structures with floral hearts. Fonteyn opens with grapefruit, rosemary, wormwood and cardamom over rose and violet, then papyrus, moss and vetiver. Soigné pairs cyclamen, nutmeg and cinnamon with violet, cashmere wood and patchouli. Gilot is an aquatic take on a Mediterranean muse, with bergamot, grapefruit, neroli and bitter almond over musk and moss. Bullshit uses Sichuan pepper, grapefruit and lavender over vanilla and guaiac wood. The founders say they are not conventional perfumers, and they refine each scent with a playlist for it.

IIUVO is an independent niche label with its own website and a few stockists in London and abroad. It suits wearers who like design-led, art-referencing perfume and a house that sets music and image next to scent.