Neshama Perfume

Neshama Perfume is a small London niche house founded by the perfumer Simon Shaer, who compounds and bottles every perfume himself in small batches. The name comes from an ancient Aramaic word for soul and breath. The house describes itself as a rebellion against crass commercial fragrance, with vintage perfumes and natural aromatics as its starting point.

Shaer's first release came in 2022 under the earlier name Rebel Perfume, as Osmanthus Floral, now Souls on Fire. It was a finalist in the Art and Olfaction Awards in 2023. The house now offers four perfumes, all extrait de parfum, and its fourth, Wandering Stars, was co-created with Michael Ælfric Nordstrand of Mythologist Studio.

The house style is naturally focused: higher concentrations of natural materials, for heady, animalic and opulent scents. Souls on Fire pairs Thai osmanthus with Egyptian jasmine, civet and tobacco. Jasmine & Tobacco adds sandalwood, cedar, bergamot, labdanum and benzoin. Ninth Wave is a woody, animalic scent of sandalwood, oud and castoreum with sea-spray freshness. Wandering Stars mixes red mandarin and Sichuan pepper with jasmine sambac, gardenia, oud and oakmoss.

Neshama sits among small independent houses that choose natural richness over modern sweetness. It is for wearers who like vintage-leaning, civet-touched florals and woods, and who value hand-made perfume made by one person.