Toskovat

Toskovat is a Romanian niche perfume brand founded in 2022 by David-Lev Jipa-Slivinschi, a former film student and screenwriter from Bucharest who turned to perfumery during the pandemic. The brand name comes from the Russian concept of “toska”, a word connected to deep, often causeless spiritual yearning; Jipa-Slivinschi has family roots in Russia and Ukraine and uses this emotional territory as the core of the brand. From the outset, Toskovat has positioned itself as a reaction against conventional “nice-smelling” niche perfumery, using scent as a narrative and emotional medium instead.

Toskovat labels its fragrances “Extraits de Mémoire” rather than Extrait de Parfum, reflecting the idea of perfumes as concentrated memories and stories. Many compositions include deliberately unsettling accords such as gasoline, synthetic blood, hot rubber, holy water, and dirty money, often built around high concentrations (typically 20% and above) for strong performance. Key titles like Age of Innocence (childhood and its loss), Inexcusable Evil (war), and Génération Godard (a tribute to cinema) illustrate the cinematic and thematic approach.

Within just a couple of years, the line has expanded to more than 20 fragrances and has drawn attention from major media outlets such as Vogue and The Wall Street Journal, as well as praise from critic Luca Turin, who has described their structure as opening with shocking top notes and gothic note lists that resolve into more classical, wearable hearts and bases. This mix of confrontational ideas and ultimately wearable drydowns has helped Toskovat gain a following among perfume enthusiasts who treat fragrance as a vehicle for emotionally charged storytelling rather than background decoration.