Perfume business
Perfume is not just a nice smell; it’s chemistry, art, and memory in a bottle. While most would link France with the term “perfumery,” one of the world’s most unique and fastest-growing perfume schools is located in South Korea. The Korea Perfumer Training Center (KPTC) is not yet widely known, but its Perfume Expert course is helping people in Asia learn how to become professional perfumers. This essay explores what makes this course special, how it helps students, and why it deserves more attention.
Before, students from Korea who wanted to study perfumery had to study abroad, usually in Europe, where the schools are mostly based. These courses were expensive and usually conducted in French or English, which made them hard for most students to undertake. The Korea Perfumer Training Center was set up to give Korean students a place where they could study perfumery in their own language and culture.
KPTC’s overall goal is to give students both the scientific knowledge and the artistic freedom to allow them to go on and become effective perfumers. The class takes students through everything from scentrecognition to developing and marketing a perfume.
Perfume Expert class is a hands-on 10-week class consisting of a total of 80 classroom hours. Students learn in this class how to build a perfume from scratch. Each week deals with a different subject of perfumery, such as top notes, base notes, fragrance families, and blending materials. Students work with real materials and practice creating their own perfumes in class.
The most important part of the course is the final project. Every student creates his or her own signature perfume that is assessed by professionals in the industry. Upon completion of the course, students receive a certificate that they can use to gain employment in the beauty and fragrance industry.
There are several reasons why Perfume Expert by KPTC stands out. For one, it is in Korean, making it far more accessible to students in Korea and nearby countries. For another, it focuses on Asian fragrance designs, which generally lean toward lighter and more subtle scents than perfumes designed for Western countries.
The class also includes training in the perfume business—how to package it, read the trends, and follow safety protocols. Students not only learn to make perfume, they learn to turn it into a real product on the shelves.
One of the positives about this class is how it teaches students to use local ingredients in their perfumes. Traditional Korean scents like hinoki wood, ginseng, green tea, and mugwort are all taught in class. All of these ingredients hold deep cultural meaning in Korea, and using them helps students create perfumes that are both personal and unique.
This also opens the door for Korean perfumers to show the world something different. Instead of copying European-style designs, they can create new scents inspired by their own culture and environment.
The majority of graduates of the Perfume Expert course go on to have careers in the beauty industry. Some start their own perfume brands, while others wind up working in labs or in fragrance marketing. The course teaches both creativity and business, so students are prepared for all kinds of careers.
The perfume industry in Korea is growing very fast. While previously it was dominated by Western brands, more and more consumers now opt for perfumes from local designers. This is opening up more opportunities for KPTC graduates.
There are famous perfume schools in France, such as ISIPCA and the Grasse Institute of Perfumery. But those schools are far away, expensive, and hard to get into. KPTC offers a great alternative for Asian students who want to gain the same knowledge close to home.
While KPTC does not have the centuries-old history of schools in Europe, it offers modern facilities, updated courses, and instructors who are currently employed in the fragrance business. Its smaller class sizes also mean that students get more personalized feedback and support during their training.
KPTC continues to grow, but already it has big plans. Further down the line, the center would love to have more online classes and possibly even classes in English. It would also love to work with other perfume houses and schools around the world.
As increasing numbers of people become interested in perfume, not just as a beauty product, but as an art form and a way of personal expression, schools such as KPTC will play a large role in shaping the future of scent designers.
The Perfume Expert course at the Korea Perfumer Training Center is a great example of how arts and sciences education can combine in a unique way. It is a chance for students to follow their passion, learn practical skills, and understand their culture through scent. It may not be as famous as schools in Europe, but KPTC offers something just as valuable: a chance to craft a fragrant future from the heart of Korea.
By: Sohyun Mun
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