Thai Perfume Houses: MITH and Proad

The first time I discovered MITH (Made In Thailand) and Proad was a couple of years back while I was wondering through the Central World department store in Bangkok. Bangkok is one of my favorite cities to explore as a solo traveler and I have been going there to escape the dead of winter as long as I can remember. In recent years, big construction projects have ruined some of its authenticity and have made it seem like a wanna-be Dubai, but I still enjoy going on urban hikes to discover markets, odd little boutiques and good food. The city delights all the five senses with its laid-back chaos.

Thai perfumes are a fairly new discovery for me. Although I was familiar with Thai aromatherapy oils from massage parlors, as well as soaps, candles and reed diffusers from the older brands like Thann, Panpuri and Prann, these houses have only recently started to branch off into making perfumes for personal use.

Proad, launched in 2016, was the first Thai perfume house that I encountered. It later joined with MITH under the same umbrella and have been collaborating with local and international perfumers like Dominique Ropion, Olivier Cresp, Quentin Bisch, Louise Turner and many others. The goal of both houses is to make scents with local ingredients that are easy to use and understand and that are appropriate for the hot and humid climate of Thailand. They offer a wide range of scent profiles from sweet gourmands, florals, oud, fruity, fresh, and my personal favorite, teas.

Last year, Quentin Bisch launched four tea-forward perfumes in time for the Lunar New Year:

#White Tea Proad : a beautiful combination of white flowers and white tea that is perpetually sold out, much to my chagrin.

Green Tea : an unusual combination of green tea leaves and citrus.

Red Tea : did anyone say Lipton iced-tea with raspberries?

Black Tea : Taiwanese Earl Grey castella cake with spices and black tea. It was the only one available at the time and the one I got. I later gave it to my nephew, because to my nose it read more masculine.

There are many other tea fragrances besides these, my personal favorite being Another Tea , which is the most authentic recreation of a hot, steaming cup of Chinese jasmine tea with Oolong. Its richness reminds me of the now discontinued So from Oscar de la Renta.

If you're into sweet gourmands, it might be worth your while giving Proad and MITH a sniff. They make some awesome chocolate, cocoa, and strawberries & cream fragrances. There are also some interesting perfumes inspired by Happy Hour cocktails.

This year I was lucky enough to snatch the last 10ml bottle of Pink Champagne, an amazing mist of salty iris petals and kelp. I also got a bottle of When a Woman Falls in Love, a sweet Turkish rose gilded with lavender and jasmine. I hope to return for a full bottle of Pink Champagne next year.
If you live in the US, you can sample MITH and Proad perfumes from Glin Dee Fragrances. But I really recommend visiting Thailand and letting it charm your soul with everything it has to offer.