Natural fragrance company Abel taking on the world from Wellington

From Amsterdam to Aro Valley, Frances Shoemack’s​ dream of creating a natural, sustainable range of fragrances has taken her halfway around the world.

Originally from South Canterbury, the trained winemaker was living and working in Amsterdam when the idea for her fragrance brand, Abel (pronounced Ah-bell), struck her.

“There aren’t any vineyards in Amsterdam. But wine and perfume are closely related and having become frustrated with the lack of natural, sustainable perfumes, I decided to start my own brand.”

While much of the beauty industry had embraced more natural products, the idea of ​​“conscious perfume” was yet to take off, and natural fragrance was seen as “a bit hippie,” Shoemack said.

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But perfume ingredients were unregulated and most users didn’t realise they were spraying themselves with a “petrochemical soup,” Shoemack said.

“Of the 4000 ingredients used, about 95% are petrochemical derived, and only 20% are ever tested for toxicity to humans and the planet.”

Abel was born at her kitchen table in Amsterdam in 2013. From the start, its mission was simple, Shoemack said: To inspire positive change by making the world’s best natural perfume, without compromising on ethics or aesthetics.

In Abel’s case, “natural” means using purely plant-based ingredients, including ambroxan, a plant-derived alternative to ambergris.

The latter is a wax-like substance secreted in sperm whale intestines which has long been used in expensive perfumes, as it traps aroma on the skin for long periods.

But it was far from a necessity in perfume production, Shoemack said.

“That’s a bit of a myth. Ambergris is quite rare and the best of it has been floating around in the sea for seven or eight years.

“Ambroxan comes from clary sage essential oil, where it is one of many aroma molecules.”

Working with master perfumers Isaac Sinclair​ and Fanny Grau​, Abel created a range of biodegradable and renewable alternatives to traditional petro-chemical derived synthetic scents.

Shoemack’s timing appeared to be perfect, with demand for non-toxic beauty products and fragrances taking off as her business hit its stride.

“When I visited the US about three years ago, nobody was even talking about natural perfume. Now all the big brands have one.”

That shift had contributed to a quadrupling of Abel’s global sales over the last five years and the company now has staff in Wellington, Amsterdam and Boston in the US.

Its fragrances are sold in 25 countries, with 80% of its market in the Northern Hemisphere.

Last week, Abel announced a $2.2 million funding round led by Maker Capital, a venture capital firm with a focus on investing in purpose-driven brands set up for international growth.

The investment would boost its presence in the US market, the brand’s biggest, and help it build a strong sales support team in New York and California, Shoemack said.

In a serendipitous move, Shoemack and her family returned to New Zealand in January 2020, just weeks before the world went into Covid-19 lockdown.

“I just got a sudden feeling in late 2019 that it was time to head home, and it worked out really well in the end.”

In early 2021, Abel took over the lease for Wellington’s Aro Bake bakery, converting the building into a state-of-the-art perfumery.

Abel Fabrike (the Dutch word for factory) opened in December and its first New Zealand-made line was launched in April.

While most of the company’s fragrances are still made in the Netherlands, production would eventually be split between its two homes, Shoemack said.

“This is just the start. We have a lot of plans and can’t wait to share them.”