Perfumer

Hamid Merati-Kashani

The nose behind Parfums de Marly's Layton

Nationality: German-Iranian
Born: Germany
Training: Perfumery apprenticeship at Dragoco, Holzminden, Germany (1984–1995; Dragoco later merged into Symrise)
House: dsm-firmenich

In our database
15
fragrances
Active since
1984
Houses
16
worked with
Recognition
1
award

Hamid Merati-Kashani was born in Germany to an Iranian father and a German mother, but spent his childhood in Isfahan, Iran, where family friends distilled rose oil nearby — an early, sensory education in raw materials that he has repeatedly credited as the root of his interest in perfumery. His family returned to Germany in 1979, at the close of the Iranian revolution, and he has described his outlook since as "Iranian in education, German in organization."

He trained as a perfumer at Dragoco in Holzminden, Germany, starting in 1984 — the company that would later merge into Symrise — spending twelve years there before joining Firmenich (now dsm-firmenich) in 1995. His postings took him from Cologne to several years in Brazil before he moved to Dubai around 2010, first as the firm's sole in-house perfumer there and later leading a much larger regional creative team as Principal Perfumer, a title he still holds.

Working out of Dubai has shaped his signature: compositions that lean oriental, woody and amber-forward, built around rose, oud/agarwood, vanilla, musk and jasmine, often deployed at unusually high concentration — an approach he attributes to Middle Eastern perfumery's taste for boldness. His best-known commercial work includes Layton and Layton Exclusif, Pegasus, Herod and Oajan for Parfums de Marly, alongside pieces for Carolina Herrera, Yves Saint Laurent, Valentino, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Michael Kors, Amouage, Initio Parfums Prive, Kayali, Baldessarini and Fragrance Du Bois.

Alongside his corporate output, Merati-Kashani co-founded the Italian niche house Fabbrica Della Musa with his wife, Barbara Adelmann, where he composes more personal, story-driven fragrances such as Oud Tuareg and Ile Bourbon. A 2025 collaboration with fellow perfumer Olivier Cresp, Silky Woods Elixir for Goldfield & Banks, was named a finalist for Indie Fragrance of the Year at The Fragrance Foundation Awards.