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The ancient art of Arab perfumery

(28 Mar 2016) FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4027406 LEAD IN: The craft of perfumery is an ancient part of Arab culture, mixing fragrant oils and spices from across the region. Junaid Perfumes in Bahrain has been creating scents for more than a century and is still tempting customers with new fragrances. STORY-LINE: Junaid Perfumes has been selling fragrances in Manama's Souk for more than a hundred years. Syed Junaid Alam began mixing his own perfumes here back in 1910, influenced by his mother when he was young. At first, his concoctions had no names, but as Alam established himself he started dealing with branded perfume oils from European manufacturers to add variety to his repertoire. Junaid is one of the oldest perfume shops in the Gulf, but the story of Arabian fragrances goes back much further. The region was famous for its scents in Shakespearean times, referenced in the play MacBeth when Lady MacBeth says: "All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand." Today, the Junaid family has two shops in the Souk with attractive window displays and plenty of scents to chose from. Visual Communications Manager at Junaid Perfumes, Obaid Siddiqui, says most Arabian perfumes are composed from simple combinations of ingredients and often have oud - also known as agarwood - at their heart. "The Arab perfumes have just a few ingredients to play with as in, the combinations are made with oud, amber, rose. But then there's different types of oud, there's different types of roses, there's different types of ambers, and then of course there are other spices also added into it. Traditionally Arab perfumes are used as oils." Customer Pamela Landa says Arabian perfumes have a distinctive smell and are different from their Western counterparts. "It's a definite type of aroma and it seems more natural, and more natural of this part of the world. A lot of the western perfumes are more the same maybe you know but this is very exciting and wonderful to experience this." Junaid Perfumes has created thousands of scents since it first began. The perfumer has seen changes, not only in perfume tastes, but also in the type of client that comes into the shop. "Young people from Bahrain like to go to the malls, like the Aali Mall and others. But we do get some coming in. But visitors from outside the country like to come to the souk and walk through the streets. They enjoy shopping here," says shop assistant, Houra Abbas. Such has been the increase in demand for fragrances that Junaid Perfumes has recently opened a new headquarters on the outskirts of Manama. The production line employs 40 women, many of them widows, single mothers or those from impoverished families, which the company says is in line with its social mission. Formulas for each new perfume are top secret. But the design of the bottle is just as important as the somewhat mysterious ingredients. It's what the customer first sees. Elaborate, new bottles are designed by Hamad Fuad Akhtar, the great grandson of the founder. He recalls going into the original shop during the school holidays. "It was like as if I was walking back into time. You know I would imagine my great grandfather you know having customers coming around him, selling products. I'm pretty sure, I'm really not sure how the market was then. How these shopping alleys were a hundred years ago, but I'm pretty sure it was the place to be." Junaid also has shops in a mall, showcasing the company's wares in a brighter, more modern environment in contrast to the Souk. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...