Fragrance house

CM

Charenton Macerations was founded by Douglas Bender in 2012 as a niche fragrance house and olfactive collective. Its fragrances draw on history and artistic olfactory storytelling while challenging conventional perfume structures. Bender’s background includes research into the chemistry of ancient Minoan and Mycenaean beauty artifacts and work with Quest International, now part of Givaudan. The house’s first fragrance, Christopher Street, was created by Bender with perfumer Ralf Schwieger and inspired by New York’s Christopher Street and West Village history. Released in 2013, it became a finalist in the Independent category of the 2014 Art and Olfaction Awards. Its creative brief combined classical floral elements with darker urban and nightlife references to challenge traditional ideas of fragrance gender. Asphalt Rainbow later translated West Village street art and urban textures into a deconstructed rose-centered fragrance. In 2021, the brand was involved in a trademark dispute with 19-69 over use of the name Christopher Street.