Fragrance house

Poiray

Poiray was founded in 1975 by François Hérail and Michel Ermelin and established on Paris’s Rue de la Paix. The founders presented precious jewelry as elegant, creative, wearable for everyday occasions, and adaptable to individual moods. In 1986, Nathalie Hocq joined the artistic direction and helped shape the house’s identity around a more relaxed, everyday form of luxury. Poiray created the Ma Première watch in 1987, combining Art Deco styling with an interchangeable bracelet design, and introduced the Cœur Entrelacé motif in 1993 as a recurring house emblem. During financial difficulties, Alain Duménil took over Poiray in 2005; in August 2013, Jean-Paul Bize’s family investment fund AMS acquired the brand, stocks, designs, and retail leases from Duménil. In June 2025, AMS Group sold Poiray to Iéna Investissements, the holding company of Thierry and Arnaud Gillier, founders of Zadig & Voltaire. The ownership change was accompanied by plans for a renewed creative direction.