Rook: A New Unisex Fragrance Line That Will Transport You to Another Place + Time

Scent is a really personal experience. It has the ability to evoke emotion or memories, transporting you to another place and time with just a whiff of the nose. That’s exactly why perfumer Nadeem Crowe started his line of unisex fragrances, Rook.

Two years ago, Nadeem began to explore perfumery and found himself at bespoke perfumer Philippe K in Lausanne, Switzerland, where he explored his skills in the olfactory craft. He returned home to England and this past March, he launched Rook with a trilogy of three unique scents: Forest (a woody fragrance with green notes), Undergrowth (a familial scent of fresh garden mint being pulled from the earth), and Rook (a dirty/clean scent he created for himself initially).

You may notice that many perfumes have similar opulent bottle design and packaging. Rook’s design was created by Warren Beeby, who shares:

“Developing the Rook brand and packaging was really an exercise in restraint. With Rook we were very clear from the start that the scent should be the hero and not an over elaborate packaging design. Many of the Artisanal and larger perfume brands have very elaborate bottles and packaging solutions that scream opulence. Somehow I can’t help feeling that is in part about justifying the price point or maybe simply what happens when the perfumer is left to indulge his or her own whimsy.”

Rook is built around a simple triangle, an age-old symbol found in ancient symbolism and runes. For Nadeem, it represents the three parts of a scent (the top, middle, and base notes) and his three passions in life (perfume, performance, and medicine; Nadeem is an NHS A&E doctor, actor, and perfumer). Additionally, the triangle symbol represents how each perfume is a building block that can be used alone or layered on top of one another.

Since Rook’s launch, Nadeem has launched three additional scents in new packaging: Thurible (reminiscent of incense burned during worship services), Amber (inspired by nature and fossilized tree resin), Suede (a bold scent defined by suede, tobacco leaf, and leather), and Flaming Dandelion (a limited edition fragrance inspired by a photograph of that very object).