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How did you find yourself creating NYC's coolest indie fragrance brand?

I should start by saying that fragrance is a really special category.

Over the last 12 years, I’ve worked on more than 100 brands across industries like fashion, CPG, technology, and home goods. It’s very rare to come across a product that elicits so much passion. Ask any friend how they chose their fragrance, and it almost always comes with a story.

I think it’s because scents are consumable art forms – like music, fine food, or wine. It all comes down to the story you want to tell and the experience you want to create for the wearer.

A couple of years ago, I was doing a lot of soul searching on my entrepreneurial journey and fragrance caught my eye. The more I learned, the more I liked.

I just kept taking the next step forward, and a year later, we were ready to launch.

Tell us about how you crafted each of Rite of Way's signature scents.

When I started learning more about how people wear fragrance, it became clear that a new behavior was starting to emerge: wardrobing.

Instead of one signature scent, people were building a small roster of bottles that they would rotate through depending on the mood, occasion, season, or time of day.

At the same time, I had been doing a lot of reading on archetypes in psychology and mythology. Books like Sweat Your Prayers and The Alter Ego Effect opened my eyes to an entirely new toolkit for evolution.

Then it clicked:

Every Rite of Way fragrance starts from an archetype. We use it as the guiding inspiration and build a world of passages, visuals, and music. The fragrance is the final piece of the puzzle.

Our first scent, Outer Realm, was inspired by chaos. The nothingness at the beginning of the universe. The merger of the masculine and the feminine. Lightning. Wild horses. Open Ocean.

Our second, Rising Sun, was inspired by the king. Bright, warm, charismatic. Purposeful and generous. Mountain ranges. Greek columns. A sunrise.

Each scent is an invitation to explore a different side of yourself, and as you build a wardrobe of fragrances, you open up new possibilities.

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Does your history in the world of building brands inform the way you approached Rite of Way?

100%.

Between my time at Gin Lane, Madhappy, and consulting, I’ve had the privilege of partnering with a wide range of brands, products, and founders.

Over time, the patterns start to emerge, and you learn where to focus your energy at each stage.

What's your favorite part about the New York creative community?

The substance.

In New York, you can meet people everyday who are truly exceptional at what they do, and they let the work speak.

Maybe it’s because the city has a way of humbling everyone in one way or another. Maybe it’s because there’s always something new to learn here. I love it.

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