ParfumPlus talks with Sultan Al Suwaidi, Managing Director of Lootah Perfumes about the brand and beyond…
Question (Q): Please tell us something about yourself and your passion for fragrances.
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): I obtained my Bachelors degree in Marketing from The American University in Dubai. Speaking about my passion, I have always, since childhood, been very passionate about perfumes. When it comes to perfumes, it’s our family’s passion, it’s in our blood. Lootah has been passed on from generation to generation which makes us very attached to the perfumes we create. We have made Lootah a completely unique brand in terms of the fragrances and the blends we offer. At Lootah, we believe in the quality of scents that we offer to our customers. No compromises are made when it comes to the ingredients of the perfumes. We only use the best quality of natural ingredients for our perfumes.
Q: Tell us about the history of Lootah Perfumes.
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): I have grown in a family which has been in the perfume industry since three generations. Lootah Perfumes started it’s journey with my great grandfather in 1957. He traded pearls and perfumes across India, Middle East, Qatar and Bahrain – both are a treasure. The business was then passed on to my grandmother who played a significant role in evolving and improving Lootah Perfumes by creating her own unique oriental blends and incenses for fragrances. The third generation, which was my mother, brought a huge revolution in the perfume industry by combining the west with the east by blending the French and Oriental fragrances with Oudh.
Q: How have you changed Lootah’s image to make it suitable to the current atelier market.
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): I have brought Lootah Perfumes into the market as a luxury refined range of world-class oudh creations to fit the modern needs of the contemporary consumer. From branding to the product and marketing, I have changed the face of Lootah to mimic the grace and charms of today’s generation, and to match the needs of this market with customisable options, new variations of traditional blends, and new offers and provisions.
Q: What is the inspiration behind the packaging of Lootah Perfumes?
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): When we look at Lootah as a brand, we always look at the simplicity in luxury. At Lootah, we believe in simplicity and purity. We have chosen a very simple colour for our packaging – white. We also wanted to add a look of royalty to the perfumes, hence we chose the colour golden.
Q: Why does Lootah pay so much attention to customising its perfume sets?
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): Our customers are very special to us and we treat them in a special way with our customised sets of perfumes. Our customers are unique and we take every chance to deliver them the best.
Q: Perfume industry today is an ever growing one and becoming more competitive by each day. Isn’t it difficult to let Lootah perfumes be noticed between all these new fragrances?
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): Absolutely! I look at it rather pragmatically. More wonderful materials are available for creating perfumes today and more perfumes are being launched daily than ever before. Yet, there are only limited numbers of perfumes that are truly remarkable.
Hence, my trust dwells in the quality of my perfumes. I am sure that there is a market for my scents that will acknowledge them; obviously it is a specialty market.
Q. What emotion do you think Lootah Perfumes’ creations excite in your consumers?
Sultan Al Suwaidi (SAS): I think it’s about happiness. Fragrances make people happy. It is both—a product—and an experience. My perfumes are intended to last for hours, which give our customers a pleasure. When we make a scent, we try to capture and live an experience. Like how an artist would with his painting. It’s thrilling, and an honour, to feel I have a place in people’s lives in this way.
