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The journey of a self-taught person

Alberto Morillas

In the heat of Andalusia, the scents of orange blossom, jasmine, rosemary and incense bathed all his youth.

Before going to school, it was traditional to comb your hair and wear perfume with cologne, which can be bought by the liter at the pharmacy. This smell of cleanliness, characteristic of Cologne, was the first perfume that aroused his sensitivity. Having followed his parents in their exile in Switzerland when he was only 11 years old, Alberto Morillas continues to frequent perfumeries, which at the time was rather rare for boys of his age. His fascination with Old Spice, its scents of cinnamon and spices and later L'Eau Sauvage by Dior and Un Homme by Caron were the first fragrances he wore on his own initiative.

He was unaware, however, that behind each of them was a creator and therefore a job. The trigger took place in 1970, while he was continuing his studies at the Beaux-Arts in Geneva, when reading a portrait of Jean-Paul Guerlain in Vogue would radically change his perception of the profession of perfumer. Without a doctorate in chemistry, he nevertheless succeeded in convincing the Firmenich company to offer him a position within the scientific research on natural essences directed by Doctor Säuberli. In direct contact with the creators who enter the laboratory, Alberto Morillas perfects his knowledge of fine perfumery and begins to secretly compose his own perfumes despite the ban. Defying the rules in force, he undertakes to present his first juice to the authorities of the House... an act which marks his entry into the world of perfumery.

Seduced and surprised Firmenich then offered the young man who "created perfumes without being a perfumer" to cross the Atlantic and pursue specific training in New York. He obtained the title of Perfumer in 1977 and that of Master Perfumer in 1998.