Not like conventional perfumers, David and Kavi Moltz aren’t trying to comply with within the footsteps of perfume giants. They’re, as an alternative, hoping to duplicate the success of rock band The Rolling Stones.
After they based D.S. & Durga in 2008, it was with the thought of infusing it with storytelling typically present in track lyrics or intricate guitar chords (David, a musician, serves as perfumer) and packaging the product in glossy, fashionable bottles (created by Kavi, an architect and designer). Over the previous 17 years, that method gained them a loyal fanbase, its development coinciding with the rise of indie perfume labels like Le Labo and Byredo.
Now, nonetheless, the stakes have modified: In early 2024, Manzanita Capital, the household workplace of the Fisher household (of Hole Inc. fame), acquired a majority stake in D.S. & Durga for an undisclosed sum (preliminary traders Monogram Capital additionally retained their shares). However even because the indie darling is now flush with sources, the Moltzes are dedicated to preserving what made the model a cult favorite.
“The Rolling Stones can hold their avenue cred or their coolness, as a result of that’s who they’re, but they will make one thing that everybody can get pleasure from,” stated David Moltz. “I’m not saying it’s straightforward or that I’ll be capable to do it, however why not shoot for that?”
The model’s recognition has lengthy been pushed by its distinctive scents, which the founders name “armchair journey.” Debaser, a bestseller, is described as “the wild shrill of indie rock coming by means of the school radio station in scorching August warmth” and has notes of fig, tonka, bergamot and blond woods, whereas Huge Sur Eucalyptus, which is supposed to conjure up reminiscences of “deep spicy inexperienced groves on the cool, cool California coast,” made with notes of cardamom, cypress and eucalyptus. All its scents are created in-house, versus working with an exterior nostril, which Moltz stated allowed for simpler translation of inspiration to shoppers, likening the label to “a band that writes its personal songs.”
That indie band has huge targets. The model is projected to develop its world retail gross sales to between $40 million to $50 million by yr finish, in line with trade sources. The funding from Manzanita is earmarked for increasing the model’s retail footprint, supporting worldwide development, and hiring new expertise, the label informed The Enterprise of Magnificence final yr. And the agency has a confirmed observe report in turning area of interest perfume labels into family names: Manzanita presently owns French cult-favourite fragrance model Diptyque and beforehand invested in Byredo which was offered to Spanish magnificence conglomerate Puig in 2022 for a rumoured $1 billion.
“We had been [until now] being fairly delicate about what we do,” stated Kavi Moltz, the model’s co-founder and inventive director. “However now we’re actually simply making an attempt to indicate it off much more and get extra individuals to return into our world.”
Music, Fable and the Mundane
Issues had been extra quaint again within the model’s early days within the late aughts, stated David Moltz, whose first perfume was a present for Kavi.
A self-taught perfumer, he considered the creation course of as a pure extension of his music and a singular solution to inform tales. The model relied on shut mates, a number of of which owned cafes and boutiques in stylish New York neighbourhoods, to hold the label and introduce it to new audiences.
“We didn’t know something about fragrance or enterprise, or the fragrance enterprise, however it simply took off,” he stated.
In 2018, D.S. & Durga had its first huge hit in I Don’t Know What, a perfume enhancer with notes of bergamot and vetiver acetate that’s meant to be paired with different scents to present it a way of je ne sais quoi.
“The method and the top product is artwork,” he stated. “In the identical manner a CD, a portray, or a dish that you simply get at a tremendous restaurant is artwork. There may be an schooling that should occur to get individuals to start out considering of it that manner.”
With D.S. & Durga, the Moltzes intention to make accessible, on a regular basis luxuries by drawing inspiration from “music, myths and the mundane.” Every launch is accompanied by an elaborate story shared by means of the model’s channels. For instance, the label’s vacation assortment was framed as a homicide thriller that includes the I Don’t Know What perfume as a central character, and 5 further scents representing the suspects within the plot. The founders additionally create playlists to supply shoppers a deeper understanding of how their fragrances are crafted, the inspiration behind them, and the way they match into their lives.
By creating an expansive world round their fragrances, they hope to have interaction shoppers earlier than they even make a purchase order, stated Kavi Moltz.
This yr, the duo plans to decelerate its launch cadence from six per yr (together with collaborations) to only two. This shift will permit them to dedicate extra time and sources to strengthening their core choices and hero merchandise — Pistachio, Debaser, and I Don’t Know What — whereas additionally creating bigger activations to accompany every new launch.
Their newest perfume, Brown Flowers, which was launched in February, boasts notes of dried cedrat, brown orchid and aged musk. The scent is impressed by Seventies music and weekend getaways in Connecticut glasshouses and was dropped alongside eight authentic songs (in lieu of a curated playlist, a normal providing with its new scents). The model will even host an activation with Amoeba Music, a report retailer in Los Angeles, the place the shop will promote music alternatives which have impressed the model.
“That is as huge of a narrative we’ve ever made round a fragrance,” stated Kavi Moltz. “We had been seeing how particular we may get – Who’s [the protagonist]? What does she love to do? What’s she spending her time doing? How does it relate to fragrance?”
The label, which presently affords eau de parfums, candles and physique care merchandise, can be increasing its product providing to incorporate colognes impressed by conventional menswear, which is able to come to market in June.
Going World
Retail has all the time been necessary to D.S. & Durga, stated Kavi Moltz, noting her structure background, however wasn’t one thing they might embark on till 2015, when the model entered the now-shuttered Barneys New York.
“To start with, placing fragrance on-line was such a problem to us. We had been like, ‘how do you get individuals to purchase or expertise one thing that they will’t scent on a display?’” she stated. The publicity from Barneys led to the Monogram Capital funding (within the “low single digit thousands and thousands,” in line with David Moltz) in 2018; that very same yr, they opened their first retailer in Decrease Manhattan.
Retail can be a significant element of its development technique. In December 2024 the model opened a brand new retailer in Los Angeles’ Silver Lake neighbourhood. The situation takes its design inspiration from Ray Kappe, an architect Kavi Moltz studied at college, and options putting striped layers of concrete, heat picket accents, and a glass façade painted by Leah Tinari, an artist who steadily collaborates with the model. This location’s design aesthetic is consistent with the model’s visible language – industrial parts infused with a warmness to provide a way of downtown cool.
The label now owns and operates 5 shops throughout New York and Los Angeles, and counts Bergdorf Goodman, Australia’s Mecca Magnificence, Liberty London and South Korea’s Galleria Division Retailer as retail companions. D.S. & Durga can be distributed in over 40 markets by third events, although the model will quickly start slicing ties with its worldwide distributors and can be getting into new markets by itself.
“When it was simply us, we might say sure to distributors to start out increasing in these locations, however we weren’t all the time doing it the correct manner, as a result of there’s simply no bandwidth for servicing the market with coaching and press,” stated David Moltz.
The model is now specializing in “one market at a time.” It’ll begin with the UK, the place the founders journey typically for model activations and consumer conferences. The duo is anticipated to open their first non-US retailer in London within the subsequent few years . Within the meantime, they hope to extend their consciousness within the US, particularly in non-coastal cities comparable to Austin and Chicago, with focused social campaigns and neighborhood activations. The model has additionally employed a brand new communications agency, The Lede Firm, to assist unfold its message and attain a broader viewers.
“For thus lengthy, David and I’ve been in founder startup mode, though the model has been in existence for greater than 15 years,” stated Kavi Moltz. “We’re beginning to rely a little bit bit extra on letting individuals deal with issues and never insert ourselves in completely every thing. We’re now spending extra time on the creations and our neighborhood.”
