Arnaud Poulain

About Arnaud Poulain

Arnaud Poulain is a French perfumer and the founder of Les Eaux Primordiales, based near his native Arras in northern France. Born in 1986, he grew up in a family whose work included metalworking, carpentry and farming, making practical craft a familiar part of his childhood.

Career

After studying mechanical engineering, Poulain discovered perfumery in 2007 and went on to study its foundations at SIADEP in Lens. There he met Amélie Bourgeois, a teacher who became his mentor and a long-term creative collaborator. He founded Les Eaux Primordiales in 2015, developing a fragrance house rooted in the region rather than leaving its local history behind.

Creative Style and Philosophy

Poulain describes a collaborative process in which he sets an artistic direction and works with Bourgeois to explore ideas and build a fragrance. His interests span science, art and the industrial heritage of northern France, alongside the personal memories that connect him to the area. He later acquired a château in Acq that he had watched as a child with his grandfather and made it the setting for the house's workshop.

Signature Works

• *Couleur Primaire* — A perfume to which Poulain describes a particular personal attachment, recalling a complex formula behind an apparently simple result.
• *Ambre Superfluide* — A creation whose rich, dense trail he has singled out as a favourite; its sesame facet later contributed to Elevation.
• *Mimosa Supercritique* — A personal tribute that Poulain has described as dedicated to his late mother.