Maïa Lernout
A French senior perfumer at Takasago known for natural-material expertise and luminous floral compositions across international houses.
France
About Maïa Lernout
Maïa Lernout is a French senior perfumer at Takasago whose fine-fragrance work combines natural-material expertise with luminous floral expression. Memories of Paris and southern France inform a style that often treats flowers as sources of light, movement, and pleasure.
Career
She studied at ISIPCA, encountered natural extracts during a placement at Robertet, and continued her training through Créations Aromatiques and Kao. In 2006 she joined Biolandes, where she worked close to natural-material sourcing and laboratory development, before moving to Takasago in 2010.
Creative Style & Philosophy
Lernout is particularly associated with bright florals and a detailed understanding of naturals. Her interviews describe a desire to translate nature and joy into perfume, while her credited work shows how she gives those materials contemporary diffusion, texture, and clarity. This approach lets a recognizable flower remain vivid while supporting the polish, radiance, and lasting structure expected of modern fine fragrance.
Signature Works
- *Gentleman Society (Givenchy, 2023)* — An aromatic woody fragrance moving from sage and cardamom into narcissus and multiple vetivers, then smoothed with cedar, sandalwood, and vanilla.
- *Burberry Her Elixir de Parfum (2022)* — A denser gourmand extension of the Her line, wrapping strawberry and blackberry in creamy jasmine, vanilla, and amber.
- *Flora Luminare (Molton Brown, 2019)* — A luminous, creamy floral that layers white flowers of ylang-ylang and jasmine over the warmth of vanilla and coconut.
