Etem Ruhi :: Family-Run Cologne House
Etem Ruhi was a family-run cologne house named after its founder Mr. Etem Ruhi, a self-taught nose with an inventive spirit. Inspired by İstanbul's established scent culture where guests are greeted with fragrant vaports and rose water splashes, Mr. Etem Ruhi experimented with essences and oils to craft boutique fragrances that would appeal to the taste of his time. During the 1910's, he began presenting his creations in his haberdashery at İstanbul's Grand Bazaar, and later set up an atelier dedicated to scent-making with his wife, Ms. Mihriban Meryem.
Bottled in graceful vials, Etem Ruhi's fragrances traveled from prominent pharmacies of İstanbul to several Anatolian cities until the 1950's when this boutique line gradually faded out with the rise of mass-produced goods.
Several decades later, the family descendants, wishing to keep their grandparents' memory alive, collaborate with local artisans to revive the Etem Ruhi brand as a contemporary rendition of its era's unique sense of refinement.