About Aroma M Perfumes

In the 1990’s Maria McElroy launched her perfume company Aroma M with a single perfume: o-cha, a green tea fragrance that debuted at Bergdorf Goodman in New York City and Harrods in London. McElroy soon became one of the first American indie perfumers to find global recognition, long before “niche” was a category. McElroy launched a collection of fragrances in the early aughts at the first Sephora stores in the US and Asia and was the first niche perfumer to appear on QVC. But it didn’t start with perfume. It began in San Francisco where she studied painting and performance art at the San Francisco Art Institute and went on after receiving a BFA to spend seven years in Japan, where she became proficient in the language. McElroy studied Kodo, Ikebana, the Koto and Zen Buddhism, before training in aromatherapy in Australia. McElroy’s work draws on ritual, place and intention, from her Greek heritage, roots in Salt Lake City to Kyoto, and more recently her travels in North Africa. McElroy lives in Manhattan with her Kyoto born chef husband.