Paul Firmin and Niko Dafkos founded Earl of East in London back in 2014, as a creative outlet from their careers in advertising. What started as an initial market stall, showcasing their favorite finds, quickly led them to develop their own line of scented candles, and open retail stores in London, where community is at the core of everything they do. Today they have four locations in the city and produce candles for stockists worldwide.

Aurum was founded to help people from the modern era to regain their aspirations through art. Even though they come from all walks of life, Aurum’s partners have one thing in common: a true understanding of who they are, and they have a passion for life.

How did you meet Edna?

"We met Edna in our flagship store in Coal Drops Yard, Kings Cross. We bonded immediately over scent, and during her time in the city she became a regular visitor to our space and we wound regularly talk about the senses, but more broadly about creativity. London is our home, and a place for creative inspiration for Edna. Our store became an anchor during her stay, and as we shared our stories with each other, became friends and agreed that we would find a way to collaborate in the future. We stayed in touch and shared ideas, so when Aurum came to fruition we had to be involved.”

Scent as art.
 

Scent has a unique ability to transport you to a different place and time in an instant. We have learnt to share our own personal memories and experiences through scent, and take people on a journey with us. What is so special is that those scents then go on to mean something different to the end user. Whether that is the scent of their wedding, or simply their favourite fragrance to relax them at home. Art really is just story-telling, sharing your own experience and then subjectively experiencing it, so in that sense there is so much synergy between the two worlds. People are becoming so much more in tune with the power of scent, and it’s wonderful to see people use this sense more proactively than they did in the past.

Do you think you’re an artist?

This is a difficult one. In the traditional sense of artists, no. However, we have always thought of Earl of East as a creative outlet rather than a machine, so in that sense yes, there is an art in what we do. This business has given us a platform to create products, but also experiences and feelings, and through collaboration we are able to work with artists and craftspeople to achieve things together.