Custom Essence
Custom Essence is a Somerset, New Jersey-based B2B custom fragrance design and manufacturing house, wholly owned by Givaudan since 2021, serving mid-market and entrepreneurial brands across personal care, home care, and industrial categories with proprietary natural and wellness-focused fragrance technologies.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1981
- HeadquartersSomerset, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Custom Essence does
Custom Essence is a Somerset, New Jersey-based custom fragrance design and manufacturing house founded in 1981 by perfumers Felix Buccellatto and Raman Patel, operating today as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Givaudan since its December 2021 acquisition. The company creates high-performing, consumer-accepted fragrances across personal care, hair care, home fragrance and air care, household, pet care, fine fragrance, and industrial/institutional categories for B2B clients, with a particular specialization in natural fragrances and a stated emphasis on serving mid-market and entrepreneurial brands underserved by larger fragrance houses. Custom Essence's technology stack centers on a portfolio of proprietary platforms: the CE IntelliSCENTS+ consumer insight platform for data-backed fragrance development, and ingredient/technology brands MoodScentz+ (mood-enhancing), Z-Biome (microbiome-friendly), Bloomful (bloom enhancement), Phytogaia (plant-based), Thalassogaia (marine-inspired), and ClairScent (malodor neutralization), most of which leverage Givaudan's patented neuroscience and global ingredient palette post-acquisition.
The company's business model is B2B custom fragrance manufacturing sold via a sales-led go-to-market targeting mid-market and enterprise brands, supported by a redesigned self-serve customer portal for orders, invoices, and regulatory documentation, plus a member portal for marketing insights and trend presentations. Pricing is quote-based with a minimum order quantity of $1,000 per fragrance and annual customer volumes ranging from 100-1,000 lbs up to 10,000+ lbs. Custom Essence maintains a 51-100 employee organization under head of company Matt Soto, with senior leadership spanning production, sales, and operations (Tony Sasso, Steven Weaver, Prashun Patel), and operates from an expanding Somerset, NJ campus after acquiring the adjacent building to support R&D and operational growth into 2027.
Custom Essence firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Custom Essence
- Legal name
- Custom Essence, LLC
- Website
- https://customessence.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1981
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Custom Essence is a Somerset, New Jersey-based B2B custom fragrance design and manufacturing house, wholly owned by Givaudan since 2021, serving mid-market and entrepreneurial brands across personal care, home care, and industrial categories with proprietary natural and wellness-focused fragrance technologies.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Custom Essence industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Custom Fragrance Manufacturing
- SIC
- Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations (2844), Soap, Detergents, Cleang Preparations, Perfumes, Cosmetics (2840)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Flavors, Fragrances & Aroma Chemicals (IMAEABAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Natural & Clean Fragrance (CRABADAG), Home Fragrance (Candles, Diffusers, Room Sprays) (CRABADAE), Fine Fragrance (Women’s/Men’s/Unisex) (CRABADAA), Niche & Artisan Fragrance (CRABADAH), Air Care & Home Fragrance (Air Fresheners, Candles, Plug-ins, Diffusers) (CRADAKAI), Scented Candles & Wax Melts (Home Fragrance) (CRAJAEAD), Odor Eliminators & Neutralizers (Non-fragrance) (CRAJAEAF), Personal Fragrances (Perfume, Cologne, Body Sprays) (CRADANAD)
Keywords
Where Custom Essence is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Somerset
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Custom Essence business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Custom Fragrance Manufacturing: Custom Essence designs and manufactures custom fragrances for B2B customers including personal care, haircare, home fragrance, household cleaning, and pet care brands. The company creates high-performing, consumer-accepted fragrances using natural ingredients and proprietary technologies.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | B2B custom fragrance orders |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Custom Essence product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Custom Essence designs and manufactures custom fragrances for B2B customers across personal care, hair care, home fragrance and air care, household cleaning, pet care, and industrial and institutional applications. The company operates as a full-service fragrance design house offering boutique-style services with collaborative perfumer-client engagement, leveraging proprietary technologies (MoodScentz+, Z-Biome, Bloomful, Phytogaia, Thalassogaia, ClairScent) and a captive natural materials library, while maintaining a minimum order quantity of $1,000 per fragrance.
Product overview
Custom Essence is a full-service fragrance creation house offering a comprehensive portfolio of custom fragrance solutions across multiple application categories (Fine Fragrance, Natural Fragrance, Personal Care, Hair Care, Home Fragrance, Household, Pet Care, and Industrial/Institutional). The company operates as a boutique fragrance house backed by Givaudan, combining artisanal perfumery expertise with advanced technology platforms including mood-enhancing technologies (MoodScentz™+), microbiome-friendly formulations (Z-Biome™), bloom enhancement (Bloomful™), and botanical/marine-inspired solutions (Phytogaia™, Thalassogaia™). Clients access services through the CE Portal for orders and regulatory documentation, and the Member Portal for marketing insights. The proprietary CE IntelliSCENTS+ consumer insight platform drives data-backed fragrance development. The company maintains minimum order quantities of $1,000 per fragrance and serves entrepreneurial brands through mid-market companies.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- MoodScentz™+: Mood-enhancing fragrance technology designed to support mental health and wellbeing.
- Bloomful™
- Z-Biome™
- Phytogaia™
- Thalassogaia™
- CE IntelliSCENTS+
Products and services
- Custom Fragrance Creation Full-service custom fragrance design across multiple categories including Fine Fragrance, Natural Fragrance, Personal Care, Hair Care, Home Fragrance and Air Care, Household, Pet Care, and Industrial and Institutional applications, sold to B2B brands with a minimum order quantity of $1,000 per fragrance.
- MoodScentz+ Mood-enhancing fragrance technology leveraging neuroscience to create scents designed to positively affect consumers' emotional states and mental wellbeing, sold as part of Custom Essence fragrance formulations.
- Z-Biome Microbiome-friendly fragrance technology that formulates fragrances gentle on the skin's microbiome while maintaining sensorial experience, including My Z-Biome design tool for personal care perfumers and Z-Biome Deo dual-action malodor combat technology.
- Bloomful Fragrance technology designed to deliver enhanced bloom effects, particularly for laundry and personal care applications, featuring unique molecules for long-lasting performance.
- Phytogaia Fragrance technology leveraging plant-based ingredients and botanical expertise for natural and sustainable fragrance solutions.
- Thalassogaia Marine-inspired fragrance technology utilizing oceanic and sea-derived ingredients for unique sensory profiles.
- ClairScent Fragrance technology for malodor neutralization and unique delivery systems.
- CE IntelliSCENTS+ Proprietary consumer insight platform providing data-backed insights to inform fragrance development and personalization strategies for B2B clients.
- CE Customer Portal Online customer portal providing 24/7 access to place orders, access regulatory documentation, invoices, and documents for B2B clients.
Quantifiable outcome
- Produced leading consumer-preferred fragranced products in the USA
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Custom Essence
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Custom Essence technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature9 records
Custom Essence partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Custom Essence competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): Global F&F giant directly competing with Custom Essence in fragrance creation across personal care, home care, and fine fragrance. Much larger scale and broader portfolio, but serves overlapping customer categories.
- Symrise: Major fragrance and flavor house with overlapping capabilities in personal care, home care, and natural fragrance. Competes for the same mid-market and enterprise brand clients as Custom Essence.
- dsm-firmenich: Result of the Firmenich-DSM merger, one of the largest fragrance creators globally. Direct competitor in custom fragrance formulation across personal care and home fragrance, with significant natural fragrance capabilities.
- Givaudan: Parent company of Custom Essence and the world's largest fragrance and flavor house. While Custom Essence operates as a subsidiary, Givaudan's broader fragrance division directly competes at the enterprise level, and Custom Essence's product platforms (MoodScentz+, Z-Biome, etc.) originate from Givaudan's global IP portfolio.
Direct peers
- Mane: Private, family-owned French fragrance house offering custom fragrance creation across personal care, home care, and fine fragrance. Closely comparable business model and boutique-minded customer approach to Custom Essence.
- Robertet: French fragrance and flavor house with strong natural ingredients expertise, very similar to Custom Essence's positioning. Publicly listed family-controlled company with comparable mid-market and selective enterprise focus.
- Takasago International Corporation: Japanese fragrance and flavor manufacturer offering custom fragrance creation similar to Custom Essence. Comparable in scale and product category breadth, though with stronger APAC footprint.
- Iberchem (Croda): Spanish fragrance house acquired by Croda in 2023, specializing in personal care, home care, and air care fragrance creation. Direct mid-market competitor with a similar boutique-style service model to Custom Essence.
- Bell Flavors & Fragrances: Privately held US-based fragrance and flavor house serving personal care, home care, and household products. Closely comparable in size, geography, and customer segment focus to Custom Essence.
- Ungerer & Company: US-based privately held fragrance and flavor manufacturer with similar boutique service model and customer base. Direct competitor for mid-market personal care and home fragrance clients.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Custom Essence financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Custom Essence leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Custom Essence funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Custom Essence M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Custom Essence
What does Custom Essence do?
Custom Essence designs and manufactures custom fragrances for B2B customers across personal care, hair care, home fragrance and air care, household cleaning, pet care, and industrial and institutional applications. The company operates as a full-service fragrance design house offering boutique-style services with collaborative perfumer-client engagement, leveraging proprietary technologies (MoodScentz+, Z-Biome, Bloomful, Phytogaia, Thalassogaia, ClairScent) and a captive natural materials library, while maintaining a minimum order quantity of $1,000 per fragrance.
Is Custom Essence a public or private company?
Custom Essence is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Custom Essence founded?
Custom Essence was founded in 1981. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Custom Essence based?
Custom Essence is headquartered in Somerset, United States, in the North America region.
How does Custom Essence make money?
One revenue line is on record: custom Fragrance Manufacturing.
Who are Custom Essence's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), Symrise, dsm-firmenich and Givaudan. Direct peers are Mane, Robertet, Takasago International Corporation, Iberchem (Croda), Bell Flavors & Fragrances and Ungerer & Company.
Does Custom Essence have an API?
No public API is recorded for Custom Essence.
What industry is Custom Essence in?
Custom Essence's product category is Custom Fragrance Manufacturing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAEABAE, Flavors, Fragrances & Aroma Chemicals, with a secondary code of CRABADAG, Natural & Clean Fragrance. Its SIC code is 2844.