Ineke

Artisanal Niche Fragrancesineke.com

Ineke is a founder-owned niche perfumery house in San Francisco that created original eau de parfum fragrances built around classical ISIPCA-trained perfumery craft, sold direct-to-consumer and through select stockists before winding down after roughly 20 years.

Company typePrivate
Founded1996
HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2C
OfferingHardware or Manufacturing

What Ineke does

Ineke (Ineke LLC) is an independent, founder-owned niche perfumery house established in San Francisco by classically-trained perfumer Ineke Rühland. The company sold original eau de parfum fragrances organized into a signature Alphabetical Collection of six hero scents (After My Own Heart, Balmy Days & Sundays, Derring-Do, Field Notes from Paris, Idyllwild, and Jaipur Chai), priced at $145 per 75ml bottle, alongside $5 individual 1.5ml samples, ten-pack sample bundles, and a $30 Deluxe Discovery Collection with a $15 coupon toward future purchase. A separate Floral Curiosities collection of five florals was produced exclusively for Anthropologie but is no longer in production.

The company's underlying technology is classical perfumery craft rather than software or automation: Rühland trained at ISIPCA in Versailles (the only university-level perfumery school in the world), completed a three-year apprenticeship at a Paris fragrance house, and studied traditional techniques in Grasse. Distribution was direct-to-consumer through ineke.com plus two stockist relationships, most notably Ministry of Scent, a multi-brand niche fragrance retailer co-founded by Rühland and Antonia Kohl in 2018 with two San Francisco stores and an online storefront.

After approximately 20 years of operation, Ineke wound down the Ineke Perfumes brand to focus full-time on Ministry of Scent, which the source material describes as "growing by leaps and bounds." The ineke.com website now functions as a transition page directing customers to alternative fragrances at Ministry of Scent, with no disclosed revenue, no institutional funding, and a headcount of 1-10 concentrated on the founder.

Ineke firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Ineke
Legal name: Ineke LLC
Website: https://ineke.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1996
Operating status: Closed
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Short description: Ineke is a founder-owned niche perfumery house in San Francisco that created original eau de parfum fragrances built around classical ISIPCA-trained perfumery craft, sold direct-to-consumer and through select stockists before winding down after roughly 20 years.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Ineke industry classification

Industry

Product category: Artisanal Niche Fragrances
NAICS: Cosmetics, Beauty Supplies, and Perfume Retailers (456120)
SIC: Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations (2844)
akta.pro primary industry: Niche & Artisan Fragrance (CRABADAH)
akta.pro secondary industries: Fine Fragrance (Women’s/Men’s/Unisex) (CRABADAA), Fragrance Gift Sets & Discovery Kits (CRABADAI)

Keywords

Niche perfume
Artisanal fragrances
Eau de parfum
Custom perfumery
Discovery sets

Where Ineke is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: San Francisco
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

Ineke business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Hardware or Manufacturing
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

Direct Fragrance Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of perfumes through e-commerce website and retail stores. Products include full-sized Eau de Parfum bottles, individual 1.5ml samples, sample bundles of 10 units, and discovery collections.
Gift Cards: Sale of gift cards for the perfume brand.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Full-sized fragrances - After My Own Heart
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Individual fragrance samples
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Deluxe Discovery Collection
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Sample bundles - Ten Pack

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Ineke product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Ineke creates and sells original, artistically composed eau de parfum fragrances under its Alphabetical Collection (six signature scents) plus samples, a discovery set, and gift cards. The fragrances are hand-developed by classically-trained perfumer Ineke Rühland from her independent studio in San Francisco and sold direct-to-consumer online, with selected stockists also carrying the line.

Product overview

Ineke Perfumes is a niche fragrance house offering a signature Alphabetical Collection of six original eau de parfum fragrances for men and women: After My Own Heart (lilac), Balmy Days & Sundays (green floral), Derring-Do (fresh fougère), Field Notes from Paris (woody amber), Idyllwild (aromatic fougère), and Jaipur Chai (gourmand). The products are sold primarily as full-sized 75ml bottles (priced at $145) and individual 1.5ml samples ($5 each). A Deluxe Discovery Collection (Volume 7) priced at $30 offers samples of all six fragrances with a coupon for future purchase. The company previously created a Floral Curiosities collection for Anthropologie featuring five additional floral scents, and offered sample bundles of ten units. Ineke also co-founded Ministry of Scent, a separate retail venture selling niche and indie fragrance brands through two San Francisco stores and an online platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

After My Own Heart A romantic lilac soliflore eau de parfum for men and women, featuring lilac blossom, sandalwood, heliotrope, and sweet spices; priced at $145 for full size.
Balmy Days & Sundays A green floral eau de parfum evoking perfect Sunday moments in grass, with foliage, grass, yellow freesia, honeysuckle, rose, and a chypre accent.
Derring-Do A darkly romantic men's fresh fougère eau de parfum evoking spring rain, with classic fougère notes, magnolia, cardamom, pepper, guaiacwood, cedarwood, and musk.
Field Notes from Paris A woody amber eau de parfum capturing Parisian café nostalgia, with tobacco flower and leaf, coriander seed, patchouli, tonka bean, leather, beeswax, and vanilla.
Idyllwild An aromatic fougère eau de parfum tribute to California's natural wonders, featuring Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine, Big Sur sagebrush, Monterey cypress oil, rhubarb tea, cypriol, and oud.
Jaipur Chai A gourmand eau de parfum inspired by chai lattes, with cinnamon, clove, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, pepper, steamed milk, honey, cedarwood, and soft suede in a 2.5 fl. oz. / 75 ml size.
Deluxe Discovery Collection Volume 7 A curated discovery set of six 1.5ml spray samples (After My Own Heart, Balmy Days & Sundays, Derring-Do, Field Notes from Paris, Idyllwild, Jaipur Chai) in decorative matchbox-style vials with a brochure, priced at $30 and including a $15 coupon valid for two months.
Individual Fragrance Samples Individual 1.5ml (0.05 fl. oz.) spray samples of each fragrance priced at $5 each, with ten-pack sample bundles available per fragrance.
Gift Cards Gift cards for the Ineke Perfumes brand, allowing recipients to select their own fragrance from the collection.

Companies that use Ineke

Customer profile

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Ineke technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Ineke partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

Ministry of ScentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founded by Ineke Rühland with Antonia Kohl in 2018. Sells niche and indie fragrance brands from around the world through two San Francisco stores and online at ministryofscent.com. Ineke has wound down her own brand to focus on Ministry of Scent, which has been 'growing by leaps and bounds.' Ministry of Scent serves as a primary stockist for Ineke Perfumes and recommends alternatives from their curated selection.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Ineke competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Byredo: Swedish niche fragrance brand built on original compositions with strong narrative and minimal aesthetic; mirrors Ineke's combination of classical perfumery craft, literary/artistic storytelling, and premium pricing.
Kerosene Fragrances: One-perfumer indie niche house known for original, often gourmand/woody compositions; comparable founder-led scale, classic training ethos, and DTC-plus-stockist distribution.
Hiram Green: Independent classically-trained perfumer producing small-batch natural niche fragrances in the Netherlands — a near-twin of Ineke's classically-trained, small-batch, story-led artisanal model.
Le Labo: Independent-origin niche fragrance house (now owned by Estée Lauder) known for hand-blended artisanal perfumes with strong storytelling; directly comparable to Ineke's classically-trained, story-driven positioning and premium niche DTC model.
Imaginary Authors: Indie niche fragrance house whose entire line is built around narrative 'stories' per scent — the same story-driven model Ineke employs with perfumes like Idyllwild and Field Notes from Paris.
Régime des Fleurs: Independent niche fragrance brand with poetically named florals (e.g., Tears, Little Flower) recommended on Ineke's own website as alternatives — directly comparable indie scale, aesthetic, and target consumer.
D.S. & Durga: Independent NYC-based niche perfumery house crafting original compositions with literary and place-based concepts; directly comparable indie house with similar scale, founder-driven ethos, and DTC-plus-stockist distribution.

Broad incumbents

Diptyque: Established Parisian fragrance and home-scent house operating at much larger scale, but sharing Ineke's narrative-driven positioning, premium pricing, and curated boutique/online distribution.
Maison Margiela 'Replica': Niche-leaning accessible fragrance line whose 'Replica' collection uses evocative place-and-moment storytelling (e.g., Beach Walk, Jazz Club) — the same narrative device Ineke uses with fragrances like Field Notes from Paris.
Aesop: Premium independent-original personal-care brand built on literary/artisanal positioning, signature retail store experience, and a niche-leaning premium aesthetic — same DNA of an independent founder brand scaling via curated retail, and now within L'Oréal.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Ineke financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Ineke leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Ineke funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Ineke M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ineke

What does Ineke do?

Is Ineke a public or private company?

Ineke is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently closed.

When was Ineke founded?

Ineke was founded in 1996. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is Ineke based?

Ineke is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.

How does Ineke make money?

Two revenue lines are on record. Direct Fragrance Sales are the primary driver. The others are gift Cards.

Who are Ineke's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Byredo, Kerosene Fragrances, Hiram Green, Le Labo, Imaginary Authors, Régime des Fleurs and D.S. & Durga. Broad incumbents are Diptyque, Maison Margiela 'Replica' and Aesop.

Does Ineke have an API?

No public API is recorded for Ineke.

What industry is Ineke in?

Ineke's product category is Artisanal Niche Fragrances. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRABADAH, Niche & Artisan Fragrance, with a secondary code of CRABADAA, Fine Fragrance (Women’s/Men’s/Unisex). Its NAICS code is 456120 and its SIC code is 2844.