Mackenzie Reilly: New York's Natural Perfumer

Mackenzie Reilly was born and raised in New York, the daughter of a renowned filmmaker father and a mother who worked in advertising. At age 16, the niche fragrance Dzing! by L'Artisan Parfumeur awakened her passion for perfumery with its evocative circus-inspired composition. During her studies at Trinity College, she explored the anthropology of scent and how it shaped cultures, religions, and language development.

After working at the luxury publishing house Assouline, Reilly joined International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF) in 2010. In 2013 she was admitted to IFF's prestigious Perfumery School, training in New York, Singapore, and the Netherlands. She was mentored by legendary Master Perfumer Carlos Benaim and later by VP Perfumer Jean-Marc Chaillan, developing a minimalistic style rooted in the use of high-quality natural materials from IFF's Laboratoire Monique Remy (LMR).

Reilly has built a versatile portfolio spanning prestige and niche brands including Masque Milano, A Lab on Fire, Maison d'Etto, and Caswell Massey. For Zoologist Perfumes, she created Orchid Mantis, a lush floral composition inspired by the deceptive beauty of the tropical mantis, as well as Lovebird Special Edition, a warm and affectionate scent celebrating the intimate bond of these colorful parrots.

As a strong advocate for natural ingredients and a woman who has carved her path in the historically male- and French-dominated field of perfumery, Reilly continues to push boundaries. Her creations are distinguished by a storytelling approach that draws on green accords, florals and carefully balanced musk notes, always guided by her belief that scent is the most powerful trigger of memory and emotion.