scent as a promise

“Fragrance is intimate. It is a way of connecting with our inner world.”

This belief lies at the heart of Avau, a young Italian niche fragrance brand recently introduced to Georgia by Aromateque. And rather than opting for a conventional launch, Aromateque brought the brand's philosophy to life in a setting that felt remarkably personal: a kitchen, where the people closest to us naturally come together.

Avau's message is simple: I'm welcoming you into my home, into my own kitchen. That sense of openness, warmth, and sincerity was present throughout the event, particularly in the way the founders themselves connected with their guests.

Today, we'll explore what makes this emerging fragrance brand stand out, how it transforms a family history into a distinctive brand identity, and why that story matters when introducing a new brand to consumers. From a tray filled with perfumes to a pie baked using a grandmother's recipe, every detail had a story to tell.

the story behind avau

Avau was founded by three siblings: Carolina, Caterina, and Leonardo Catalan. Their connection to the fragrance industry goes back generations. In the 1980s, their grandparents owned a perfume shop in the Vatican, and in 1998, their parents established a distribution company specializing in niche fragrances and cosmetics. Growing up, perfume was simply part of everyday life.

The third generation decided to channel this shared experience into a brand of their own, launching Avau in 2025. Each sibling took on a role aligned with their strengths and interests: Leonardo leads the creative direction and visual identity, Carolina oversees business and strategy, and Caterina creates the fragrances.

Even the name reflects the philosophy behind the brand. Avau is phonetically linked to the English phrase a vow - a promise. More specifically, a promise to yourself: to trust your senses and choose the emotion you want to carry with you throughout the day.

This idea shapes Avau's approach to fragrance. Rather than prescribing how someone should feel or who they should be, the brand leaves room for personal interpretation. Fragrance becomes a form of self-expression, something each person experiences and makes their own. Importantly, this philosophy extends beyond the perfumes themselves. It informs the brand's retail spaces, events, and overall experience. And in Tbilisi, that philosophy came to life in a particularly thoughtful way.

when the event concept becomes the brand concept

There is a familiar formula for launching a new brand: invite a group of guests, introduce the product, add music, drinks, and a few speeches. It works, but it doesn't necessarily leave people with a deeper understanding of what the brand represents. Aromateque chose a different approach. Instead of simply presenting Avau, the team designed an experience around its identity. Every element of the evening reflected the brand's philosophy, allowing guests to engage with its story rather than just hear about it. The choice of venue was the first indication of this approach.


The venue: FARM Tbilisi, with its open kitchen, provided a natural setting for Avau's family-centered narrative. For the brand, the kitchen is much more than a functional space. It's where people gather, cook, talk, share stories, and welcome one another. This idea is so central to Avau that a kitchen also serves as the heart of its Milan boutique.

One of the most meaningful details was a tray displaying the fragrances. It was inspired by a childhood memory shared by the founders. At the entrance to their family home stood what they called a "magic tray," filled with perfumes. Before the children left the house, their mother would ask whether they had chosen their scent for the day.

At the Tbilisi event, guests were invited to recreate that ritual. We selected our fragrances from a tray featuring six different scents, each with its own mood, personality, and emotional character. It was a small interaction, but an effective one. A family memory became a product discovery experience, giving guests a personal connection to the brand's story.

Another unexpected element was a collection of footballs connected to a recent exhibition in which Avau participated, Home of Football: Home & Away. The exhibition explored football as a language of shared memories, identity, and human connection - themes that Avau approaches through scent. While football and perfumery might initially seem unrelated, the connection becomes clearer through the idea of belonging. Both can evoke memories, create emotional associations, and connect people through shared experiences.




The evening ended on another personal note, with a pie baked according to the founders' grandmother's recipe. As they described it, a little piece of Italy. Aperol Spritz added another distinctly Italian touch to the experience. Individually, these details might seem small. Together, they created a coherent narrative in which the setting, objects, food, and fragrances all reinforced the same message. What I had previously only read about Avau became something I could experience firsthand.

And that is where the strategic value of the event lies: it translated an abstract brand philosophy into tangible, memorable moments.

a new brand in a crowded fragrance market

The fragrance industry is dominated by established global names, and the niche segment has become increasingly competitive. For a young brand, standing out is not simply a matter of creating an appealing perfume. It also requires giving consumers a compelling reason to notice, remember, and ultimately choose it.

Aromateque discovered Avau at a European fragrance exhibition, where its concept and family story caught the team's attention. But discovering an interesting brand is only the first step. The more important question is how to introduce it to a new market in a way that communicates what makes it different. Aromateque's answer was to begin with the brand's character rather than its products alone. 

The launch was designed so that guests could see, feel, and participate in the story. Instead of relying on conventional product descriptions, the event created emotional reference points: a family kitchen, a childhood ritual, shared memories, and a grandmother's recipe. From a marketing perspective, this matters for several reasons. First, it gives the brand a recognizable identity. In a category where products often compete through similar language around exclusivity, craftsmanship, and individuality, a specific and authentic story offers a more distinctive starting point. Second, it helps make an unfamiliar brand feel approachable. Niche perfumery can sometimes appear distant or intimidating, especially to consumers encountering it for the first time.


By inviting guests into an intimate, almost domestic setting, Avau reduced that distance. Most importantly, the experience was consistent with the brand's positioning. When a brand speaks about family, emotion, intimacy, and personal connection, its first interaction with consumers should communicate those same values. Otherwise, the story risks remaining just a story.

Aromateque understood this distinction. Rather than treating the event as a separate marketing activity, it used the launch as an extension of Avau's identity. That consistency is particularly valuable for concept-driven brands, where the experience surrounding the product can be just as important in shaping perception as the product itself.

beyond the first impression

My first encounter with Avau connected the brand to specific people, stories, and memories. And that is perhaps the strongest outcome a launch event can achieve: making a previously unfamiliar name feel meaningful. The next challenge is to translate that experience into a broader and more sustainable connection with Georgian consumers.

Digital communication will play an important role, particularly through storytelling, photography, and video. These formats can introduce the founders, their family history, and the philosophy behind each fragrance to people who weren't present at the launch. At the same time, the in-store experience will need to maintain the same emotional continuity. If Avau is introduced through warmth, openness, and personal discovery, those qualities should also be present when customers encounter the brand on a retail shelf or explore its fragrances in person.

Ultimately, a successful launch is not just about creating a memorable evening. It's about establishing a clear expectation of what a brand stands for, then consistently delivering on it across every touchpoint. For Avau, that expectation is embedded in its name: a promise. And the most interesting part of the brand's journey in Georgia will be seeing how that promise continues beyond the first meeting.

P.S. I've already found my scent in Avau's collection. Now it's your turn.