Scent-sational News: OlfactoryNYC Brings Their Custom Fragrance Experience To Walnut Street
With 45+ scents, lab coats, precision scales, and a bottle with your name on it, Rittenhouse’s newest retail opening is coming up roses.
Rittenhouse has no shortage of ways to treat yourself. And now it has one more!
OlfactoryNYC — which opened at 1505 Walnut Street — is offering something the neighborhood hasn’t had before: a custom fragrance experience where you’re not the customer, you’re the perfumer. Design your own scent from 45+ options, name it whatever you want, and walk out with a bottle that’s entirely, unapologetically yours.
Their space has quite the backstory — Puma, then Redwing, then a SEPTA bus literally crashed into it (yes, into it), then an empty stretch before olfactoryNYC transformed it into the sleekest fragrance lab on Walnut Street. We’d call that a glow-up. A scent-sational one, even.
Let’s Make Some Scents
Walking into olfactoryNYC feels like entering a fragrance laboratory (which, tbh, it pretty much is). The brand—which started in New York and has expanded to Boston, Miami, and now Philadelphia—specializes in creating completely custom fragrances that you design, name, and take home in about an hour. It’s the kind of experience that makes you feel like Hermione Granger, if Hermione had ditched potions class for perfumery.
The process breaks down into four steps—Explore, Customize, Choose, and Discover. But! The magic is in those 45+ fragrance options available for blending—everything from “Sandalwood, Musk, and Vanilla,” to “Jasmine, Lily, and Freesia,” to “Citrus and Sparkling White Tea.”
The Lab Experience
What sets olfactoryNYC apart from your standard perfume counter is the hands-on, you’re-actually-doing-science approach to fragrance creation. You’re not just picking from pre-made options—you’re watching your custom scent get mixed right in front of you by lab-coat-wearing fragrance experts like Sasha Kameron (who seriously knew her stuff!) using precise measuring equipment. Breaking Bad vibes, but the end product smells considerably better than meth (we imagine…)
The space features professional fragrance dispensers and precision scales, making the whole thing feel genuinely scientific rather than just shopping for perfume. Each fragrance is mixed to order based on your preferences and the scent profile you develop during your consultation. No two bottles are the same—which is exactly the point.
Instagram Meets Chemistry Class
But let’s talk about that rainbow wall for a second—because WOW. The LED-lit fragrance selection wall creates a stunning spectrum display that’s basically designed for your camera roll, while also serving as the functional heart of the experience. It’s the kind of thing that stops you mid-stride and makes you forget what you were doing. Which, if you booked an appointment, was making perfume.
The consultation area features clean white seating and clear explanations of all the product options—because once you’ve created your signature fragrance, you can get it in perfume, body lotion, hair mist, and body wash form. Oh, AND a diffuser!
Name Your Scent, Make It Yours
Here’s where things get really fun—you get to name your custom fragrance whatever you want. The finished product comes in a sleek bottle with your chosen name prominently displayed on the label. “Champions”? Si. “Main Character Energy”? Also si. “Tuesday Vibes”? Totally your call! You can also choose the color of your fragrance—because apparently we can customize literally everything now, and we’re not complaining one bit (about this, at any rate.)
Welcome to the Neighborhood
The brand’s playful personality shows up in details like their sidewalk sign promising “Love at First Sniff”—which honestly feels like the perfect tagline for a business built entirely around that immediate, you-know-it-when-you-smell-it connection.
olfactoryNYC represents exactly the kind of unique, experiential retail that makes Rittenhouse special. It’s not just shopping—it’s creating something completely personalized in a space that’s both wildly photogenic and genuinely functional. The transformation from that long-empty, bus-crashed storefront to this sleek Philadelphia fragrance lab is one of our favorite Rittenhouse comeback stories. We’re thrilled to welcome them to the neighborhood.
Ready to go? Book your appointment online before heading over (fyi, you can book up to 8 people!), and walk-ins are available, but reserving a spot means your hour of custom fragrance magic is locked in. You deserve that kind of certainty.
