Wizdem Extrait de Parfum 100ML

Before it was Wizdem, it was Kanata.

I wanted to put something of Canada into a fragrance—the smells, even the tastes, from coast to coast. Canada is my home. I love it. There’s a beauty and peacefulness here that, when I slow down enough to notice it, brings me back to myself.

The first mod? To my nose, it smelled like Pledge. The cleaner my mother used around the house. That certainly wasn’t what I had in mind.

We went through six or seven mods and revisions. In between came the conversations—with our perfumers, our noses, friends, and family. Everyone tested. Everyone spoke their mind. Sometimes we vehemently disagreed.

I’m not a perfumer. I surround myself with expert perfumers. I don’t have the best nose, either, so I listen closely to people who can smell things I miss. Their opinions carry weight with me, even when we disagree.

We tested the scent itself and spent time evaluating longevity, projection, and sillage. Then we revised and tested again, until we landed on the fragrance I was crazy about and I was satisfied it measured up to our claims.

The name took some work, too. Kanata was the first one that stuck. We had the labels, the colours, the whole look ready to go. I liked it. But that little voice kept saying, it’s not the name.

So I went for a walk in a park near my home.

As my mind started to clear, Wizdem came into my head. I knew that was it. The name belonged to the feeling that had started this whole thing: being in nature, feeling more present, and finding a little more of yourself. An inner wisdom of sorts.

Everyone had a voice in getting us there. Ultimately, the decision to release it was mine. Right or wrong, success or flop, I own that.

— Vach Cittoni