Diptyque

The order of fragrance and candle ran differently than usual here: at Diptyque there was first the candle and then the perfume. When in 1961 the artistically active friends Christiane Gautrot, Desmond Knox-Leet and Yves Coueslant founded their store Diptyque at the noble address Boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris, they sold handicraft decoration products and their own designs, including candles with specially developed fragrances. These were a real hit, and customers increasingly asked for perfumes, so in 1968 the three decided to run a perfumery and launch their own fragrances under the Diptyque brand. The name Diptyque (French for two-part) comes from the fact that the store's windows were large diptychs, or windows divided lengthwise into two parts. The fragrances became as successful as the scented candles. However, the clientele remained limited, as the Diptyque brand always very consciously maintained the format of the small store of friends. This changed when Diptyque was bought by an English equity fund in 2005, and the products have since been traded and marketed somewhat more widely, making them available outside of France.