Scent With Purpose: Why I Created anatomē’s Functional Parfums

By Brendan Murdock, Founder of anatomē

The Idea: Scent That Does More Than Smell Good

From the beginning, anatomē has been driven by one question: how can we support the human experience through better rituals? Scent was always central to that. But I didn’t want to create perfumes in the traditional sense — beautiful but passive. I wanted to make something active. Fragrance that helps you feel focused, grounded, calm, or clear.

That’s how our Functional Parfums collection was born. Each fragrance is crafted not only to evoke emotion, but to support specific emotional and cognitive states. Calm. Momentum. Resilience. These are more than moods — they’re ways of moving through the world with intention.

Rooted in Science, Refined Through Experience

This collection isn’t just inspired by nature or nostalgia — it’s guided by science. Every scent formulation is rooted in aromachology, the study of how scent affects the brain and body. We worked with neuroscientists, olfactory experts, and our own vibrant community — people who lead, create, build, and perform — to understand their real-world challenges and design scents that respond.

Each essential oil and botanical extract in our parfums was selected for its proven effect on the nervous system. Whether it’s a resin that lowers cortisol or a marine note that promotes deeper breathing, every ingredient serves a purpose.

Crafting a Collection With Emotion at Its Core

Fragrance is powerful because it works both chemically and emotionally. It bypasses logic, speaks directly to memory, and lands in the limbic system — the brain’s emotional control centre. That’s what gives scent its ability to instantly shift mood, focus, even how we breathe.

In designing this range, I wanted each parfum to evoke both a place and a feeling — guiding you to spaces where the desired state already thrives. The clarity of the ocean, the focus of a library, the steadiness of ancient woodlands. These scents are built to conjure those worlds in an instant.

Expression: The Scent of Calm, Breath by Breath

Let me tell you about one of the first parfums we formulated: Expression. It was born from my deep belief in the healing quality of sea air — something I’ve felt personally, every time I step off a train by the coast and inhale.

Expression is our answer to urban stress. It’s a scent designed to slow the breath, clear the head, and reset the nervous system, much like a walk by crashing waves. Inspired by the science of negative ions released by moving water — molecules shown to ease stress and support respiration — this fragrance blends sea salt, moss, oakwood, and camphor to mimic that sensation.

It’s a sensory exhale in a bottle. No train to Brighton required.

Ingredients With Impact: Why Each Note Matters

Every note in the Expression formulation is there for a reason:

• Sea Salt + Sea Moss: Promote conscious, diaphragmatic breathing

• Cypress + Camphor: Aid respiratory clarity and mental release

• Oakmoss + Hinoki: Ground emotional experience and support presence

These ingredients don’t just smell good — they do good. That’s what functional fragrance means.

Invitation to Breathe Differently

Historically, we’ve always turned to the sea to restore body and spirit. From Victorian seaside retreats to ancient Greek praise of sea breezes, the idea that nature heals is timeless. I wanted Expression — and the entire Functional Parfums range — to channel that wisdom into modern life.

We’re launching the collection with a series of immersive workshops at Maslow’s Members House in Soho. These experiences will explore the intersection of scent, movement, and mindset — a chance to breathe, reset, and reconnect.

Why I Created This Scent

Creating this collection has been one of the most personal and rewarding chapters of my work at anatomē. It’s where science meets soul. Where design meets therapy. I hope these parfums become companions — not just in how you smell, but in how you feel, move, lead, and live.

Because scent shouldn’t just be background. It should be a tool. A moment. A map to your best self.

We’re marking the launch with exclusive summer events at Maslow’s Members House in Soho.

Join us for immersive workshops that explore the connection between scent, movement, and state of mind.

Book your slot now.