About
Sarah had always been a maker, coming from a household of seamstresses, knitters, artists and musicians. At seven she set up her first business, making bead bracelets for her friends. She came to perfumery by an unusual route: events organiser at the Guardian and Observer newspapers, a master’s degree in corporate strategy, marketing lecturer at UWL and London Metropolitan University, and business writer. From 1996 to 2010 she was head writer at Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics.
In 2010 she wrote a novella about a problem-solving perfumer, and set about creating the scents she had described in the book. Friends and family were far more interested in the fragrances than the novel, so Sarah started to make bigger batches. In 2012 she was discovered by perfume curator Lizzie Ostrom and instructed by Josephine Fairley, entrepreneur, journalist and co-founder of the Perfumer Society, to drop everything and take up perfumery immediately.
She enjoys sharing the secrets of perfume-making with everyone who would like to try it, and runs regular live and online workshops, concentrating on sustainable methods and materials.
Sarah’s perfumery won the EauMG independent fragrance house of the year in 2014, and fragrance of the year in 2015. Her fragrances were finalists in the Fragrance Foundation awards 2015 and 2016, and in 2017 ÇaFleurBon awarded her Independent House of the Year. In 2019, Atlante, her fragrance for The House of Sarah Baker, was a finalist in the Art & Olfaction Awards.
She chooses to keep the company small, and to hand-make her fragrances in small batches of 50 to 200 bottles. She also creates bespoke fragrances for arts events, companies and individuals, including the scents of Manet’s Bar at the Folies Bergere for The Courtauld, a Cheddar Gorge car fragrance for Dacia and a Shakespeare inspired anniversary perfume for Michelle and Gyles Brandreth.
She is co-author of The Perfume Companion (Frances Lincoln 2021), a friendly guide to choosing a fragrance, and is currently writing her perfume-making instruction book for aspiring artisan perfumers.
