Written by: Tessa Chng Gin Tong
Before even stepping into the shop, customers are greeted with a pleasant aroma. The sweet, earthy smell tinged with a hint of burning incense, creates a complex fragrance that fills the noses of people passing by 21 Bussorah Street, drawing them into an elegant perfume shop. Located in the heart of Kampong Glam, a blue and white shophouse occupies a spot along the bustling Bussorah street. The columns of the shophouse are embellished with gold markings, giving the shop an air of sophistication. This is just one of the three Jamal Kazura Aromatics branches in Kampong Glam.
Founded in 1933 by Mr Hanifah Kazura, this family business is one of the oldest in Kampong Glam. It was first started when Mr Hanifah, who originally had dealings with essential oils, came to Singapore and saw that there was a good scope for non-alcoholic perfumes because Muslims do not use alcoholic perfumes. In 1979, Mr Hanifah’s son, Mr Jamal Kazura took over the business and rebranded it as Jamal Kazura Aromatics.
Growing up in a family of perfumers, Mr Jamal’s interest in perfume was born at an early age. When he was a student, he started helping out in his father’s shop, learning the trade and becoming a ‘test subject’ for his father.
“When I go to class, my teacher would say, “Look, the perfume boy come already”,” says Mr Jamal, laughing. “Some days I would smell like peppermint, sometimes eucalyptus, sometimes rose.”
Mr Jamal’s passion for creating new perfume continued growing as he became curious about the different scents in his surroundings.
“Everyone loves pleasant smells. When I go out and smell something nice, I will wonder how to make it. When l go back home, I will try to create a similar scent,” says Mr Jamal.
According to Mr Jamal, the hardest part of being a perfumer is training the nose to identify the different types of smells. Smelling too many scents may affect the ability to pick up on slight changes in scent.
One thing that makes Jamal Kazura Aromatics stand out from other perfume shops are the rows of colourful, delicate perfume bottles that line the shelves. When light shines through, it illuminates the bottles, casting a soft glow in the shop. This creates an enchanting sight that is easy on the eyes, attracting many people to the store. These bottles are handmade in countries such as Egypt and Turkey.
However, the shop did not always look like that. Back then, ordinary perfume bottles were used, and it was only because of modernization that these exquisite bottles were introduced.
“Back then, there were not many difficulties as there was no competition. Not many had the knowledge of mixing perfumes and creating scents like my father,” says Mr Jamal when asked about the challenges faced along the way.
Now, the road is not so smooth sailing. Over time, packaging became very important as many began to value presentability. Mr Jamal had to come up with ways to stay relevant and keep up with the changing times, both in the packaging and scents.
“Nowadays, we are trying to tune our nose to what the youngsters go for. Like food… Last time we eat Kway Teow on the roadside but now people eat burgers. Similar to scents, we have to follow the tune of the youngsters to stay relevant,” says Mr Jamal.
Another recent challenge was the Covid-19 pandemic, which heavily affected business. With Kampong Glam being a hotspot for tourists, Jamal Kazura Aromatics’ largest customer base is also tourists, most originating from Taiwan and Japan. Thankfully, this heritage shop has managed to weather the storm through support from loyal local customers and government subsidies.
Despite new challenges, Mr Jamal is not afraid of the future of the business. His son, Mr Samir Kazura is also taking over the business and helping him keep up with the trends. There are now more modern scents such as green tea. Mr Jamal is confident that the business will continue to thrive because they have many regular customers who love their scents and always return to support the business. The atmosphere is always lively as the business maintains a friendly relationship with its customers.
Luckily for Mr Jamal, his grandson, Muhammad Zahir Ali, 16, has also expressed an interest in taking over the business in the future after his studies.
“I often follow my grandfather to the shop, and he would teach me the different formulas and let me experiment with mixing the perfumes…I began to enjoy exploring the different kinds of scents,” says Zahir.
Besides Mr Jamal, his siblings and children are also in this homegrown perfume trade. Many have started their independent businesses to expand into new generations of scents. For example, his son, Johari Kazura, founded Sifr Aromatics which is also located in Kampong Glam.
With continued successors, the future of this heritage family business seems bright. Hopefully, the passion will continue to linger like a timeless scent, passed down through generations, in order to continue the legacy of this age-old craft.
