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There’s never a dull moment in the life of Chriselle Lim! The fashionable star is simultaneously a content creator, creative director of fragrance brand Phlur, and devoted mom of two. So, how does she do it? We called up Lim to find out more—and hear all about Phlur’s latest scent launches, brand building, multitasking, and why she’s remained open and vulnerable online for almost two decades.
How did you become involved with Phlur? A lot of people think you started the brand, but that’s not the whole story…
Phlur was actually an existing brand before I came on. It’s been around for a little over 10 years. I’ve known of the brand because they were one of the pioneers in the fragrance category to be completely transparent with their ingredients, back when you had no idea what was really going into your fragrance. They created this niche audience and customer base that I really respect, because these are customers that really care about ingredients and sustainability. Unfortunately, the business didn’t do as well back then. About four years ago, I got the opportunity with my business partner to acquire the company, relaunch it, and give it new life. We took about a year to really study the brand and figure out how we wanted to relaunch it to the world. During that time, I was personally going through my own transition and transformation, which was my divorce. It was a really heartbreaking time, and it was a hard moment for me, but inspired our very first fragrance called Missing Person.
Chriselle Lim (Karla Ticas/Courtesy of Chriselle Lim)
We remember the waitlist for that scent going viral!
Missing Person was really a story of loneliness, missing feeling loved, missing a moment in time, and missing a person. I really wanted to bottle something up that would bring me a lot of warmth and comfort during a hard season in my life. It captured the world—it not only sold out, but had a 250,000 person waitlist. Bear in mind, this was a scent that no one had ever smelled before! We were not at a Sephora. We were not any retailers, so it’s not like someone could go out there, smell it, and test it if they wanted to try it out. They just had to buy it. We flipped the fragrance industry upside down [from] how a traditional customer would experience a fragrance. I feel so lucky and blessed to call this my job, and wake up every day to create scents that have so much depth.
That’s fascinating.
There were a lot of question marks around, “Why is it called Missing Person? That’s such a strange thing.” It was really a reflection of where I was at in my life. During that time it was shortly after COVID, when people were starting to come out of their houses and go back into the world. A lot of people missed that. A lot of people had a missing moment in their life, and felt lonely during that time. In that sense, it really sparked a lot of emotional interest, because I think we’ve all been there—whether it’s a divorce, breakup, or just having to sit with yourself at home and have a deeper conversation with yourself. It was a reflection of society and what people were really feeling at the moment.
Chriselle Lim (Courtesy of Phlur)
You’re one of the OG fashion bloggers! How do you feel your background in social media and fashion helped with your revamp of Phlur, and have influenced its look today?
I’ve been a creator since the word “creator” existed. It’s been almost 20 years now with my blog, The Chriselle Factor, and being one of the first five OG fashion bloggers. I’ve definitely seen this evolution of digital media, going from blog to YouTube to Instagram to Tiktok. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the last 20 years of continuing to build my career, it’s that you have to evolve. I think it has really helped and served me as a founder and also the creative director of Phlur, because at the end of the day, I really understand how to story tell. Storytelling is such a big part of who I am, and through that I’ve been able to really showcase Phlur in a different way than what I guess a traditional fragrance house would traditionally do. It was really bottling up relatable stories, human experiences, and journeys that I’ve personally gone through. The emotional element really ties all of us together, whether it’s the feeling of joy, hope, loss, whatever that is. Since I created content, since I was in college, that’s all I’ve been doing. Yes, fashion and beauty has been the byproduct. But at the end of the day, my followers that have been following me for almost 20 years follow me because they’ve seen me evolve as a person. They’ve seen these different stories, elements, and the person that I’m becoming, or the person I have become. I think that has led me very well as a creative director. On the business side, I really understand the recipe of what works as a creator; we work with a lot of creators as well. I know the importance of working with the creators, so I’m in the weeds with everything from the marketing element of how things should be presented visually to the brief if we’re working with different influencers. It’s really served me well, understanding both the creator side and the brand side.
Chriselle Lim
Phlur’s launched lots of new fragrances and body mists so far this year! What’s happening at the brand for the holiday season?
It’s our last hair and body mist for the year, which I personally think is the best hair body mist we’ve launched. It’s called Cashmere Skin. If Heavy Cream—one of our most popular body mists—and Missing Person had a baby, it would be Cashmere Skin. It is so perfect going into the cozy season. It literally smells like you’re snuggled up in the softest blanket. It’s very soft, elevated, and sensual. It smells like you’re enveloped, naked skin with the softest knit. I personally have been wearing it every day. I think it’s a great way to end the year with this body mist; she’s perfect for the cozy season. It’s almond-toned skin musk, so it’s milky and warm, but a sweet gourmand with just a hint of vanilla. It’s not overly sweet. It has a little bit more of that musk that you get from Missing Person.
It sounds delicious.
We have one more EDP launching in December, but I can’t really share what it is! It’s very sparkly, and perfect for the new year.
Chriselle Lim (Courtesy of Phlur)
What are some of the most popular scents or mists in Phlur’s portfolio? You have such a wide range!
Our three icons are Missing Person. Obviously, that’s our first baby, and she’s still the number one. It’s hard to beat Missing Person, and I think it’s because it’s such a beautiful skin musk. People use it alone, as a base layer, and continue to reorder it because it’s like that white tee in your closet—you cannot live without your white tee! Number two would be Vanilla Skin, which we actually launched as a hair and body mist, but it became so popular and known that everyone was asking for it as a fragrance. Out third one is Father Figure, which is my personal go-to. Father Figure was really inspired by me having to play both mother and father figure roles as I was [a] single mom for a while, and really drew the strength of a father, but also the tenderness and care of a mother. It’s the perfect balanced, unisex, fluid, empowering scent.
Phlur also regularly does archive sales! Are there any scents your fans have been asking you to bring back, or are the most requested?
We really listen to our community. It’s a trend word, but we truly listen to what our consumer wants. We do lots of different drops, and we’re like a fashion brand in that sense. But we also do limited drops, and those limited drops are ones that we think are great for the moment. But sometimes we’re wrong! For example, Strawberry Letter was one of the scents that we’re like, “Okay, strawberry is having a moment, and we actually have been working on the strawberry scent for a very long time.” We were supposed to launch that two years ago, but we couldn’t get the juice right. We finally got it right, and it happened that strawberry was trending at the moment, and so we brought it out as a limited drop—as in, we only made so many quantities, and then it was over once it sold out. But we brought it back to our staple collection because people were so sad it left. Another one that we were going to just keep as a drop is Somebody Wood, which is our more woody scent from two years ago. It did very, very well, so we have had it in our collection since. We drop and see what our consumer says, and we let them dictate that.
Chriselle Lim (Courtesy of Phlur)
That’s very involved! Are you on Instagram or socials all the time reading comments or feedback?
Yeah! We’re very on the pulse, social and digital. Our team is incredible, so we’re reading everything from the reviews, whether it be Sephora or on our website, or people emailing and DM’ing. We will constantly track and see what is trending or not trending at the moment, and we will pin those things that people are requesting over and over. That is one of the reasons why Phlur has grown to the size that it has grown, because although we are the ones that dictate what we think is going to do well, it’s a collaboration with our communities. We let them feel they’re heard, and try to deliver as much as we can from what they want to see within the Phlur family.
We imagine you’re always mixing scents and trying new ones out! Do you wear-test fragrances before they come out, or do people stop you to ask what you’re wearing?
Yeah, all the time. It is really important for me to test and wear. Half the time when I’m at the office, we’re testing new SKUs, categories, scents, and launches. We’re testing all day long. One of my favorite things is to spray things that haven’t necessarily been out yet, and see how people react to it. It’s always really fun. You can always tell when you’re going to the grocery store and the cashier asks you what you’re wearing! I do like to do that quite often, just to see people’s reactions.
You also balance Phlur with content creation and parenting your two daughters. How do you find balance while juggling multiple roles, especially as a working mother?
It’s not easy. I have to make some sacrifices, just as anyone else does. I have two daughters; one is 10, and the other is seven. What I always tell the girls is that,“When Mom is out working, when mommy is out doing things? I hope that I’m setting an example for them to follow what they’re passionate about, what they love to do, and they can dream big, and nothing can stop them. I think they’re starting to understand that, because my oldest really loves Sephora now. We go and visit, and she sees [Phlur], and she’s like, “I can’t believe this is here.” She’s just super proud, so I’m trying to teach the girls that you should be proud of your work. You should feel proud to create something that you love and you could put out in the world—but it doesn’t mean that it just happens overnight. It really takes time, and there are moments where I miss things on the personal side. I co-parent, so we’re tasking each other with these moments. But I can’t be there all the time, and the girls know that. For me, it’s really important that I’m leading by example for them. I’m thankful for the moments I have with them. When I’m at home, I try to do everything I can with them; yesterday, I was up until 10pm doing homework with them, and just being as involved as possible, but also showing them that you can do both. You can be a great mother and you could still follow your dreams, and one doesn’t dictate the other—but you do have to make sacrifices. I think you can’t have it all, at least all at once, but I just take it one day at a time. They have a great community of other working moms that have each others’ backs. That’s really important, to surround yourself with other women that get you, that can support you. and I can support them.
Aside from fashion and beauty, you’ve also been candid about your life experiences like marriage, childbirth, and divorce online. How has that resonated with your community, and why is it important for you to keep being so open online?
That makes me happy. I love fashion and beauty, but they’re the byproduct for me. I believe that I have this platform for a bigger purpose, to help other women, and I’ve always believed that. As a mother of two girls, I always ask myself, “What is it that I would like them to see? What is it that would make me feel empowered for them to see?” I think it’s realness. I think it’s understanding that there’s a pretty side, and there’s also an ugly side as well, to everything that we do in life and in general. There are hard moments, and social media has a way of creating celebrities and creators to have this picture perfect life. We all know that’s not 100% true, and even if you know that, it’s still hard to believe that. I believe that I have this platform to showcase those difficult times if it just helps out one other woman that’s going through a hard time. My job has been done here, and I really view my platform as a way to help other women through my own personal stories and journey. It allows me to storytell and be vulnerable. It’s easier for me, knowing that it can help somebody. The biggest compliment for me is when someone comes up to me and is like, “I decided to walk away from something that wasn’t serving me, whether it be a job or whether it be a relationship, because I got inspired by your story of starting over.” For me, that is the best compliment, and I feel I’m doing my duty as an influencer or creator that has a large platform. That’s the reason why I share everything.
Chriselle Lim
Since your background’s in content, we have to ask: how have you found common ground running a fragrance brand? Do you approach new launches or projects in the same way?
I’ve always been a fashion girl at heart. That’s how I started. I was in fashion school when I started my blog, and fashion was just a way for me to feel confident when I didn’t feel confident at a very young age. I was one of the only Asian girls in my school, so I felt like it was my armor. Going into fashion has taught me to understand that world quite deeply, and how transformative it is. Going into fragrance after going into fashion has helped and served the brand well. We don’t treat it like a traditional fragrance company. We really look at the fragrances like an accessory. It’s the last touch of your wardrobe. It’s the last touch of your outfit. What’s the mood? What’s the vibe? Gone are the days where you have that one signature scent. People want to collect, because dependent on where they’re going, who they’re seeing, what the mood is, it all determines what fragrance you’re going to wear. I’m never one of those girls that’s like, “Oh, this is my type of fashion, I only wear girly things, or I only wear suits and masculine things.” I never like to pinpoint my fashion in one sense, because I have a little bit of everything, and what I’m doing determines what I’m going to be wearing. That’s how I’ve always used fragrance. We looked at the collection as a wardrobe. We call it the freedoms wardrobe, to see, “Okay, where is the white tee, the blue jeans in here?” I also understood fashion in the sense where, we have the classics and the basics. We’ve got to have the classic white tee, the Skin Musk, or we need to have a classic rose—but give it a little twist and play with trends. I always have that 80/20 model, it’s 80% invested the classics and 20% is the trends. You can have fun with trends. Don’t be afraid of them!
What are some new projects or fun plans you have in store this year?
We’re already at winter, but it feels like summer still here in LA. Focusing on closing off the year intentionally. We have some incredible launches with Phlur. I think these are probably my favorite launches of the year. We saved them for last, and for me the fall and winter just embodies quality time with family and friends. I’ve had a crazy year, given that Phlur transacted this year, and a bunch of different projects. I was on a seven-week world tour launching different markets for Phlur. This year has been really focused on work and business, so I’m hoping that for the rest of the year I can really focus on the most important things, which are just friends and family and being able to create incredible memories with them.
Chriselle Lim, Phlur, content creators, influencers, fashion, beauty, fragrance,
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