Aaron Terence Hughes

Aaron Terence Hughes is a British perfumer, and also the name of the independent perfume house he founded in 2019. He composes his creations himself, almost all of them highly concentrated extraits de parfum, often enriched with oud. The house, which its customers often call ATH, is an English company based in Salford, in the Manchester area, and sells only online.

Who is Aaron Terence Hughes

On his house's website, Aaron Terence Hughes presents himself as a British perfumer who creates where art, chemistry and intuition meet. He says he grew up on a flower farm in Cornwall, in the southwest of England. As a child, he spent his pocket money on essential oils and crushed flowers on his arm to watch how their components separated as his skin warmed up. That is where he traces the start of his approach to perfume.

He claims a very personal way of working. He says he creates his fragrances according to his mood and from what he has lived through, with no direction other than his intuition. There is no creative director and no outside perfumer: the specialist databases credit only him as the author of the house's fragrances.

The company Aaron Terence Hughes Ltd is registered in England and Wales, with its head office in Salford. The house has no physical store. It ships within the United Kingdom itself and relies on official partners for the rest of the world. Passion Parfum is on its list of partners for France, Europe, Canada and Australia. The house also supports the Soi Dog Foundation, which protects dogs and cats in Asia.

A signature: concentration

What sets ATH apart from most houses is the dose. The house's fragrances never go below 25% concentrate. The eaux de parfum are at 25%, which matches what many brands sell as an extrait. The extraits are at 35%. Some of them get an extra 5% oud, often an oud from Thailand, and a few creations go further: 7.6% oud for Onyx Extreme, 8% for one of the most expensive creations in the range.

In practice, these are powerful fragrances. One or two sprays are enough, and it is better to start with one. High concentration gives presence and longevity, but it does not replace a good formula. That is why we always recommend trying before buying, even when prices are affordable.

The pyramids mix natural materials highlighted on the product pages, such as rose absolute, oud or CO2 extracts, with more playful accords: toffee, maracuja, a "clean skin" accord. The style is generous, often sweet, rarely discreet. Some of the names are also deliberately provocative, which is part of the house's identity.

How the collection is organized

The ATH catalog is very large: Parfumo lists more than 130 fragrances since 2019, counting versions and editions. At Passion Parfum, we carry around sixty references, fragrances and body care combined. Rather than a list, here is the logic of the range.

• Eaux de parfum in 30 ml, at 25% concentration, around €50. This is the entry point to the house.
• Extraits in 30 ml, at 35%, around €70. Several carry the name of an eau de parfum followed by a "+": this is the more concentrated version of the same fragrance.
• Extraits in 50 ml, at 35%, from about €125 to €160, most also offered in 10 ml.
• Oud-enriched extraits, from about €160 to €260 for 50 ml.
• A few prestige creations at more than €300, with a larger share of oud.

Around the fragrances, the house turns some of its successes into body care: shower gels, body lotions that help the scent hold, body butter, beard oil and face lotions in the Hombre line, a scented candle. It also releases seasonal collections, such as Spring Equinox in 2025.

Finally, ATH produces in small batches. Its shop restocks every Friday, and some fragrances disappear only to return later. For this the house created The Archive, a reserve of retired fragrances that the community can vote to bring back in limited editions. That is also why a fragrance can be sold out for a few weeks and then reappear.

ATH fragrances available at Passion Parfum

Fresh and citrus scents

Supernova, an extrait at 35% released in 2023, is our best seller for the house. Italian bergamot, mandarin, orange and grapefruit in the top notes, marine notes, apple and pineapple in the heart, oakmoss, patchouli, ginger, ambergris and white musk in the base. A fresh fruity woody scent, easy to wear all year round.

Legend is an eau de parfum at 25% in 30 ml: Italian bergamot, lemon and grapefruit, then Ambroxan, apple, galbanum and tonka bean, over dry woods, elemi, oakmoss and vetiver. A classic aromatic woody scent at a low price. Aura+, an extrait at 35% in 30 ml, is sunnier, with bergamot, Brazilian sweet orange and maracuja on a base of white musk and sandalwood.

Hombre stands apart: it is a Cosmos-certified extrait, the standard for organic and natural cosmetics, made only from natural materials. Bergamot, lemon and sweet orange, clary sage, vetiver and cedar. It is the most understated fragrance in the range.

Gourmands

Kayos opens on citrus, lemon, sweet orange, mandarin and pink grapefruit, then slides toward amber, blue raspberry and plum, before a base of sandalwood, vanilla, tonka and nutmeg. Slut pairs lemon, blood mandarin and peppermint with a heart of vanilla, tonka and toffee, over patchouli and white musk.

Censored gets 5% oud: citrus, lavender and mint in the top notes, vanilla, tonka, strawberry and honey in the heart, sandalwood, patchouli and oud in the base. Belle de Nuit is the fruitiest: sweet orange and rose absolute, then raspberry, peach, nectarine, vanilla and tonka, over an accord of iris, ambergris and sandalwood.

Florals

Red Fever, from 2024, is built around rose absolute, dosed at 4% in total. A bergamot exclusive to the house and pear open onto lily, raspberry, plum and peach, then almond, vanilla, amber, oakmoss and ambergris. A fruity, gourmand rose, also available as a body butter.

Ambers, tobacco and oud

Zeus / Daddy pairs apple and bergamot with tonka and nutmeg, on a base of soft oud, sandalwood, patchouli, vanilla and benzoin. Morpheus is drier and woodier: cardamom, pink pepper and frankincense, amber, osmanthus and tonka, then Thai oud, sandalwood, Haitian vetiver and patchouli.

Noir brings together black pepper, neroli, saffron, nutmeg and cardamom around a tobacco heart, over vanilla, tonka, oud, sandalwood, incense and civet. It also comes as a shower gel, a perfume oil and a candle. Oud Noir, formerly Black Oud, is simpler and denser: cinnamon and saffron, plum and amaretto, then 5% Thai oud, benzoin and vanilla. Tabac Extreme starts from tobacco leaf, cherry and plum, then tobacco, vanilla and tonka, before a base of 5% oud, patchouli, cedar, ginger and frankincense.

Onyx Extreme, from 2021, is one of the house's best-rated fragrances on Parfumo, and one of the most expensive. Rose absolute at 4%, vanilla and plum in the top notes, chocolate, raspberry, ylang-ylang and amber in the heart, oakmoss, patchouli, Thai oud at 7.6%, ambergris, sandalwood and musk in the base.

Where to start with Aaron Terence Hughes

If you like fresh, fruity fragrances, start with Supernova. It gives a good idea of the house's power without being disorienting.

If you prefer gourmands, Slut or Kayos are the two safest picks. For a rose, go for Red Fever. For a woody amber, Noir.

To test before buying, the house itself relies on the 10 ml size, available for most extraits. We also offer 2 ml samples, depending on deliveries: the available sizes are on our samples page. If you are unsure, the 30 ml eau de parfum remains the cheapest way to discover the house with a real bottle.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Aaron Terence Hughes?

A British perfumer who grew up on a flower farm in Cornwall. He founded his eponymous perfume house in 2019 and composes all its fragrances himself.

Where can I buy Aaron Terence Hughes fragrances outside the UK?

The house itself ships only within the United Kingdom. Passion Parfum is on its official list of partners for France, Europe, Canada and Australia. Our bottles ship from our own stock, with a free sample.

Is Aaron Terence Hughes a niche brand?

Yes. It is an independent house, run by its perfumer, sold online and through a few partners. Its prices are fairly low for niche perfumery, especially for the 30 ml sizes.

Do ATH fragrances last long?

They are concentrated at 25% for the eaux de parfum and 35% for the extraits, often with added oud. These fragrances have strong longevity and a lot of projection, so apply them with care.

What does the "+" after an ATH fragrance name mean?

It marks the extrait version, at 35%, of a fragrance that also exists as an eau de parfum at 25%. The "+" is therefore denser than the original.