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Irish perfumer Meabh McCurtin has been tapped to co-create a new fragrance for Merit with celebrated master perfumer Dominique Ropion. Called New Wave, the scent reinterprets a late-19th-century amber classic and marks a major moment in McCurtin’s rising career.
A partnership between experience and new talent
The collaboration brings together McCurtin, whose profile has climbed through work with brands from Calvin Klein and Burberry to Maison Margiela, and Ropion, a veteran with more than 460 credited fragrances. Their working relationship dates back years; McCurtin’s earliest public photo with Ropion appears on her Instagram from 2018, when they teamed up with a student at Paris’s ENSAD.
McCurtin has also co-created high-profile releases, including L’Interdit Elixir alongside Ropion and Anne Flipo. For Merit, this second fragrance follows the brand’s first scent, Retrospect, known for its warm, second-skin character.
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From a museum show to a revived amber
The idea behind New Wave grew from a visit to a surrealist exhibition at the Musée Picasso in Paris. The team set out to create something contemporary while honouring classical perfume structure.
Ropion explained the approach: ‘Some fragrances become references because their construction is so precise and enduring. With New Wave, I wanted to capture the spirit of classical amber compositions, such as Ambre 83, while reinterpreting them for today. The challenge was not to recreate the past, but to preserve its strength and sophistication in a fragrance that feels more radiant and relevant to a modern audience.’
How the scent works
McCurtin says the aim was emotional rather than purely technical. ‘What excites me most about New Wave is the dialogue between tradition and emotion. We worked with exceptional raw materials that each bring their own texture and personality, but the goal was always to create a feeling rather than showcase ingredients. I wanted the fragrance to feel empowering and alive, evolving on skin in a way that feels deeply personal.’
The composition layers bright and floral top and heart notes over a rich, amber-forward base. Key elements include:
- Top notes: pink pepper, angelica seed
- Heart notes: orange flower, ylang-ylang, honey floral accord
- Dry-down: benzoin, labdanum, olibanum, patchouli, ambrarome, ambroxan, musk, tobacco accord, vanilla bean, cedarwood, tonka bean
Availability
Merit’s New Wave Eau de Parfum launches on 22 October at meritbeauty.com and at Sephora, priced at €98.
