New Perfume "Asakusa" Released, Expressing Asakusa's History and Culture Through Scent

Chara Innovate (2 Hanakawado, Taito-ku), the company behind the perfume brand "Hatenko," released the perfume "Asakusa" on October 13, expressing the history and culture of Asakusa through scent. It is priced at 23,650 yen (50 ml) and sold at the company's directly operated store "inimu Asakusa" (2 Asakusa), located near Senso-ji Temple.

"Asakusa" is the fifth work in the series of fragrances that turn a place's history and scenery into scent. The previous four, "Kabukicho," "Nihonbashi," "Ginza" and "Naniwa," were created at the request of department stores, but "Asakusa" is a work conceived by the company itself. It was also timed to coincide with the approach of the 1,400th anniversary of Senso-ji's founding.

The Thinking Behind the Scent

According to the origin story of Senso-ji, the statue of Kannon was enshrined in a pagoda tree (enju). Because the temple lies in the demon gate (kimon) direction of Edo Castle, the company focused on the enju's association with warding off evil from that direction. Enju is used both in the fragrance and in the specially made wooden cap. The scent layers sandalwood and other notes onto flowers of the four seasons: daphne in spring, gardenia in summer, osmanthus in autumn and yuzu in winter.

Layering Suggestion

Each of the five works in the series is assigned a time of day: "Nihonbashi" is morning, "Naniwa" is midday, "Asakusa" is late afternoon, "Ginza" is early evening and "Kabukicho" is midnight. Layering scents from adjacent times of day lets you enjoy the changing fragrance of a day.

Activities in Asakusa

The "Asakusa" scent will also be used for the spatial design of the wisteria trellis area on the grounds of Senso-ji during "ASAKUSA CULTURE & LIGHTS 2026," held at the temple from October 30 to November 3. The scent is also used in the lanterns that have been sold at various locations in Asakusa since October. The company is also considering using part of the proceeds for activities that help local children learn about Asakusa. inimu Asakusa is open from 10:30 to 18:00.