Etat Libre d'Orange

When Etienne de Swardt created his house of perfume in 2006, it was only right and natural for him to give it this name, to honor his birthplace and what it represents.

In South Africa, Etat Libre d’Orange, the Orange Free State, was an autonomous sovereign republic which declared independence from British rule in 1854. The name was derived from the royal family of the Netherlands, the homeland of the region’s pioneers. It was a land of staggeringly rough beauty and color and unforgettable smells, a nation of contrasts, strong feelings, and mixed emotions. The rainbow mosaic of people and cultures gave it an unpredictable, sometimes savage nature. And it was independent — unrestrained, unrestricted.

Unity, beauty, conflict — and freedom, the hallmarks of our company. The Orange Free State ended in 1902. But its attitude lives on at Etat Libre d’Orange.