07. 09. 23
BEHIND THE BRAND: WHO IS ELIJAH
Meet Raquel Bouris, the face behind everyones favourite fragrance house, Who is Elijah. Raquel shares the journey of Who is Elijah and her determination to transform the perfume industry, once scent at a time.
IG HANDLE?
@raaaquelbouris
HOMETOWN?
Cronulla!
STARSIGN?
Aries
WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU STARTED WHO IS ELIJAH?
I was an Executive Assistant to a CEO, CFO & two other directors for a luxury hotel group.
WHAT IS YOUR JOB ROLE NOW?
Creative Director – but I wear many hats each day.
TYPICAL DAY AT THE OFFICE?
I don’t believe I have ever had one! Anything from product development, content creation, social media management, finance, working in the warehouse, packing orders, speaking with exiting & target retailers. A bit if everything!
WHAT IS THE STORY BEHIND THE BRAND NAME?
Day one I was actually business partners with a best friend, and he wanted to call it RAQUEL & ELIJAH. We parted ways early on (still besties!) and one day I was just sitting at my office and said “who is elijah’ ? My friend’s name isn’t Elijah, it is Matt – he just loved the name Elijah! I am so happy with the brand name, people always remember it, and ‘why the name’ is always a question we get asked.
WHERE DO YOU GET INSPIRATION FROM?
Travel, friends, past and new experiences. My perfumer we work with also brings inspiration to me, and we bounce off each other, My WIE team is also a huge inspiration and we have a very open door policy for everyone to feel comfortable and excited to share their own ideas and inspiration. Our WIE team are engrained in WHO IS ELIJAH, it is quite special.
BIGGEST PINCH ME MOMENT?
Ahh there are so many!! David Jones was our first big pinch me very early on, and then Adore Beauty, SEPHORA, Priceline – the list goes on. Our fragrance NIGHTCAP won a POPSUGAR USA award for one of the best perfumes of 2023 (could not believe it!) Just recently in Europe, I lost count how many times random people approached me in the streets asking “Are you WHO IS ELIJAH” It was WILD!!
WHAT IS YOUR SIGNATURE SCENT?
Right now, WALL STREET & REBEL ROSE. These are my proudest creations, and the response and feedback has been the best we have ever experienced.
BIGGEST LESSON LEARNT FROM BUILDING YOUR OWN BUSINESS?
Again, so many! Do not hire for a role until you are desperate for it to be filled. I filled certain roles too early and it nearly cost me the whole business (and also had to fire two close friends because of it) Get a business advisor once you start to see good growth. Understand the legal side of the business and protect your brand & products.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE WANTING TO START THEIR OWN BUSINESS?
I get a lot of people DM’ing me asking for advice and inspiration which is so nice! In the early days of WIE, pre & post launch, I listened to countless podcasts of people who inspired me, as well as the brands. It gave me constant motivation *(especially through the tough times) and was also accessible business coaching almost.
Don’t always allow people to give unsolicited advice – or if you must listen, nod to be kind, but don’t listen to everything they say. My own dad told me not to bother making perfumes because “Who is going to buy your perfumes Raquel?!” If you feel that fire on your belly that your idea is going to be something, listen to it. He laughs now and is very happy I was never good at listening to him!
WORDS TO LIVE BY?
Those who say it can't be done are usually interrupted by others doing it.
An oldie but a goodie: Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR WHO IS ELIJAH?
Global domination!! We have some incredible fragrances in the works that I am almost too excited to wait to launch!
TOP NAKEDVICE PICKS?
Too hard to choose! I have always been obsessed with your boots, so sexy & comfortable! BRB jumping online now to buy a pair or two.
