David Apel

Born in New Jersey, David Apel was an outdoor-loving child whose passion for exploring forests and coasts led him to study environmental chemistry. An unexpected offer from Givaudan took him into perfumery, where his first job involved analysing products that were already on the market in the gas chromatography laboratory. There, he developed a deep understanding of the complexity of raw materials and a touch of perfume philosophy: each perfume can be considered a work in progress. The art is rarely finished. He joined the American Society of Perfumers’ apprenticeship programme in 1990 and was able to formalise his new passion through on-the-job study. As a junior perfumer, he began to win some decidedly senior jobs and was sent to work with the elite of European perfumers in Paris. There, he gathered momentum thanks to the uninhibited freedom of being an outsider. With the landscapes of his native New England in mind, he created some of his distinctive formulations and bases, catapulting his career and ultimately leading him to join Symrise, where he works to this day. 1959 - BORN IN RINGWOOD, NEW JERSEY 1980 - STARTS AT GIVAUDAN 1991 - AWARDED AS AN APPRENTICE PERFUMER BY THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PERFUMERS 1993 - MOVES TO PARIS 2007 - JOINS SYMRISE