Why Jo Malone London Wants You to Smell Like a Vegetable Garden

Forget roses. Jo Malone London wants you to smell like beetroot instead.

At least, that's the idea behind Brit Veggies, the British fragrance house's latest limited-edition collection that swaps traditional florals for carrot blossom, scarlet beetroot, velvety butternut, and even green tomato vine. At first glance, the lineup sounds more like the ingredients for a hearty summer soup than a luxury fragrance collection—but that's precisely what makes it worth adding to your perfume rotation!

Preview caught up with Céline Roux, Global Head of Fragrance at Jo Malone London, to find out why one of the world's most beloved perfume houses is looking beyond the flower garden and how vegetables became the unlikely stars of its newest scents.

In an email interview, Céline Roux, Global Head of Fragrance at Jo Malone London, discusses why the brand decided to look beyond flowers. In this exclusive chat, she shares how vegetables became the starting point for its newest fragrances and why she believes the future of perfumery lies in reconnecting with nature.

The new Brit Veggies collection turns to the kitchen garden and vegetable-inspired notes. What sparked the idea for this collection and why did you choose vegetables as the focus?

Céline: "A few years ago, I thought, enough of the fruits—let's have fun with vegetables. I wanted something quite raw coming straight from the soil. In this collection I wanted to have richness, earthiness and authenticity, and this happened at the beginning of the lockdown when everyone around me in the city started to have this obsession about vegetable patches, and it reinforced my conviction that vegetables were the right way to go.

"For this collection, I took Mathilde Bijou—the perfumer of Scarlet Beetroot and Velvety Butternut—to Sissinghurst, and we just wanted to smell everything and be inspired by the smells of the gardens as well as the different soils. Fragrances are so often born from a lab, but with us they're born from the outside. It’s so British, so authentic, so unexpected—it cannot be more Jo Malone London."

This series features non-traditional ingredients such as Carrot Blossom, Scarlet Beetroot, Velvety Butternut, and Green Tomato Vine. In the process of perfumery, how do you strike a balance between their raw and "green" nature and the elegance expected of a fine luxury fragrance?

Céline: "It was non-negotiable to balance the ingredients with sophistication, which is part of the DNA of the brand. And that was part of the development and finding the right balance of the vegetable idea with elegant notes with a lot of natural elements.

"To ensure a nod to the soil, we played with patchouli—it gives an earthiness but without taking away the freshness. We pushed the boundaries, played with nuance and built in that vital element of the unexpected."

How do you interpret the expression of "freshness" in fragrances of this series?

Céline: "For me, freshness is not simply about brightness or lightness; it’s the sensation of something just picked. It carries texture, vibrancy, and even a subtle earthiness, like soil and green leaves still holding the memory of where they grew. Each fragrance interprets this differently, from the vivid, succulent character of Scarlet Beetroot to the creamy warmth of Velvety Butternut, and the soft, yummy sweetness of Carrot Blossom."

Why did you choose to highlight these vegetables in particular for the collection? How did you approach each vegetable (beetroot, butternut, and carrot blossom), and how did you land on each scent profile?

Céline: "At the start when we began to work on this collection, we visited a lot of gardens and vegetable patches with one of the perfumers, Mathilde Bijaoui, and I was really drawn to vegetables that grow in the soil. We chose three vegetables that are very different in colour, shape, taste and character.

"Scarlet Beetroot is unexpectedly joyful. The cologne opens with a bright burst of blackcurrant that feels juicy, energetic, almost effervescent, then settles into a soft, earthy sweetness from the beetroot that feels both vivid and wearable. Carrot Blossom is a fresh floral scent with a touch of fennel that brings a luminosity without being overpowering. Orange flower lends it a dewy brightness, while white musk keeps it airy and contemporary.

"Velvety Butternut, is very creamy and warm and comforting and a touch nutty. A spark of ginger at the top gives it a little lift before sinking into the tonka bean and patchouli to ground it. It took a long time to finalise because it was very hard to get the right level of warmth, sophistication and woodiness. But it was definitely worth it."

Could you recommend your favorite fragrance from Jo Malone London's 2026 "British Summer: Veggies" Series to our readers?

Céline: "It would be Scarlet Beetroot and Green Tomato Vine. Scarlet Beetroot is vibrant. The cologne opens with a bright burst of blackcurrant that feels juicy, energetic, almost effervescent, then settles into a soft, earthy sweetness from the beetroot that feels both vivid and wearable.

"With Green Tomato Vine, it has that unmistakable green snap of tomato leaves, the crispness of the vine, the earthy freshness of the garden after rain…. It’s like throwing open the kitchen windows on the first warm morning of the year. Housed in a glossy green vessel, the candle in particular is as decorative as it is fragrant; the kind of thing you will happily leave out and reuse."

Carrot Blossom

Notes of subtly sweet carrot, orange flower and white musk create a fresh floral scent.

Scarlet Beetroot

Notes of beetroot, vibrant blackcurrant and a dash of patchouli create a delicious fruity scent.

Velvety Butternut

Notes of smooth butternut, warm tonka bean, and patchouli create a woody gourmand scent.

The collection extends beyond fragrance into the home and bath with a lineup inspired by the same garden-fresh concept. Alongside the colognes are a new Tomato Leaf Hand Wash, a special-edition Green Tomato Vine Candle available in two sizes, and a diffuser. Formulated with naturally derived glycerine and meadowfoam seed oil, the hand wash gently cleanses while leaving behind the crisp, herbaceous scent of tomato leaves.

Together with the candle and diffuser, these additions bring the freshness of the kitchen garden indoors, capturing the vibrant greenery and earthy character that define the collection.

The Brit Veggies collection will be available exclusively at all Jo Malone London boutiques and through the brand's official Lazada store starting July 2026.