After five locations in South Korea, three in Japan, one in Hong Kong and another in Thailand, fragrance brand Nonfiction has opened its first store stateside in New York City’s Lower East Side.
On Orchard Street near Russ & Daughters, Katz’s Delicatessen, Aedes Perfumery and D.S. & Durga, the 855-square-foot corner space sat vacant when Nonfiction founder Haeyoung Cha, who was born in Seoul and raised in Busan, first toured it last year. She was immediately drawn to the area, which she compares to Seoul’s Hannam-dong, a neighborhood known for stylish cafés and designer flagships.
“Both places carry a similar balance,” she says. “They are layered with history, yet shaped by a contemporary point of view. They are not overly polished, but full of character, with independent shops and restaurants that reflect a strong sense of taste.”
Cha tapped Charlap Hyman & Herrero, the award-winning firm whose prior beauty work includes retail displays for Kjær Weis, to bring Nonfiction’s store to life with a design that suits the surroundings and is minimal and clean rather than flashy. It features subtle moments of contrast by way of materials and colors like the oxblood floor tiles and details such as the hand-painted black rose tiles by the artist Pilar Almon in a handwashing station at the back of the store.
It was important to Cha that the store incorporate Korean influences throughout. It houses an aluminum chair and fiberglass and resin sconce from New York-based South Korean designer Minjae Kim and a painting by artist Chulhwa Kwon.
Customers can browse the full range of Nonfiction products, including its core 22 eau de parfums and a selection of home, haircare and body products. The New York store also showcases an exclusive perfume tag adorned with the rose motif in the handwashing area and scented with the brand’s fragrance The Rose. Outside of its new brick-and-mortar location, the brand is available in North America through retail partners including Ssense, Moda Operandi, Kith, Fwrd, Revolve and Outline.
After spending her 20s and early 30s in the art and fashion world, Cha launched Nonfiction in 2019 as a reminder to slow down. It started with an assortment of candles, perfumes, hand and body products. The brand is known for its understated luxury, elevated scents and lifestyle products intended to encourage a pause in everyday routines. With the assistance of industry friends, Cha landed the brand in Sephora Hong Kong shortly after its debut.
She says, “It is a brand rooted in honesty, designed to create small but meaningful moments of reset and to help people reconnect with themselves.”
During pandemic lockdowns, Nonfiction products went viral as shoppers sent them as gifts to lift the spirits of their cooped-up friends and family members. The brand became popular on KakaoTalk, an instant messaging app in South Korea that introduced a gifting platform. By the end of 2020, Nonfiction’s sales ballooned from around $58,000 to about $4.1 million. In 2024, Nonfiction’s sales surpassed $35.2 million, with double-digit growth, according to figures Cha provided Monocle.
Fragrance has consistently been Nonfiction’s strongest category. Cha has recruited prominent perfumers to develop its scents, including Dominique Ropion, Maurice Roucel, Leslie Gauthier and Alex Lee. More recently, Ropion and Roucel collaborated on Nonfiction’s collection, The Flowers.
The citrus-heavy Neroli Dream is gaining momentum, but the brand’s earliest scents—Santal Cream, Gentle Night and Gaiac Flower—remain its global bestsellers. Nonfiction’s Rose Pale Hair Serum Mist has become a sleeper hit, and Young Memories, a newer launch with notes of mint and basil, has drawn strong interest in the U.S. The brand’s 50-mL eau de parfums are priced at about $120 on average, with newer launches like Young Memories at $135.
Nonfiction focuses on storytelling, editorial placements, seeding and partnerships rather than traditional advertising, and Cha views the brand’s stores as one of the best ways to build awareness. Its branded retail follows a well-trod path for indie fragrance brands seeking to forge deeper relationships with customers in a category where trial remains critical. Elorea, Dossier, Commodity Fragrances and Vyrao are among the brands that have invested in their own retail footprints.
Cha says, “Fragrance is something that’s best understood through experience, so we try to create as many intuitive touchpoints as possible, allowing people to discover the brand in a more personal way.”
Nonfiction is looking to further expand its store network globally to Europe, the Middle East, Australia and the U.S. West Coast. In each location, it strives to cultivate a non-intimidating environment where people can connect with the brand at their own pace.
“The moment a space or even an interaction with staff feels pressuring, people instinctively want to leave,” says Cha. “We believe that spaces people want to stay in are built through small, thoughtful considerations from every angle.”
