Why We Started Wonder Potion. And Why It Took Us This Long to Get It Right
Wonder Potion didn't start as a perfume brand.
It started as a question we couldn't stop asking, why is it so hard to find a perfume that smells like something you actually love?
Not something sophisticated. Not something that smells like a European garden or a department store lobby (no offence! just preference). Something personal. Something that smells like warm buttercream straight from the oven, or a glass of iced peach tea on a humid afternoon, or the kind of dessert you'd order twice.
We really looked. And we couldn't find it. Not in Malaysia, atleast at the time, anyway. That or the only option was to buy them online and have it shipped from overseas which was quite frankly expensive.
So we deiced to just, make it.
The Long Way Around
Before Wonder Potion was a perfume brand, it was other things. A skincare brand. A shower gel brand. A candle brand. We tried a lot of things between 2021 and 2024, and most of them didn't work the way we hoped.
But it taught us something important, the thing we kept coming back to, the thing that genuinely excited us, was scent. Specifically, gourmand scent. The kind that smells like food, like comfort, like a core memory you didn't know you had until you smelled it.
Every pivot brought us closer to the thing we actually wanted to make. The perfumes were always the destination. We just took the scenic route.
The Problem With Malaysian Perfumes
Here's what we kept running into. Even perfumes marketed as sweet or gourmand in Malaysia at the time always seemed to hide behind something else. A floral heart. A sharp citrus top note. A "hint of vanilla" that got buried under everything else. No hate at all, if you love that kind of vibe, happy for you! There is definitely a market for that. Remember perfume or well "scent" is subjective! everyone has different preferences and its totally fine.
But we wanted something that was entirely, unapologetically gourmand. Buttercream Vanilla that actually smells like buttercream vanilla for example, or iced peach tea as its name suggests, not vanilla laced with roses or vanilla with such a noticeable woody base that takes over after twenty minutes. Just the thing. Exactly the thing.
That perfume didn't exist here or was really hard to come-by. So we made it.
Buttercream Vanilla became our first scent and our bestseller. And it still is.
What We Believe
Wonder Potion exists because we believe one thing above everything else, scent is personal, and it should reflect who you actually are, what you really resonate with.
Not what a luxury brand decided you should aspire to be. Not what's universally considered sophisticated or appropriate. What you love. What makes you feel like yourself. What makes someone walk past you, turns around and says "sedap-nya bau macam coklat" or if you were sitting in a room and someone says "smells like a bakery in here" or "siapa bawak kek?", you get what we mean.
Perfume has been gatekept for too long by brands that tell you what's worth wearing. We're not interested in that. We're interested in the person who knows exactly what they love and just wants something that smells like it and someone who adventerous and open-minded about trying something new.
How We Make It
Every Wonder Potion perfume is handcrafted in Malaysia in small batches using carefully sourced ingredients. Phthalate-free. Cruelty-free.
Not mass bottled. Not factory-packed. Made here, by us, with the kind of attention you only get from a small operation that genuinely cares whether the scent is right.
We carefully source and test every scent before it makes the cut.
Over 7,000 bottles sold since we launched the perfume collection in late 2024. Every single one made the same way.
Who Wonder Potion Is For
Not everyone. And we're okay with that. But we do try our best to provide options for all the occasions and needs.
Wonder Potion is for the person who's a little tired of being told what luxury smells like. Who loves food as much as they love smelling good. Who'd rather smell like a cupcake and vanilla than a generic department store fragrance.
It's for the person who rejects boring mainstream perfume culture and wants something that actually means something to them.
If that sounds like you, welcome. You're exactly who we made this for!
Where We Are Now
Wonder Potion ships across Malaysia, to Singapore, and internationally through our website and Etsy store. What started as a search for one perfect scent has grown into a decent sized collection of scents, which we've categorized into 2 collections, Sweet Bakery for those sweet and delicious wants and Fresh Fruity scents for those who spend more time outside, plus seasonal Limited Edition drops every once in awhile.
We're still small. Still handcrafting every bottle. Still asking the same question we started with, what would it smell like if your personality was a perfume?
We think about this way too much. Like, way too much.
But that question is why we're still here. And why we're not stopping anytime soon.
Thank you everyone, from the bottom of our hearts.
Love,
Rose & Jo
Explore the full Wonder Potion collection at wonderpotion.co
Sweet Bakery, Fresh Fruity, and Limited Edition, all handcrafted in Malaysia.
0 comments