Phlur is expanding its international footprint. On March 30, the fragrance brand will launch online in Mexico via Sephora, followed by its arrival at 49 doors on April 1. In late April, Phlur will begin a rollout to more than 300 Sephora doors in 15 countries across Europe.
“it’s really about, ‘How do we build out our community globally, and how do we build out our brand love?'” said Phlur CEO Elizabeth Ashmun. “’How do we give the community what they want?’ And this is what they’ve been asking for.”
Phlur was first launched in 2021 before it was relaunched in 2022 with content creator Chriselle Lim as creative director. The rebrand, piloted by then-owner The Center, found viral success with Phlur’s Missing Person eau de parfum and expanded to body mists in 2023.
In 2025, Phlur was acquired by private equity group TSG Consumer. According to the brand, Phlur is projected to reach $175 million in annual retail sales in 2026.
Phlur followed up Missing Person with hits like Father Figure and Vanilla Skin, which, along with Missing Person, comprise its top-three-selling scents. But asking longtime fragrance consumers in established markets like France, where stalwart brands like Lancôme and Dior reign supreme, is another challenge.
“The [European] market, particularly France, is very much a legacy market. But we’re already seeing the democratization we’ve seen in the Americas begin to unfold in that market. The Chanels and the Diors and the Yves Saint Laurents, who we all love and respect, they’re being dethroned now by some of the indie brands,” said Ashmun. “Even those consumers don’t want to wear what their mother wore. They want to do something different.”
Phlur will aim to do more than just convert existing fragrance consumers to add a new brand to their assortment. According to Ashmun, while studying its consumer base during its acquisition by TSG, Phlur found that 49% of its consumers were new to the fragrance category. “That’s how we’re thinking about it as we go into these other markets,” she said.
To support the international growth, Phlur will bring on a London-based general manager for the EMEA region later in 2026. It will also send Lim to Mexico and Europe to promote local launch events and work with local content creators on paid partnerships.
The E.U. and Mexico expansions are not Phlur’s first time going overseas. In August, it announced its expansion to Australia and the Middle East. According to Ashmun, Phlur was the No. 1 fragrance brand online at the Dubai Mall upon its launch at the retailer in September.
As the U.S. fragrance market only grows more saturated, international expansion is table stakes for American brands looking to remain competitive. Bella Hadid’s Orebella expanded to the Middle East via Ulta Beauty in November, while Sabrina Carpenter’s namesake fragrance line is expanding to the likes of India and Brazil in 2026. International expansion is a two-way street: Seoul-based perfumer Borntostandout launched at Sephora U.S. in February, while the Brazilian brand Granado and French brand Matiere Premiere are making U.S. expansion a priority in 2026.
While the E.U. and the Middle East have long been hubs for fragrance consumers and manufacturers, more perfume brands are investing in Mexico. Argentine-born brand Fueguia 1833 and Estée Lauder-owned brands Le Labo and Kilian have all expanded to the market since 2020. In 2024, the Estée Lauder Companies acquired a minority stake in Mexican niche fragrance brand Xinú.
“We’ve seen independent brands go [to Mexico] and be very successful. There’s this universal truth that consumers are hungry for something different, and they want to see these niche brands, these independent brands,” said Ashmun. “They really want to layer their fragrances, and they want to collect them. In the Middle East, that’s been happening for quite some time, but it really lends itself to this behavior of discovery and building out your capsule [fragrance] wardrobe, which requires some exploration or experimentation of these other brands.”
Some perfume brands have launched regional exclusives to cater to local preferences, like Versace’s Dubai-exclusive Eros Najim or Louis Vuitton’s Voyage en Chine China exclusive. But Ashmun finds that, as many perfume brands have been globalized, so too have tastes.
“We went into the Middle East knowing it’s such a strong fragrance market, and very heavy fragrances are very important. But actually, what we found is that Missing Person, which is sort of our lightest, skin-on-skin musk, did very, very well,” said Ashmun. “The preferences are actually transcending these market boundaries.”
