Angela Flanders
Founded 1985
Former BBC costume designer Angela Flanders opened her shop in 1985 in a Victorian building on Columbia Road, home of the Sunday flower market. She taught herself perfumery from old books and made small batches by hand. Since her death in 2016 her daughter Kate Evans runs the family house from the same green-fronted shop.
Hours and prices change, so check with the shop before you go.
Angela Flanders, perfume on Columbia Road since 1985
Angela Flanders opened her shop on Columbia Road in East London in spring 1985, in a Victorian shop she restored. Born in Buxton in 1927, she had worked in theatre design and as a BBC costume designer. She began with potpourri, and after her book Aromatics came out in 1995 she started making personal perfumes. She died in 2016, and her daughter Kate Evans took over the business in 2017.
The perfumes are made by hand in small batches in the house's East London studio. Several draw on local history: Mr Severs, from 1997, was made for the Silk Weavers House in Spitalfields, and Columbia Rose marked 30 years on the street in 2015. Precious One, made for Kate, won Best New Independent Perfume at the 2012 FiFi Awards, and Leather Rosa won Best New Independent Fragrance at the 2023 Fragrance Foundation Awards.
Its own shop is at 96 Columbia Road, London E2 7QB, open Thursday from 11:00 to 18:00, Friday and Saturday from 11:00 to 17:00 and Sunday from 9:00 to 16:00. Sunday is also the day of the Columbia Road flower market, from 8:00 to 15:00. The Spitalfields shop has closed. A 50 ml eau de parfum of Columbia Rose costs £95. Try Columbia Rose first: a dark crimson rose inspired by the flower market outside the door.
- Columbia RoseThe Columbia Road flower market, as a dark crimson rose with amber, sandalwood and aged patchouli.
- Precious OneMade for Angela's daughter Kate: tuberose and jasmine over a soft green chypre with oak moss and smoky vetiver.
- Earl GreyThe 18th century voyages that brought tea to England, with bergamot, cedar chests and patchouli.
- JosephineA posy of violets and roses for the Empress Josephine, whose love of violets made them a 19th century fashion.
- ZanzibarA gentle spicy, woody scent of ylang ylang, jasmine and rose on cedar, with incense and sandalwood.
Where to buy
- Own shop, 96 Columbia Road, London E2 7QB
In our city guides
- Angela Flanders, Columbia Road (Boutique, London)