Industry Spotlight: James Talbot, Managing Director at Sozio UK

The fragrance industry champions nurturing young talents, offering diverse career paths that blend technical, scientific, and artistic creativity. In this interview with James Talbot, Managing Director, we explore his career path and the rich history of the fragrance house Sozio.

How did you first come to join the fragrance industry?

Sort of by accident, it’s not glamorous but I was given the opportunity to source and offer raw materials at the very start of my career and never really looked back.

I’ve always been interested in the source stories behind our materials. Travelling to Thailand to see Oud production was a personal highlight—not only for the oil itself but also for the inspiring experience of meeting the families and witnessing the lives we were directly supporting.

What did you study that has helped you on your career path?

After studying business and moving into the fragrance world, it was important for me to initially study the raw materials, learning about the sourcing and distillation processes, sustainability metrics, and everything that plays a part in producing an ingredient.

After that, it was about spending as much time as possible with perfumers and other industry professionals to learn how we take thousands of key components and collaborate with customers to produce the very best aroma possible.

The benefit of this industry is that it is constantly evolving; just when you think you’ve got a good understanding, there is another twist, turn, or IFRA adaptation to contend with!

Can you tell us a bit about the history of Sozio and what it now provides the fragrance industry?

Sozio is one of the pioneers in French fine perfumery.
The company started in 1758 in Grasse and has been supplying fragrances to the industry for over 260 years. Headquartered in Paris with manufacturing sites globally, we supply some of the biggest organisations worldwide, predominantly focusing on Personal & Home Care and Fine Fragrance applications. We have a reputation for fragrance quality and creativity while providing customers with clear traceability and transparency of raw materials.

What does your role at Sozio entail?

My role as Managing Director involves complete oversight of our operations in the UK. From Sales to Creative to Production, I ensure we provide the best possible service to our customers while developing our team and growing sustainably.

How has Sozio supported and helped grow and cement your understanding of fragrance?

Sozio has been extremely supportive of my career. I’ve been given access to every resource within the company to learn as much as possible and capitalise on opportunities as they arise. younger individuals and there is a clear route into senior positions within the organisation for those that are looking to push forward and explore.

Another great thing here is that we are truly international, so a lot of my role is collaboration between our US, European and Asian sites with loads of exposure to different cultures and teams.

What are some key areas of fragrance learning that are invaluable in your role?

The process can’t be rushed.

Everything we do is so complex; the smallest tweaks can often affect so many different elements of a product, so it is important we take our time and always produce something we are proud of and know will work the first time.

It is easy to get caught up in deadlines and the commercials, but the creative process is there for a reason, and we wouldn’t be here without it.

What inspires you about the fragrance industry?

It’s constant evolution. Our industry is steeped in history and lived experience, but year-on-year we still see development and evolution everywhere you look.

I have the opportunity of working with some amazing brands, so we get to watch their creative process too: listening to their origin stories and what brought them into this world is always fascinating.

What advice would you give to anyone wanting to join the industry?

Keep an open mind.

There are so many different places you could end up in this industry, and until you try them, you really don’t know whether you will love them or not.

I’ve seen aspiring perfumers switch to sales or product development and vice versa—just because you’re in a role today doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be in a different segment, role, or company later on.

What is one of your scent memories?

My favourite scent memory is my Grandma’s kitchen in the summertime.

My Grandad used to grow rhubarb in the garden throughout the summer, and she would stew it for hours while making a rhubarb crumble for Sunday lunch.

The sweet, buttery crumble top notes perfectly paired with the tart, stewed rhubarb still take me back to being a child and spending entire summers with them.