Almas Anfar Kathuria shares her fragrance journey and lifelong commitment to inspiring women through business, beauty, and purpose.
Gen Z’s new queen of fragrance, Almas Anfar Kathuria has something so delicious, it could pass for a dessert menu, except somebody decided those flavors belong in perfume bottles instead.
She grew up inside one of the Gulf's best-known fragrance families, then decided tradition could use a splash of fun. Along the way, she also collected businesses, beauty crowns, a cricket team, hotels, pageants, philanthropy, and enough pink to make Barbie raise an eyebrow.
Busy? Absolutely. Predictable? Never.
So we sat down for a conversation that bounced from perfume and cricket to pageants, charity, business obsession, and why chocolate oud somehow makes perfect sense.
AbuDhabi.News: You own hotels, pageants, a cricket team, fragrance businesses, and about fifteen other things. Does your brain ever clock out?
Almas: Absolutely not. My brain is permanently occupied by business. Every idea immediately becomes branding, manufacturing, packaging, marketing, expansion, pricing, and execution. My mind refuses to sit quietly.
A difficult challenge actually excites me. If someone says something looks complicated, I immediately begin figuring out solutions. That mindset has helped me enter industries people never expected. It probably sounds obsessive, but creating something fresh genuinely makes me happy. Business is my favorite hobby.
AbuDhabi.News: Since your brain apparently refuses to relax, let's talk about the project living rent-free inside it right now. Your Gen Z fragrance collection. What can everyone expect?
Almas: It is definitely my biggest priority. Development is already well underway, and I am incredibly excited about what people will see very soon. Every detail was planned for younger fragrance lovers, from the scent concepts to the packaging, branding, colors, and presentation.
Young people appreciate originality, humor, personality, and visual storytelling. That is exactly what this collection celebrates. I want people posting unboxing videos, arguing over favorite scents, collecting multiple bottles, and sharing them all over social media. The reaction is going to be so much fun.
AbuDhabi.News: Chocolate oud. Strawberry. Espresso. Caramel. We have to ask... perfume or dessert?
Almas: I hear that question all the time and I absolutely love it. These concepts immediately make people curious, which is exactly what I wanted. I personally developed chocolate oud, strawberry, caramel, chocolate, and espresso because fragrance should surprise people before they even spray it.
Perfume can absolutely be playful. It can be colorful, memorable, unexpected, and completely addictive. I want someone to pick up the bottle, spray it once, smile, and immediately know it belongs in their collection. Sweet fragrances deserve superstar treatment, and I am fully committed to that mission.
AbuDhadi.News: Luxury perfume usually scares younger buyers before they even reach the checkout. Did affordability become part of your strategy?
Almas: Definitely. Luxury should also be accessible. Younger customers deserve beautiful fragrances without emptying their wallets, and parents deserve a reason to smile too.
Someone should comfortably own strawberry, caramel, espresso, and chocolate oud instead of choosing only one. Different outfits deserve different fragrances. Different occasions deserve different fragrances. Building a collection should feel exciting instead of stressful.
AbuDhabi.News: Your family's perfume story stretches all the way back to 1950. Tell us about that incredible legacy.
Almas: My grandfather established our fragrance business in 1950. My father expanded the company throughout the GCC beginning in 1988. Today I proudly represent the third generation of our family's perfume journey.
That history means everything to me. Every product carries decades of knowledge and tradition. My responsibility is preserving that legacy while introducing my own personality, creativity, and vision into the future.
AbuDhabi.News: Fragrance makes perfect sense. Hotels also make sense. But cricket? People definitely had questions.
Almas: They certainly did. Cricket combines entertainment, opportunity, business, and incredible talent. I loved every part of it from the beginning.
Some people struggled to understand why a woman wanted ownership in professional cricket. Their doubts simply motivated me even more. Young girls deserve examples of women leading sports organizations. Nobody should decide which industries belong to women. If something inspires me and creates value, I want to be part of it.
AbuDhabi.News: Beauty queens collect crowns. You collected several. Which titles mean the most?
Almas: Every title holds special memories. Mrs. India Middle East, Mrs. Tourism International, and Regent Smart City Queen each introduced me to extraordinary women from completely different backgrounds.
Many had paused personal dreams because life happened. Marriage, motherhood, family responsibilities, or career obligations came first. Watching those women return to the stage inspired me deeply. That experience eventually led me toward creating Luxestar Pageants.
AbuDhabi.News: Your pageants welcomed contestants in their fifties and even sixty. Some critics definitely had plenty to say.
Almas: They certainly did, and it never bothered me. Luxestar celebrates married women, divorced women, mothers, older women, and anyone whose dreams simply waited a little longer.
A woman at sixty deserves glamour every bit as much as someone at twenty-five. She deserves the gown, the stage, the applause, and every opportunity to chase a crown. Dreams simply refuse to follow birthdays, and I believe every contestant deserves recognition for her story and determination.
AbuDhabi.News: During one of the region's most difficult periods, your hotel quietly opened its doors to families for months. Hardly anybody knew about it. Why?
Almas: Families urgently needed practical help, and fortunately I had resources available. We offered accommodation, food, milk, diapers, and everyday necessities for roughly three months because people genuinely needed support.
Helping somebody should never become a publicity campaign. You might see me driving my pink Rolls Royce or attending glamorous events because those moments naturally happen in public. Charity is different. Helping someone sleep safely, feeding children, or supplying essentials matters infinitely more than announcing it to the world.
AbuDhabi.News: Looking at everything you've accomplished, people probably see perfume, crowns, cricket, fashion, hotels, and philanthropy. What do you hope they actually see underneath all of that?
Almas: I hope they see somebody who refuses to stop learning. Every business taught me something valuable. Every challenge introduced another opportunity to grow.
Curiosity has always pushed me into unfamiliar industries. That curiosity continues today. Growth begins the moment someone decides they are willing to try something completely different.
AbuDhabi.News: Last question. Imagine thousands of ambitious women quietly listening to this conversation. What's your message for them?
Almas: Trust yourself before asking anyone else to believe in you. People will always have opinions about your age, your background, your career, your family, or your dreams. Their opinions only become powerful if you decide they matter.
Study your industry. Learn everything you possibly can. Surround yourself with supportive people, keep moving forward, and keep solving problems instead of collecting excuses. Women belong wherever ambition takes them. Chase the dream, protect it fiercely, and make yourself proud. The doubters can enjoy the view from the sidelines.
