Khaleeji perfumery at full depth: vintage oud, dark fruit and paste thick ambergris.
Maher Elkhaldi builds around specific, dated aged woods and thick macerated bases, so a bottle does not smell like a formula so much as like a room where a particular resin has been sitting for years. These are dense, nocturnal, unhurried scents, and heavy hitters are best met in small doses first.
- Known for Dated aged oud, macerated bases
- Here 2 fragrances
- Founder
- Maher Elkhaldi
- Concept
- Dated vintage ouds and long-aged natural bases
01
An architect who became a perfumer
Maher Elkhaldi is Palestinian, from Gaza. His parents were displaced in 1948 and he grew up a refugee; as a boy he would go home and recreate dishes from a street food stall in Sharjah. He studied architecture, then took graduate studies in computational design and generative systems, and spent fifteen years in startups building tools for construction, automotive and aviation teams. Perfume began with artisan blends he bought and wanted to adjust. His company is now registered in Muscat, Oman.
02
Aged oud with a known year
Maher works from aged naturals, tinctures and macerations, and a blend can take many months, sometimes close to a year, to reach release, partly because the materials need time to age. He builds straight from the materials with no fixed formula, and buyers can tune many blends with added notes. Crimson Cambodia sets cherry, raspberry, strawberry, blackcurrant and blueberry over Rayong and Koh Kong ouds, including a Koh Kong from around 2015 supplied by Al Hashimi and oils from 2007 and 2009 by a third-generation distillery. Patchouli keeps it crisp.
03
Spectrum bases and custom sprays
Ambergris Myanmar is the spray version of Ambergris Cambodia, with more oud and a Burmese oil added. Elderflower, blackcurrant, wool and coumarin sit on his Ambergris Spectrum base of macerations, tinctures and absolutes, deepened with Al Hashimi ouds. Crimson Cambodia can be ordered with Cambodi Preserve or an aged 2018 wild Cambodian oud mixed into the spray. Maher keeps no recipes, works with other perfumers on shared projects and designed the house's boxes himself.
Who founded El Khaldi?
El Khaldi was founded by Maher Elkhaldi.
Where is El Khaldi based?
El Khaldi is based in Muscat, Oman.
When was El Khaldi founded?
El Khaldi was founded in 2024.
Who composed the El Khaldi fragrances we carry?
Maher Elkhaldi.