Northern Virginia is a destination for visitors with all kinds of purposes, and one store in Fairfax’s Mosaic District has become a go-to spot for fragrance lovers. Arielle Shoshana, 2920 District Avenue, Suite 145, is a boutique perfumery that has been winning fans since its 2015 inception. The niche selection of brands available plus the brand’s own scents have been perfume lovers’ favorites for years,  catching the noses and attention of fashion and beauty editors. Read on for more about this local brand and its founder, Arielle herself.

About the Brand

Arielle Weinberg started the brand in 2015.  “I worked in niche fragrance boutiques in New York after graduating college, and wanted the D.C. area to have its own niche fragrance boutique,” she said. The boutique was online-only, and Arielle hand-picked what was in stock. Eventually, she created her own line of scents, called Arielle Shoshana. Each scent is named after a day of the week, and the collection currently has Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. 

The Mosaic District was being constructed at the same name Arielle was looking for a space for a brick-and-mortar shop. “We love the mix of customers Mosaic provides. Our customers are really diverse in age and background, and they’re very global. Mosaic is central, so we get DC, Maryland, and Virginia customers,” she said. “We also love that Mosaic has some truly great restaurants – District Dumplings is one of the original Mosaic restaurants and remains a favorite.” The doors opened at Arielle Shoshanna in 2015.

As the business grew, Arielle needed help, and one of her associates she hired is her now co-owner, Katri Haas.  “When I first met Ari, I was a customer, then we became friends. She needed help for a few shifts and I guess it was too hard to get rid of me! We’ve been working together ever since,” Katri said.  “I’d always loved fragrance because it was inclusive and escapist, but my gateway was MakeupAlley’s perfume board – I’d sit in my parents’ kitchen in high school and just spend hours talking with people about fragrance.”  

The two say they are opposites who balance each other out. Now, the brand’s signature scents are found in retailers such as Anthropologie and have been mentioned in beauty and fashion publications such as Allure, Elle, and Vice, in addition to countless fragrance blogs and message boards. 

The next big thing for the brand is the expansion of its signature line, with a new scent, Tuesday, added in 2024. 

The Fragrance Experience

The Fairfax Girl: What’s something people might not know or understand about the fragrance industry? 
Arielle and Katri: It’s extremely expensive to start a brand. When you’re smaller, you can’t order components in bulk the way you can if you’re a major brand like L’Oreal. We see lots of smaller brands facing these challenges, and then on top of that, the challenges of importing/exporting fragrances internationally, due to customs restrictions and tariffs. I think one misconception is that everyone’s driving up prices because they can, and that the margins are insanely high, but that is not true for smaller lines.


TFG: How has the market for fragrances changed since opening? 

A+K: The market is much more adventurous now! Our regulars want more unusual stuff, and TikTok customers are so well-educated on new fragrances and brands before they even set foot in the shop. It’s exciting to see more enthusiasm across the board. There are so many more fragrance brands and launches coming out, we’re finding it hard to keep up with all the newness! But it’s a good problem to have.

TFG: What’s a fragrance trend you like? (ie: celeb scents, perfume Tiktok, dupes, etc) 

A+K:  We adore perfume TikTok – it’s a very nice corner of the Internet! It’s often how we get exposed to new brands. 

TFG: How do you pick what to stock in the store? 

A+K: It’s a pretty inexact science, but packaging, price point, and perfume quality are our top criteria. Good marketing goes a long way – we want to see a very clear brand voice and mission.We want the bottles to be beautiful, the pricing to be moderate for niche (we try to offer a good range of under $100 items), and we don’t bring in anything we don’t love. If our team doesn’t love it, it won’t sell.

TFG: How do you come up with new scents for the Arielle Shoshana line? 

A+K:  It’s funny – when we first started Arielle Shoshana EDP (now Arielle Shoshana Saturday), we didn’t know we were going to have multiple fragrances. Now we’re getting real-time customer feedback in the shop and on our social channels. The common thread is that fragrance is an everyday essential, and can make your day/mood so much better with a strategic spritz of something special. The themes sort of come to us in the moment, but each of our fragrances so far feature original, inventive accords, with a sense of fun. From there we work through what the vibe should be! Days of the week was our initial point, but when we run out of days of the week, we’ll have to find something else to jump off of! But regardless, we want all our fragrances to smell bold, maximalist, and have a bit of cheekiness.

 

TFG: What advice would you give someone who is new to fragrances and wants to build their collection? 
A+K:  Discovery sets are a great low-commitment way to explore a line first to find “the one”. Just because something says, “for men/for women”, or a specific note is considered “seasonal”, doesn’t mean that’s true for YOU. Get it on skin and make sure it sparks joy! If it does, commit to the full bottle.

Fun Stuff

TFG: What is your favorite coffee order of the moment? 
Ari – I tend towards tea! I adore anything creamy, like a London Fog or matcha horchata.

Katri – cold brew, splash of oat milk. Repeat 4x a day.

TFG: Where do you like to hang out/shop on your days off?

Ari – I head over to Alexandria to grab a bagel (Call Your Mother) and a book (Old Town Books)!

Katri – I love King Spa for a recharge day. And Glenstone is one of the most gorgeous places I’ve ever been; I try to go once a month.

TFG: Who is another local business owner that you respect/dig their vibe/etc ? 

Ari – Celthia Corsino is the dynamo behind Bellacara, a truly special beauty boutique in Old Town. They have amazing brands you won’t find anywhere else in the DMV, like Kevyn Aucoin and Suratt Beauty!

Katri – Tuyet Nhi Le! She owns NUE: Elegantly Vietnamese in Falls Church, and the food, the design, the entire vibe, is the absolute dreamiest. It’s a total fantasy and you can tell she cares so much from start to finish about the experience. Also Teal Dye, who owns the wonderful Lotus Blooms in Alexandria! 

TFG: What’s something about living in Northern Virginia you like? 

Ari – So many great restaurants in such a small radius! If I wanted to never cook again, I could!

Katri – Northern Virginia feels like home because you get a tiny bit of everywhere in the world here, thanks to our extremely diverse and global population. I ALWAYS can find something new to explore and love in Northern Virginia. I grew up in a boring sleeper town with very limited options, which taught me the second you leave and get a chance to try new experiences, go all in! There’s always another adventure here.

TFG: What is your favorite restaurant and can’t-miss dish there? 

Ari – Puzukan Tan is Seoul-level Korean barbecue – I highly recommend the ribeye and the cold noodles!

Katri The crispy whole fish at NUE: Elegantly Vietnamese!