by Karen Tee
Tennis champ Rafael Nadal is known for his mastery of the sport, his grit and tenacity — and also for being extremely private about his personal life. So, if you are interested in venturing into his private headspace, this surprise drop of perfumes created with French fragrance label Henry Jacques might be your best chance.
In All Intimacy, the three-perfume collection, marks the first time Nadal and his wife Maria Perello — they met as teenagers in Mallorca and married in 2019 — have teamed up with a perfume house. It is also the first time Henry Jacques has partnered with anyone outside the company to produce fragrances.
There are two scents for him and one for her. One embodies his tennis character and the other, his personal side. In a fascinating twist, the tie-up was brokered by watchmaker Richard Mille, who is the uncle of Anne-Lise Cremona, daughter of Henry Jacques’ founder Henry Cremona, and the brand’s current CEO. (The 22-time Grand Slam champion has been wearing Mille’s watches since 2008.)
“Richard started speaking to him about Henry Jacques and the perfumes, and Rafa just said, ‘I’d love to know more,’” Cremona told American Vogue magazine.
Following the creation of the customised fragrances for the couple, it was Nadal’s decision to make the scents commercially available as he was so fascinated by the perfume-making process.
Scents help to put the tennis star in the right mood for specific situations. After showering, he enjoys using a fragrance to keep feeling clean and refreshed — an essential aspect of his everyday life as a professional athlete.
Rafael Nadal No 1 was inspired by the Mediterranean Sea. “It is difficult to imagine my life without the Mediterranean Sea. I love its scent, the citrus, the freshness,” says Nadal of the perfume, which blends thyme, violet, lavender, lemon and the Mediterranean artemisia with cedar, leather and sandalwood.
Rafael Nadal No 2, blended for private, off-duty moments, features bergamot, jasmine, lilac, rose, citrus notes and sandalwood. It is olfactorily linked to his wife’s Maria Perello scent, which also features notes of bergamot and jasmine, as well as violet and orange blossom.
Not surprisingly, Nadal, who is known for precise on-court rituals such as placing his water bottle in the same position during matches, has a one-of-a-kind perfume application method: He spritzes each side of his neck once before one last spritz over his heart. How romantic.