Meet the Maker

Hi, I'm Aba, founder of Akiba.

I've always loved fragrance, beauty, and thoughtfully crafted things. I'm drawn to care that feels intentional, well made, and grounded in daily life. That love is what started Akiba.

But it was loss that gave it purpose.

In 2017, I lost my sense of smell for several months. When it returned, it came back altered - a condition called parosmia that made many everyday scents difficult and sometimes unbearable. Products I had loved became impossible to use.

Then the pandemic arrived, and I watched the same thing happen to so many others - people losing their smell, developing sensitivities, suddenly struggling with products they had used their whole lives. And beyond them, a much larger world of people navigating fragrance sensitivity and reactive skin, who had been quietly managing the same frustration for years.

So I rebuilt Akiba around that need.

What I learned through my own experience - and through listening to theirs - is that there is a significant difference between something that feels impressive once and something that feels safe to return to. That distinction guides every formula I create, every ingredient I select, and every product I put my name on.

No added fragrance. No masking scents. No essential oils. Nothing that hides a known irritant under a different name.

I built Akiba once as someone who loved fragrance. I rebuilt it as someone who had learned what fragrance could do to people that couldn't tolerate it. That second perspective is the one that made it worth something."

If you have spent years reading labels, switching products, and still reacting - Akiba was rebuilt for you. I'm glad you are here.

With care, Aba