Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The perfume industry is a strange, strange place - but we WILL navigate it! If you've been shopping for a new scent and don't know where to look that isn't just the perfume counter, here are some alternative buys that aren't QUITE as strange as the mainstream brands.
LINKS:
My fragrances (all bought by me, no spon, gifting or affiliation):
WXY: wxycandles.co.uk (Leo)
LUSH: lush.com/uk/en/c/fragrances (Cardamom Coffee)
FLORAL STREET: floralstreet.com (Black Lotus)
Also interested in:
Flaya: flaya.co.uk
The Society Of Alchemists: thesocietyofalchemists.co.uk
Eden (refillable dupes): edenperfumes.co.uk
SOURCES:
ethicalconsumer.org/health-beauty/shopping-guide/ethical-perfume-aftershave
inews.co.uk/news/environment/body-shop-calls-global-ban-animal-testing-69679
humaneworld.org/en
animaldiversity.org/accounts/Civettictis_civetta
nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-is-ambergris.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27Or%C3%A9al
00:00 intro
00:10 My conundrum
05:43 What should you care?
Brands to avoid
12:43 Guidelines to shop by
15:43 Brands to support
20:30 Brands to watch
21:34 Final thoughts
/// SUPPORT ///
JOIN THE GUMPTION CLUB: patreon.com/thegumptionclub
Being in the club means you get:
• A free weekly podcast
• Access to a secret DISCORD and Facebook group
• Exclusive poetry and playlists made by me
• Secret videos and digital downloads available to Gumption Club members only
• AND you get access to all of my YouTube videos before anyone else sees them!
(Quick tip for Apple device users: due to Patreon's arrangement with Apple being weird, it's actually more expensive to sign up to become a Gumption Club member via the Patreon app on an Apple device. If you are on an Apple device I would advise joining via a web browser (just visit patreon.com/c/thegumptionclub/), not the app. However, once you’ve signed up and paid elsewhere, you can still use the app on Apple devices to access Patreon as normal - easy peasy!)
CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP - for those lovely people who don't want to use Patreon and aren't bothered about the patreon perks, but who'd like to buy me a drink as a thank you for the free videos... youtube.com/channel/UCpqf-UHCeCSd0BqoxxrDv8g/join
ORDER my book ‘HALF-ARSE HUMAN’: leenanorms.com/halfarsehuman
ORDER my poetry collection, 'BARGAIN BIN ROM-COM' https://linktr.ee/bargainbinromcom
Nab yourself a POSITIVE PANIC PATCH:
leenanorms.com/shop
// COME AND HANG WITH ME IN BETWEEN UPLOADS //
Listen to my podcast, NO BOOKS ON A DEAD PLANET: https://linktr.ee/nobooksonadeadplanet
IF NEWSLETTERS ARE YOUR THING, sign up to get a little letter in your inbox from me once in a while! As a thank you for signing up, you’ll get a FREE downloadable list of my best books of all time: leenanorms.substack.com/subscribe
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/leenanorms
TWITTER: twitter.com/leenanorms
I use Octopus Energy which are a clean green sustainable energy company - if you're in the UK and are curious, here are the two videos I talk about them in:
youtu.be/O0TR7RvVRlI and youtu.be/IEqf94lb44U
And here's my referral link if you'd like to get £50 off (I get £50 off too, woo!) https://share.octopus.energy/fun-hawk-883
All music used is licensed through Epidemic Sound - I've been using them for years and hand-on-heart it's really fab. You get unlimited use of their music per month for a pretty bargain fee. Here's my referral link (if you sign up through it I get a free month): epidemicsound.com/referral/1b1yhj
If you're a company that makes plastic-free products, pays their tax and doesn't exploit people, I'd love to hear from you if you'd like to sponsor the channel: leenanorms@gmail.com
The perfume industry is a strange, strange place - but we WILL navigate it! If you've been shopping for a new scent and don't know where to look that isn't just the perfume counter, here are some alternative buys that aren't QUITE as strange as the mainstream brands.
LINKS:
My fragrances (all bought by me, no spon, gifting or affiliation):
WXY: wxycandles.co.uk (Leo)
LUSH: lush.com/uk/en/c/fragrances (Cardamom Coffee)
FLORAL STREET: floralstreet.com (Black Lotus)
Also interested in:
Flaya: flaya.co.uk
The Society Of Alchemists: thesocietyofalchemists.co.uk
Eden (refillable dupes): edenperfumes.co.uk
SOURCES:
ethicalconsumer.org/health-beauty/shopping-guide/ethical-perfume-aftershave
inews.co.uk/news/environment/body-shop-calls-global-ban-animal-testing-69679
humaneworld.org/en
animaldiversity.org/accounts/Civettictis_civetta
nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-is-ambergris.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27Or%C3%A9al
00:00 intro
00:10 My conundrum
05:43 What should you care?
Brands to avoid
12:43 Guidelines to shop by
15:43 Brands to support
20:30 Brands to watch
21:34 Final thoughts
/// SUPPORT ///
JOIN THE GUMPTION CLUB: patreon.com/thegumptionclub
Being in the club means you get:
• A free weekly podcast
• Access to a secret DISCORD and Facebook group
• Exclusive poetry and playlists made by me
• Secret videos and digital downloads available to Gumption Club members only
• AND you get access to all of my YouTube videos before anyone else sees them!
(Quick tip for Apple device users: due to Patreon's arrangement with Apple being weird, it's actually more expensive to sign up to become a Gumption Club member via the Patreon app on an Apple device. If you are on an Apple device I would advise joining via a web browser (just visit patreon.com/c/thegumptionclub/), not the app. However, once you’ve signed up and paid elsewhere, you can still use the app on Apple devices to access Patreon as normal - easy peasy!)
CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP - for those lovely people who don't want to use Patreon and aren't bothered about the patreon perks, but who'd like to buy me a drink as a thank you for the free videos... youtube.com/channel/UCpqf-UHCeCSd0BqoxxrDv8g/join
ORDER my book ‘HALF-ARSE HUMAN’: leenanorms.com/halfarsehuman
ORDER my poetry collection, 'BARGAIN BIN ROM-COM' https://linktr.ee/bargainbinromcom
Nab yourself a POSITIVE PANIC PATCH:
leenanorms.com/shop
// COME AND HANG WITH ME IN BETWEEN UPLOADS //
Listen to my podcast, NO BOOKS ON A DEAD PLANET: https://linktr.ee/nobooksonadeadplanet
IF NEWSLETTERS ARE YOUR THING, sign up to get a little letter in your inbox from me once in a while! As a thank you for signing up, you’ll get a FREE downloadable list of my best books of all time: leenanorms.substack.com/subscribe
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/leenanorms
TWITTER: twitter.com/leenanorms
I use Octopus Energy which are a clean green sustainable energy company - if you're in the UK and are curious, here are the two videos I talk about them in:
youtu.be/O0TR7RvVRlI and youtu.be/IEqf94lb44U
And here's my referral link if you'd like to get £50 off (I get £50 off too, woo!) https://share.octopus.energy/fun-hawk-883
All music used is licensed through Epidemic Sound - I've been using them for years and hand-on-heart it's really fab. You get unlimited use of their music per month for a pretty bargain fee. Here's my referral link (if you sign up through it I get a free month): epidemicsound.com/referral/1b1yhj
If you're a company that makes plastic-free products, pays their tax and doesn't exploit people, I'd love to hear from you if you'd like to sponsor the channel: leenanorms@gmail.com
