Lattafa Asad Elixir is officially the Popular Fragrance of the Year at the Beautyworld Dubai Awards, and what a victory lap for the Dubai house behind it! Lattafa Perfumes was founded in the 1980s by Sheikh Shahid Ahmad and Shoaib Iqbal, who began by offering traditional Arabian attars and oud based oils to local GCC customers.
The name draws from the Arabic words Latif and Lateefa. The company expanded into international spray perfumery in the early 2010s, and today it is a family business welcoming its third generation. A team of upwards of 3,000 employees powers a catalog of upwards of 2,000 active products that ship to upwards of 120 countries. Maison Alhambra and Asdaaf belong to the Lattafa family of labels, as do Rave and Vurv.
Asad Elixir is the newest chapter of the Asad line, a name that means lion in Arabic. The first Asad launched in 2021, and the line has since welcomed Zanzibar and Bourbon, and then Elixir in 2025. This eau de parfum comes in a 100 ml matte black bottle finished in metallic details, and its profile leans into dry tobacco and warm amber.
Dubai Crowns a Lion
The gala took place on 7 October at Le Méridien Dubai Hotel and Conference Centre, as the seventh edition of the Beautyworld Dubai Awards. Organizers call the awards a benchmark for excellence in beauty and fragrance. A total of 85 finalists competed in 17 categories, and an independent panel of 20 international industry professionals judged the field. Popular Fragrance of the Year is one of two dedicated fragrance honors, and the category drew nearly 300 entries at the previous edition, so the competition is fierce every year.
Lattafa was named among the finalists in that category next to Assaf and Kayali, and the final result is a win for a lion in a black bottle. Let that sink in! A house that started by serving neighbors in the Gulf now holds a trophy from one of the biggest beauty gatherings on the planet. That is a thrilling chapter for a family business, and everyone behind this bottle deserves a roaring ovation.
Lattafa Asad Elixir Opens Bright and Peppery
Dark grapefruit fizzes on the skin as the first spray goes off, and then saffron joins in, bringing a dry, exotic luxury. Pink pepper completes the top notes and adds a crackle that wakes you up instantly. That fizzy kick makes the opening memorable. It is an opening made for people who love a big hello. Every spray starts the party, and the best part is that the party keeps getting better. The grapefruit brings a juicy zing that makes the saffron glow, and the pepper keeps the whole opening lively. Fans of bright citrus and warm spice get both in a single spray.
A Heart of Tobacco and Cedarwood
The middle of this fragrance is a dense, smoky stretch of dry tobacco and cedarwood, and vanilla adds a creamy glow to the whole thing. Cedarwood gives the smoke a dry woody backbone, and the tobacco keeps things intense from the first minute. Down at the base you get frankincense and light amber, while patchouli and cashmeran finish the job in a warm and resinous finish that is thoroughly masculine. Tobacco fans will be thrilled. Anyone who loves resins will be thrilled too. Frankincense has been a treasured ingredient in the Middle East for centuries, and its incense character gives the dry down a long, smoky glow that lingers on your jacket.
Lattafa Asad Elixir Lasts All Night
Performance is the headline here, and this bottle earns its roar. Wearers report eight to ten hours or longer on skin, and the first two hours bring big projection that fills the air around you. Reach for it on cool evenings and at formal events, and expect compliments to follow you home. A concentrated eau de parfum gives you a full night of fragrance from a few sprays. Autumn and winter evenings suit this bottle best, and its dark tobacco and amber glow after sunset. Every bottle holds 100 ml, so the fragrance has plenty of mileage for the season ahead. Spritz it on your wrists and neck, grab your keys, and enjoy the ride from dinner to dessert to the drive home.
Beautyworld Gives Dubai Its Spotlight
Beautyworld Dubai opened its 30th edition on 6 October at Dubai World Trade Centre and runs until 8 October. The fragrance section spans 19,000 square metres and hosts exhibitors numbering past 220, and Lattafa is one of the headline names on the floor. Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum opened the show, and Huda Kattan, founder of Huda Beauty, was named the Beautyworld Icon Award honoree at the same gala that crowned Asad Elixir. Dubai is celebrating its perfume houses, and Lattafa is celebrating a lion.
Last year the show welcomed visitors numbering past 80,000 from 178 countries, so this trophy goes home to a global stage. The fragrance section has grown past triple its 2017 size, which makes a win in this category a seriously exciting prize. Gulf brands are growing in cities from New York to São Paulo. Lattafa Pride debuted at this show in 2022, which makes this win a homecoming. Here is to the whole team behind this bottle. Dubai handed Lattafa a trophy, and Asad Elixir wears the crown beautifully.
