Chriselle Lim, the creative force behind PHLUR, discusses how fragrance is also a storytelling language and how reinvention and change underpin her success.

Chriselle Lim was one of the first fashion influencers to build a global career through digital content, long before the creator economy became the multi-billion-dollar industry it is today.

What began as a personal style blog evolved into a platform spanning fashion, beauty, and entrepreneurship, establishing Lim as one of the industry’s most influential digital voices.

In 2021, she co-acquired fine fragrance brand PHLUR, and as its creative director and majority owner, transformed
it into one of the beauty industry’s modern success stories. Under her leadership, some of the brand’s flagship fragrances, including Missing Person, Father Figure, and Vanilla Skin, have become global bestsellers.

Today, in addition to being an entrepreneur, investor, and a mother of two, Lim continues to challenge conventional ideas of success.

Through honest conversations about reinvention, confidence, motherhood, and identity, she has built a platform that extends far beyond fashion and beauty, encouraging women to define success on their own terms. We spoke to Lim about building on the foundations of PHLUR, the emotional power of fragrance, embracing change, and not conforming to expectations.

You wear many hats – creative director, entrepreneur, investor, content creator, mother, style icon... Which role feels most true to who you are today, and how do they all shape one another?

I’ve stopped thinking of them separately. Storyteller is the only word that holds it all together. Motherhood made me a softer leader. Building a company made me a harder one and taught me the importance of structure and risk and tolerance, but creativity is the thread I pull through both. The hats don’t compete – they support and explain each other.

You’ve reinvented yourself several times throughout your career, both personally and professionally. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned about embracing change rather than fearing it?

Every time it felt as though things were falling apart, they were actually falling into place. I couldn’t see it in the moment, but I can now. Change still scares me because there will always be uncertainty, but I no longer see it as a stop sign. I see it as a sign of movement.

Instead of asking, “What if it all goes wrong?” I ask myself, “What if it’s even better than I imagined?”. I’ve come to realise that the person I want to become exists on the other side of change and challenge. So, I view change with an open heart and an opportunity to grow.

Your audience has witnessed some of your most transformative life moments. How do you decide what to share publicly, and where do you draw the line between authenticity and privacy?

For me, authenticity doesn’t mean sharing every part of my life in real time. There are some experiences that need space before I’m ready to talk about them. My priority has always been to process, reflect, and heal first. Once I’ve gained that perspective, I ask myself if sharing this helps someone else, or is it simply something I need to say for myself?

If I believe my experience can offer reassurance, insight, or help another woman make a better decision, then I feel a responsibility
to tell that story. My mission is to help other women make smarter, better decisions in life, and if that could be through some of my personal stories and moments, I do feel a sense of weight and responsibility to share them with the world.

What drew you to the world of fragrance and to PHLUR? How do you see scent as a form of storytelling compared to fashion?

Fashion is the first thing people see. Fragrance is what they remember. Scent was my journal long before it became my profession. It was a language for expressing the things I couldn’t always say out loud.

My earliest memory is of my grandmother spritzing Chanel No. 5 before leaving for work, a simple ritual that left a lasting impression on me.

When I took over PHLUR, I deliberately built it from the feeling and the story first, and the fragrance second. Rather than starting with fragrance notes, we began by asking what emotion we wanted to evoke – name the feeling, not the note.

As one of the pioneers of the digital creator space, how do you view the evolution of social media? Do you think today’s platforms still reward authenticity, or have they become more performance-driven?

It used to feel like discovery. Now it feels like performance. But audiences are the most intuitive readers there are. They can feel the difference between something real and something manufactured. The platforms will keep changing, but the appetite for
something real will only grow.

Through your work with fragrance, fashion, and beauty, you’ve explored how women express themselves. How has your own definition of beauty, confidence, and luxury evolved over the years?

Beauty used to be something I associated with appearance. Today, I see it as alignment – when the person you are on the inside is reflected in how you present yourself to the world. Someone once asked me how to become more confident, and my answer has always been the same.

You have to go through some hard times, pick yourself back up and try again. That’s where real confidence is built.

Your Korean heritage and global perspective have shaped your journey. How has your cultural identity influenced the woman and leader you’ve become today?

I was born in the United States to Korean parents and spent my childhood between America and Korea, living in Texas, California, and Seoul. For a long time, I felt as though I didn’t fully belong in either place.

Over time, I realised that my identity isn’t defined by choosing one culture over the other. It’s shaped by both. I was raised in America, but my roots are deeply connected to Korean culture, and together, they’ve given me a unique perspective on the world.
Earlier, it used to feel like being caught between two worlds. Now, it’s a space in which I feel most at home.

How has becoming a mother changed your outlook on ambition, success, and the legacy you hope to leave for your daughters?

Motherhood strengthened my ambition and redefined what I was working towards. I want my daughters to see a woman build
something meaningful while still being present in their lives.

For a long time, I believed I had to choose between the two. I later realised that building my career with my daughters beside me was one of the most valuable lessons I could give them. It showed them that women are capable of pursuing their ambitions without losing sight of what matters most.

Balance does not exist – it is a myth sold to women. What’s important is being present and showing your children that you
can do both.

What does modern success look like to you, and what advice would you give women trying to make it on their own terms?

Success is the freedom to decide what matters most in each period of your life. The most powerful thing I’ve seen a woman do is define success for herself, rather than letting the world decide whether she’s a good mother, entrepreneur, or anything else.

If you feel proud of the work you’re doing and the life you’re creating, that’s the only definition that truly matters. No one else gets to decide what success looks like for you.

Looking ahead, what excites you most about this chapter of your life, and what impact do you hope to have beyond the worlds of fashion and beauty?

More building. More creating. More storytelling. Fashion and beauty have always been the starting point, but for me they’ve
never been the real subject. The real conversation has always been about identity, growth, and who you’re becoming. If there’s one thing I hope to leave behind, it’s a sense of possibility. I want people to see that reinvention isn’t the end of the story – it’s often where the most meaningful chapter begins.

Photos: Courtesy of Chriselle Lim