Welcome to our Tried & True series, where we highlight the holy grails and OGs, the top-shelf regulars and under-the-radar picks, as well as the new, fresh-off-the-lab products and viral sensations worth the hype—all from reputable brands we’ve road-tested ourselves.
Behind the name, we explore what makes a brand worth discovering, whether it’s how it has redefined beauty, its founder’s inspiring story, or how its range of offerings gave consumers what they truly want and need. In this edition, we take a closer look at Anino, a Filipino fragrance house that turns scents into a study of mood, memory, and duality.
It all began with a shadow.
The brand takes its name from the Filipino word for “shadow,” an idea that became the starting point for its approach to fragrance. After all, as Anino founder Mark Cruz puts it, “a shadow cannot exist without a subject, so it comes with pairs.”
“That is why we incorporated dualities in the brand,” he explains.
That concept shaped Anino’s debut in November 2025, when it launched with six fragrances created around contrasting yet connected ideas. The collection invited people to experience the scents alongside one another, with each fragrance revealing a different side of a larger story.
But while those connections helped introduce the world of Anino, the six scents were never meant to exist only as part of a pair.
“Our earlier campaigns helped establish relationships between the fragrances and showed how they could exist together. But each scent was originally created with a very distinct identity,” Cruz says. “We launched Anino with six scents, each with its own story, composition, and character.”
And after giving people time to get to know the brand and its collection, Anino is now taking a closer look at what happens when those scents are given the space to stand on their own.
“Now that people have had some time to discover Anino, we felt it was the right moment to go deeper,” Cruz shares.
That idea is brought to life in Find Your Focus, Anino’s latest campaign, which shifts the attention from the relationships between the fragrances to the individual worlds within them. Rather than experiencing the six scents primarily in comparison with one another, the campaign invites people to spend time with each one and see what they discover.
“This time, we wanted to shift the attention toward each fragrance individually and let each one speak for itself,” Cruz says. “Giving them their own space allows people to notice details they may have overlooked before—the ingredients, the mood, the progression on skin, or even the memory or feeling it brings out.”
The fragrances may have been introduced through the dualities that link them, but each has its own mood, character, and story waiting to be explored.
Translating Scent Into Something You Can See
Giving each fragrance its own moment also meant finding a way to translate six very different scent experiences into something visual without simply showing the ingredients that make up each composition. Rather than illustrating the notes themselves, Anino’s approach was to capture the feeling each fragrance evokes.
“We focused less on illustrating the literal ingredients and more on translating the feeling of the fragrance,” he says. “We looked at things like light, texture, movement, color, space, and atmosphere. The question became: If this fragrance were a visual experience, what would its world feel like? The visuals aren’t necessarily meant to explain exactly what you’re smelling. They’re there to create an emotional entry point into the scent,” Cruz explains.
That approach reflects the way Anino develops its fragrances in the first place. Rather than beginning with a list of notes, the team starts with something more abstract.
“For Anino, it’s always the idea first,” Cruz says. “As a team, we start by brainstorming around something abstract—it could be a feeling, a moment in time, or an experience that connects back to our larger exploration of shadows, dualities, and juxtaposition.”
And from there, the idea begins to take shape through scent.
“The fragrance becomes a way of giving something intangible a more sensory form,” he says, “so the composition is always rooted in the concept we started with.”
That creative process gives each of Anino’s six scents a distinct identity. There is an idea behind every composition, a feeling that guides it, and now, a visual world that helps bring that story to life.
Reading Between the Notes
Still, no matter how much thought goes into a fragrance’s story and composition, the experience ultimately comes down to the person wearing it.
A scent can smell one way when you first spray it, then shift as it settles on the skin. A note you barely noticed at the beginning might become the one you end up remembering most. And beyond the composition itself, there is everything else a fragrance can bring up: an image, a mood, a memory, or simply a feeling you want to stay with.
That is part of what Anino hopes people discover when they spend time with each fragrance individually.
“Focus can mean noticing a particular note, the way a fragrance develops on your skin, the image it creates in your mind, or simply how it makes you feel,” Cruz says. “Each fragrance gives you something different to focus on.”
And eventually, among those six experiences, one might hold your attention a little longer than the rest. Because while fragrance notes can tell you what goes into a scent, they cannot always tell you what the scent will mean to you.
“A scent can remind one person of a place, another of a person, and someone else of a completely different moment,” Cruz says. “That subjectivity makes fragrance an interesting way of exploring identity. There’s no single interpretation of a scent, just as there’s no single way of defining yourself.”
The same fragrance can take on different meanings depending on who is wearing it, and for Anino, that subjectivity is part of the appeal. “Fragrance is both intimate and invisible,” Cruz says. “You wear it very close to yourself, but it becomes something other people experience around you. It can reflect who you are, but it can also express a side of yourself that you want to explore.”
“We don’t necessarily want someone to think, this is the best fragrance,” Cruz says. “We’d rather they think, this feels like me.”
The collection may have introduced these fragrances as pairs, but getting to know them individually offers a different experience altogether. While Anino created each scent with a distinct idea in mind, the final interpretation is left to the person wearing it, leaving plenty of room to find the one that feels a little more personal than the rest.
With six scents and six different stories, it’s worth taking the time to meet each one.
THE HERO
Exposure
Exposure takes a softer approach to Anino’s Future & Past pairing, combining white musk, moss, and forest haze into what Cruz calls “more of a green skin scent.” The white musk gives it that clean, skin-like quality, while the damp leaves and forest haze notes add a warmer and slightly woody side that keeps it from smelling like a straightforward musk. It wears close and clean, with enough of a green edge to give the scent some character without making it feel overly fresh or sharp.
It’s also a fragrance you can wear without much thought. “Some people spray this before going to bed,” Cruz shares, which says a lot about its easygoing character. Exposure doesn’t need a special occasion or a reason to be worn; it works just as well when you’re staying in as it does when you’re heading out.
Exposure by Anino
P1,700, The Beauty Edit Gallery
THE EASY WEAR
Sigh
Sigh is the softer half of Anino’s Inhale & Exhale pairing, created with hibiscus, summer tryst, and sea breeze. It’s floral without becoming overly floral, with the hibiscus giving it a light, uplifting quality while the sea-breeze element keeps it airy and easy.
True to its name, Sigh feels like the perfume equivalent of taking a breath and letting your shoulders drop. It’s uncomplicated in the best way, something you can spray before heading out, after a shower, or whenever you want a little lift without reaching for something too strong. If you usually gravitate toward fresh florals but don’t want anything too sweet or floral-forward, Sigh would be an easy place to start.
Sigh by Anino
P1,700, The Beauty Edit Gallery
THE DAY STARTER
Countdown
Countdown is the more forward-moving and energetic half of Anino’s Future & Past pairing with notes of spring water, urban sun, and cucumber. It has the kind of freshness that makes sense first thing in the morning: crisp and clean, but with something slightly sharper. It’s crisp without being too sporty, and bright without leaning citrus-heavy—more of a clean-slate kind of fragrance. It’s an easy pick when you want to feel a little more awake before the day has properly started.
Countdown by Anino
P1,700, The Beauty Edit Gallery
THE SOFT STATEMENT
I Dreamed of Grace
Dreamed of Grace brings the sweeter side of Anino’s Dream State & Insomnia pairing which is centered on saccharine lightness, lace, and morning fog. There’s a clear sweetness to it, but not to the point of becoming too heavy or full-on gourmand. The lace and morning-fog notes make it lighter, keeping the sugary quality airy and easy to wear. It’s a fragrance you’d reach for when you want something sweet, but don’t necessarily want to smell like vanilla, caramel, or something candy-sweet.
What makes I Dreamed of Grace especially easy to like is that it has enough sweetness to be noticeable without taking over. It feels soft and light on the skin, making it a good choice for daytime, casual plans, or whenever you just want something a little sweeter in your rotation.
I Dreamed of Grace by Anino
P1,700, The Beauty Edit Gallery
THE AFTER HOURS SCENT
Running in Place
Running in Place is the more restless half of Anino’s Dream State & Insomnia pairing, bringing together sharp citrus, spicy rum, vanilla, and incense. It’s a sharper departure from the softer sweetness of its other half, with the citrus giving the opening a brighter lift before the spicy rum and incense add warmth and depth. The rum, especially, adds a slightly boozy warmth that makes the scent feel more suited to the evening.
Running in Place by Anino
P1,700, The Beauty Edit Gallery
EDITOR FAVORITE
Seabed
The Inhale side of Anino’s Inhale & Exhale pairing, Seabed was inspired by “the feeling of submergence,” Cruz explains. And you can really pick up on that inspiration when you wear it. With its salty air, sea grapes and mineral notes, and deep-sea character, Seabed stands out for its beachy quality without seeming like a typical tropical fragrance. It has that fresh and slightly salty quality that instantly brings the coast to mind, while the mineral notes give it more depth and keep it from feeling one-dimensional.
Seabed by Anino
P,1700, The Beauty Edit Gallery
Shop Anino and more Filipino fragrance brands at The Beauty Edit Gallery at Spatio, located on the 3/F of Opus Mall, Bridgetowne Destination Estate, Quezon City. An editorial-led retail concept—and the first-of-its-kind in the local scene—the gallery spotlights indie innovators, cult icons, and niche trailblazers shaping F-beauty today.
