Why Fulton & Roark Skipped DTC and Sold Wholesale First
About this episode
Kevin Keller discusses the founding and growth of Fulton & Roark, emphasizing their unique approach to fragrance and retail.
At 6 years old, Kevin Keller was already "stealing" his father's cologne — a habit generously tolerated by his dad — and discovering that scent could change the way you felt before you ever said a word. That early fascination with transformation eventually became Fulton & Roark, the American fine fragrance house Keller co-founded in 2013 with $11,000 and a belief that perfumery could be both deeply personal and distinctly American. Raised in Atlanta and educated at Georgia State University and Wake Forest University, Keller began his career in journalism before turning to music and culture, where he profiled brilliant emerging musicians and artists. What stayed with him was a fascination with culture, place, and tradition — and how those forces subtly shape the way we carry ourselves in the world. Built without outside capital, Fulton & Roark has grown into a nationally distributed independent fragrance brand, available in nearly 500 retail locations including premier independent boutiques, select Ritz-Carlton and Omni properties, and Neiman Marcus stores and online. The brand has been featured in GQ, Vogue, and ELLE, among others, and its fragrance Roark's Cove was a…
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