Living Well with Yasmin Sewell: Founder of Vyrao

For Yasmin Sewell, the leap from fashion insider to wellness alchemist wasn’t so much a pivot as it was a long-overdue integration. After years shaping the creative vision at Browns, Liberty, and Farfetch, she found herself craving something more—something that spoke to the unseen. What emerged was Vyrao, a high-vibration fragrance brand rooted in energy, emotion, and the belief that scent can shift your entire state of being. In this Living Well interview, Yasmin opens up about her intuitive path to clean fragrance, why emotional resonance matters more than trends, and how she’s blending crystal healing, scent-emotion mapping, and intention into bottles that do more than just smell good, they help you feel good too.

Living Well with Yasmin Sewell

You had a celebrated career in fashion—working with Browns, Liberty, Farfetch—what inner shift or moment in 2018 sparked the move toward holistic wellness and Vyrao? Throughout my fashion career, I always nurtured a parallel passion for spirituality and holistic health, training in Reiki, Integrative Quantum Medicine™, and flower remedies. After leaving my last major fashion role in 2018 and going through significant personal changes, I felt it was time to bring together everything I loved and believed in. That became Vyrao.

How did your past career chapters inform what you didn’t want to do when launching Vyrao? Fashion for me was always inspiring, it was exciting, but it also made me realise what I didn’t want when creating Vyrao. I didn’t want to build something solely driven by external trends or seasons. Instead, I wanted to create something that would help people connect with themselves on a deeper level. Vyrao is about more than just how we look or what’s ‘in.’ It’s about how we feel and cultivating an emotional, almost spiritual connection to our sense of self through the senses. 

The term “clean fragrance” gets thrown around a lot—what does it actually mean to you, and how did you approach formulating Vyrao without compromising creativity or performance? For me, ‘clean fragrance’ means being incredibly mindful about the ingredients. The standards keep shifting and we continuously strive to better ourselves and our formulations. At Vyrao, this means carefully selecting ingredients that are safe, sustainable, and ethically sourced, while never compromising on creativity or the emotional impact of the scent. We are proud to say that all our latest fragrances are super clean and are as good for you as they smell. 

You’ve partnered with IFF’s Science of Wellness program—how does research into scent-emotion mapping guide fragrance creation? Scent is a powerful tool for shifting mood and energy. Partnering with IFF’s Science of Wellness program allows us to combine time-honored and ancestral knowledge with modern research into scent-emotion mapping. Ingredients that have been used for centuries for their healing properties are now scientifically validated, bridging intuition and evidence. For me, intuition has always been a guiding force, but working with IFF helps refine that instinct through the lens of science. 

Each Vyrao fragrance starts with a mood—like mindfulness (The Sixth), joy (Sun Rae), grounding (Mamajuju). What’s your creative process when starting with an emotion and translating it into a scent? It always starts with an emotion or energy I want to convey, and I’m guided from there. Each fragrance I create feels like it has a purpose, a unique energy. With the launch of The Sixth, our first Neuroscent for mindfulness and intuition, we realised we needed to create a fragrance that would do the opposite: something that connects you to the earth, something that makes you feel more grounded and aware, that is Mamajuju. And now we have just launched our new Love Eight, which features all eight of our fragrances, so you can feel it all, designed to shift your energy whichever way you need, whenever and wherever you need it most. 

Every bottle has a Herkimer crystal, charged in Hawai‘i. How do you describe their energetic impact in combination with scent? How would you share that without losing people in the ‘woo’? Each of our 50ml fragrances contains a Herkimer diamond, a high-vibrational crystal known for clarity and deflecting negativity. Paired with ingredients chosen for their specific energetic benefits, the crystal amplifies the intention behind each scent. While not everyone may connect with crystal healing, it’s a meaningful added layer for those who do, enhancing the overall experience of the fragrance.

Do you have a mantra, affirmation, or phrase that’s been living rent-free in your head lately? Energy is Everything. Always.

What five items are always in your hand-luggage when you travel—and which Vyrao scent earns a seat next to them? Definitely the Love Eight – it’s the ultimate travel companion. If I had to pick one scent for now, it would be Sun Rae. It’s so refreshing for summer and scientifically backed to promote joy and happiness. 

Are there any wellness trends you’re loving right now? My Helsi sauna that I just got in my home – they’re incredible for relaxation, red light and detox.

What’s one clean beauty or wellness brand you deeply admire right now? I love my friend Cynthia Sakai’s brand Evolve Together

What’s a podcast you return to when you need a mindset reset or creative inspiration? Anytime I listen to Tara Brach’s voice

What advice would you give to other women wanting to build a brand that feels deeply personal, spiritual, and still commercially strong? Build something that resonates deeply with you and has a clear, unique perspective. Focus on what you do best, and don’t hesitate to bring in the right people. Surround yourself with those who share your vision and want to join you on the journey.