Grupo Carinsa, a Catalan company specializing in fragrances and comprehensive solutions for the perfumery and cosmetics industry, and in aromas and technological solutions for human and animal food, will present this Thursday, November 13th, in New York the Perfume de Barcelona by CARINSA, an olfactory creation that pays homage to the Catalan capital through the senses.
The launch is part of the Barcelona – New York Summit, an event organized by Barcelona Global and Barcelona & Partners to boost the city's international profile through innovation and business creativity.
“This perfume is a tribute to our city and its capacity to inspire innovation and emotions. At Carinsa, we believe in the power of the senses as a universal language, and we want the world to know the creativity that is born in Barcelona,” states Vanesa Martínez, CEO of Grupo Carinsa.
Its top notes -lemon, bergamot, cardamom, and pepper- represent the fresh energy of the city at dawn; its heart notes -lavender, rosemary, orange blossom, and fig leaves- evoke its elegance and urban calm; while its base notes -patchouli, sandalwood, almond, and vanilla- symbolize the warmth of sunsets and Catalan tradition.
A family business with a global vision
Founded in 1993 by chemical engineer Alberto Martínez Ortega, Carinsa is a family business currently led by his daughters Vanesa and Denia Martínez. After their father's passing in 2005, they took over the management of the company, while the group's main shareholder is their mother, Isabel Chamorro.
The company, located in Sant Quirze del Vallès, employs 200 professionals of 33 nationalities —30% in R&D and 20% industrial doctors, flavorists, and perfumers—, although it expects to exceed 300 employees in the next five years.
Carinsa maintains an international presence in 58 countries, with subsidiaries in Algeria, Morocco, Turkey, and Venezuela, and its medium-term challenge is to expand into sub-Saharan Africa (Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Ghana). Currently, it allocates 20% of its turnover to R&D in three strategic areas: nutrition and health, sustainability, and disruption. To date, the company has registered 30 international patents and continues to develop disruptive innovations in flavors, fragrances, functional ingredients, and technologies applied to food and cosmetics.
In the last decade, its turnover has increased by around 30% and the results at the close of 2024 mark a turnover of 59.9 million euros. The forecast is to grow in double digits by the close of 2025, maintaining this trend in 2026
Currently, Carinsa is in the process of acquiring four additional warehouses in Sant Quirze, located near the current factory, which will multiply its production capacity tenfold. The goal is to grow exponentially and reach 100 million euros in turnover by 2030.
The growth project will be carried out in several phases: the first warehouse will be operational in October 2026 and will be used to expand facilities and production capacity for the food division.
Innovation and Future
Carinsa is currently working on new lines of research, including Deep Learning and artificial intelligence to optimize sensory profiles of flavors, cultivated meat, biotechnology, postbiotics, and nutritional reformulation. The company is also committed to natural FTNF flavors for gazpachos and juices, in collaboration with canning companies and fruit processors.
After the presentation of Perfume de Madrid in September 2024, the company plans to continue developing fragrances inspired by different cities around the world, starting with New York and, in the future, other European capitals, consolidating its role as an olfactory ambassador for each city and promoting sensory innovation as an international cultural bridge.
“Carinsa is a global company in the flavors, fragrances, and preparations segment; in fact, only we and one other company have the full range of activities and production in Spain,” highlights Denia Martínez, vice president of Grupo Carinsa.
Esencia Carinsa and immersive experiences
The new space Esencia Carinsa, opened at the beginning of 2025 on Paseo de Gràcia (Barcelona), has become a center for training and collaboration with clients, suppliers, startups, and agents of the Grupo Carinsa ecosystem. Initiatives such as the Club de los Aromas, the Club del Perfume, and thematic podcasts for the sector will be developed here.
It is also home to the Alberto Martínez Institute, created in 2028 in honor of the company's founder, which consists of five main pillars: entrepreneurship, training and dissemination, the reformulation collaboratory, sustainability and ESG strategy, and consumer knowledge