Street Style: Meet Arielle Weinberg and Katri Haas of Arielle Shoshana
If you’ve ever owned a signature scent, hunted one down, or caught a fleeting trace and still regret not asking what it was, you know that a great scent lingers in memory long after it fades from skin. That identity defining and time-stopping relationship with scent is what drives Arielle Weinberg and Katri Haas, co-owners of the perfume playground, Arielle Shoshana.
For Arielle, perfume was never a phase. Growing up in Maryland, she spent hours on early beauty message boards, dissecting reviews and following “scent of the day” threads. In high school, she chose her prom fragrance based solely on its promise of “golden goddess” energy, Bond No. 9 New Haarlem. When she realized it wasn’t sold in the D.C. area, she took a Greyhound to New York to buy it for herself.
That kind of devotion doesn’t disappear. It becomes a business.
After graduating from Johns Hopkins University and working in niche New York fragrance boutiques, Arielle decided to chart her own path in perfume. In 2015, at just 23, she signed a lease in the Mosaic District and opened Arielle Shoshana. She didn’t have a blueprint, but she had conviction. Early brands took a chance. Customers followed. A community began to form.
Meet Arielle Weinberg
Self-styled
Shoot Location: Arielle Shoshana
Photography: Renée C. Gage
Katri first walked into the shop as a customer. With a background in graphic design and beauty retail management at Bluemercury, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's, and LUSH, beauty had always felt second nature to her. “It’s like a slumber party,” she says. “You can bond with anyone over beauty.”
The two had overlapped years earlier on fragrance forums, where Katri admired Arielle’s writing and encyclopedic scent knowledge. When she visited the Mosaic store, she told Arielle, “Just pay me in perfume.”
Within weeks, she joined the staff. Three years later, she became co-owner.
Meet Katri Haas
Self-styled
Shoot Location: Arielle Shoshana
Photography: Renée C. Gage
They’re quick to admit they’re opposites but united in their mission: make luxury feel welcoming.
Both had worked in environments where perfume felt gatekept. Bottles out of reach, samples rationed. At Arielle Shoshana, the philosophy flips that script. Staff are educators, not salespeople. Customers are encouraged to test, explore, and trust their own noses. If that means sending someone home with samples instead of closing a sale, so be it.
“I think everyone has their own deeply personal relationship with perfume, where you have a set of associations that goes back to childhood,” says Arielle. “One person loves rose because it reminds them of their grandmother. Another person hates rose for the same reason. It’s personal.”
In 2017, that belief became even more intimate. Arielle began developing her own fragrance line. One that would eventually have six signature scents named after days of the week.
When the team hit a creative wall while developing “Wednesday,” they turned to their loyal and robust TikTok followers for inspiration. A bold and unexpected comment from Michelle Visage, best known as a judge on RuPaul's Drag Race, read “PINE ! Let’s collab” and sparked an iconic partnership. The result: a scent released in December 2025, layered with notes of pine, frankincense, cedarwood, amber, honey as well as leopard print and ripped fishnets, of course.
By 2025, growth called for a new home. The boutique relocated to a historic 1800s building at 313 Cameron Street in Old Town. The new space is light and airy, with stunning floral wallpaper, a glass chandelier sourced from Italy, a giant courtyard (by Old Town standards) that is bound to host some of the best events of the year, and walls lined with over 300 distinctive, conversation-starting scents. Truly, a perfume playground.
For all the accolades and loyal online following, Arielle and Katri define success more simply. “I hope people remember Arielle Shoshana as a place that felt warm and welcoming,” Arielle says, “a place where you’re encouraged to explore and have fun, because fragrance should be fun. A place where people can just be themselves and love what they love.”
For Katri, the impact goes deeper than a signature scent on one's skin, “I love when someone puts on perfume and we can visibly see them look more empowered to take on the world,” she says. “It feels like a superpower to be able to give that to someone.”
Together, Arielle and Katri have built more than a boutique. They’ve created a space where curiosity is encouraged, luxury feels inviting instead of intimidating, and anyone can walk in and find a scent that reflects who they are–distinct, personal, unforgettable–just like the women behind Arielle Shoshana.
ABOUT ARIELLE & KATRI
Your neighborhood:
Arielle: Fairfax
Katri: Falls Church
Your hometown:
Arielle: Bethesda
Katri: Richmond
What would surprise people about you?
Arielle: I’m a perfumery school reject!
Katri: I LOVE pranks.
Favorite book or movie:
Arielle: Annihilation, Spirited Away
Katri: Kitchen Confidential, The Graduate
Guilty pleasure:
Arielle: Thin Mints
Katri: Rock of Love. Any really, really trashy early aughts reality tv show.
Latest binge-watch:
Arielle: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Katri: 30 Rock, for the billionth time.
Bucket list travel destination:
Arielle: Kyoto
Katri: Petra
STYLE
Define your style in three words or less:
Arielle: Secondary to perfume budget. (Hopefully 4 words is okay!)
Katri: Somewhat trashy.
The go-to piece in your wardrobe:
Arielle: Milly cardigan dress
Katri: I love Hermès scarves.
Favorite trend:
Arielle: Fleece lining (I get chilly!)
Katri: Pops of neon, anything kitsch.
Beauty product you can’t live without:
Arielle: M.A.C Spill The Tea Lipstick
Katri: Perfume and eyeliner, can’t choose just one.
Boots, dress shoes or sneakers?
Arielle: Boots.
Katri: Sneakers.
WELLNESS
Go-to way to de-stress:
Arielle: NoVA’s Korean bathhouses!
Katri: Sauna
Favorite way to stay active:
Arielle: Not applicable 🫣
Katri: Trampolining.
Wellness goal:
Arielle: More stretching!
Katri: Maybe cut back on the sugar free Red Bulls.
Want to try:
Arielle: Underwater treadmill!
Katri: Sensory deprivation therapy.
Proudest wellness achievement:
Arielle: Not applicable 🫣
Katri: Mixing green juice with sugar free Red Bull. I call it “warrior juice”.
HOME
Favorite room in your home:
Arielle: Wherever the perfume collection and bookshelves are!
Katri: My girl dojo. It’s got a trampoline, strobe lights, disco ball, and my dollhouse supplies. Perfect for solo dance parties.
Antiques, modern, or a mix?
Arielle: Modern.
Katri: All of it, the more the better.
Last item you bought for your home:
Arielle: Teacups from Wing on Wo & Co (the oldest store in New York’s Chinatown, where I lived after college)
Katri: Another Chinese money plant.
Favorite way to entertain:
Arielle: Encourage guests to compete for my cat’s favor.
Katri: Karaoke or Korean spa day
Clutter-free or well-lived in?
Arielle: Clutter-full.
Katri: Well-lived in.
Next planned purchase:
Arielle: Heated cat bed
Katri: A vintage Bluebird Polly Pocket compact.
ALEXANDRIA
What do you love about Alexandria Stylebook?
Arielle: Reading Mayor Gaskin’s profile!
Katri: Getting to know all the cool business owners!
Favorite spot in Alexandria:
Arielle: Penny Post (so many great pens and stickers!)
Katri: Mount Purrnon
Your go-to shop:
Arielle: Old Town Books (love to grab a book and read by the waterfront!)
Katri: PlantHouse
Best food spot:
Arielle: Yunnan By Potomac
Katri: Old Hat has the best ambience and cocktails.
Favorite local organization(s):
Arielle: Food Rescue U.S. (volunteers pick up food from Old Town restaurants and distribute them to organizations throughout the area)
Katri: SafeSpaceNova
Annual Alexandria event you most look forward to:
Arielle: We’re really looking forward to Pride!
Katri: Cherry Blossom season
Phrase/motto you live by:
Arielle: “The big talent is persistence.” -Octavia Butler
Katri: “Regrets are for horseshoes and handbags.” -Tracy Jordan
