There is a particular kind of confidence that comes from knowing exactly who you are and where you come from. Thahirah Kazura carries it into every room she enters — and, quite literally, into every scent she creates. At 705 North Bridge Road, in the heart of Kampong Gelam, sits a shophouse that has been in her family for nearly a century. The sign out front bears her name in red cursive. Inside, gold-papered shelves shaped like mosque domes hold rows of amber glass bottles catching the light. Solid Perfume. Fragrance Oil. Aromatherapy. Oud.
The business traces its roots to 1933, when her grandfather Mr Hanifa Kazura founded Kazura Company on this stretch of North Bridge Road — not far from Sultan Mosque, in the heart of Singapore's Arab Quarter. Her father, Mr Mohamed Nazran, took over in 1979, renaming it Kazura Industries Private Limited. From the age of six or seven, Thahirah was already in the shop — helping refill bottles, watching her father arrange stock, learning the rhythm of a business built entirely on scent and trust.
She did not always plan to run it. Thahirah trained as an early childhood educator — a career she loved, working with young children and their stories. The pivot came not by ambition but by necessity. During Singapore's COVID-19 Circuit Breaker in April 2020, her father's health declined and there was no one else. She told him honestly: "I can give it a try. But how confident you are in me is entirely up to you — because I have no business background."
He trusted her. What followed was a complete reinvention. Working alongside her mother, her husband, and business partner Mr Hayder Al-Gharbawi, Thahirah repainted the shop, rebranded it in her own name, and pivoted the business from wholesale to direct retail. The range — non-alcoholic attars, oud, bakhoor, medicated oils, and custom-made fragrances — stayed true to the family's traditions. The manufacturing still uses some of the same equipment her father installed, including the original hydraulic press that seals stoppers into capsules.
"Smell does bring you memories. Whenever you go to a place and smell something — oh, I've smelled this before. It creates memories. I want Thahirah Kazura to be that memory."— Thahirah Kazura, third-generation owner, Thahirah Kazura Pte Ltd
What sets her apart in Singapore's crowded wellness and fragrance market is that her products are made, not sourced. "We create our own scents and fragrances," she says. "It's not taking somebody else's products and copy-paste. We produce our own things." Every formulation is in-house. Every ingredient is chosen. The non-alcoholic character of the range — in keeping with the traditions of Malay and Arab perfumery — is non-negotiable, even as production costs rise.
- Founded 1933 by Mr Hanifa Kazura as Kazura Company, North Bridge Road
- Second generation: Mr Mohamed Nazran, trading as Kazura Industries from 1979
- Third generation: Thahirah Kazura took over during COVID-19 Circuit Breaker, April 2020
- Rebranded and renamed; company re-registered as Thahirah Kazura Pte Ltd in 2021
- Specialises in non-alcoholic attars, oud, bakhoor, medicated oils, and custom-made fragrances
- Located at 705 North Bridge Road, Kampong Gelam, Singapore 198679
Her ambitions extend well beyond the shophouse. She has an eye on a younger generation of Singaporeans who may not yet know this heritage exists — and on an international customer base that she believes is ready for what Kazura offers. "My grandfather started this to help people," she says. "I want to carry that forward. Not just the business. The spirit of it."