Laos Agarwood & Oud: From the Forests of Laos to Buyers Around the World

There are easier businesses to work in than agarwood.

There are certainly easier products to explain.

But after around 20 years working with agarwood and oud in Laos, Indochina and international markets, I still find very few natural products quite as fascinating.

Agarwood begins with a tree. What eventually emerges can become one of the most highly prized natural aromatic materials in the world.

That journey — from tree, to resin, to wood, to oud oil, and finally into the hands of a buyer thousands of kilometres away — is what Agarwood International™ is about.

Twenty Years Around Agarwood in Laos

The roots of our business go back around two decades through private trading, sourcing, plantation work and relationships within the agarwood industry.

Agarwood International™ was formally established and trademarked in 2019, but founder Roger’s involvement with agarwood in Laos and the wider Indochina region began many years earlier.

That experience matters.

Agarwood is not a commodity where a photograph and a price tell you everything you need to know.

Age matters.

Origin matters.

The individual harvest matters.

Resin formation matters.

Distillation matters.

And, perhaps most importantly, relationships with the people who grow, harvest, distill and export the product matter.

Our role is to help connect those sources in Laos with serious international buyers.

From Laos to the Arabian Gulf

Today, our strongest international market is the Arabian Gulf, particularly buyers in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, together with Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and neighbouring markets.

That is hardly surprising.

Oud has been treasured across Arabian culture for generations, whether burned as agarwood incense, worn as pure oud oil or incorporated into fine fragrance.

But our market is not limited to the Gulf.

We also welcome enquiries from established and emerging buyers in markets such as Korea, Taiwan, Japan and other international locations where high-quality agarwood continues to attract collectors, incense users, perfumers and specialist manufacturers.

Some customers want only a small sample.

Others are looking for hundreds of millilitres of oud oil.

Others want graded agarwood chips, chunks or larger pieces.

Others discuss personalised hand carvings from exceptional pieces of agarwood, From falcons and other birds of prey for Arabian Gulf collectors, to Buddha figures and other traditional or spiritual designs for Asian and international buyers.

Each carving depends on the size, shape, resin content and character of the individual piece of wood.

Our job is not to force every buyer into the same box.

It is to show them what is genuinely available in Laos and let the product speak for itself.

Traditional Lao Oud Oil

One of the products we are particularly proud to make in our small cottage family distillery is traditionally produced Lao oud oil.

When available, this includes handcrafted oils distilled slowly using traditional methods, with the distillation vessel heated over an open wood fire.

It is wonderfully old-fashioned and the favourite of Arabian gulf oud lovers.

There are more modern ways to control heat during hydrodistillation, including gas-fired systems. Those methods certainly have their place.

But traditional fire-heated distillation remains part of the history and craftsmanship of luxury oud production in this region.

The agarwood is prepared, soaked and distilled slowly, while the distiller manages heat, water, time and experience rather than simply pressing a button on an automated production line.

Every harvest batch can be different.

Every distillation can be different.

That natural variation is part of the fascination of real oud.

Agarwood Chips, Chunks and Grades

Oud oil is only part of the story.

We also supply Laos agarwood chips, chunks and larger agarwood pieces when suitable stock is available.

Wood is assessed according to factors including its harvest batch, resin content, age, origin, aroma and intended use.

Some buyers want chips primarily for burning as incense.

Others seek larger pieces for collections or specialist use.

And experienced traders often want to inspect several grades side by side before deciding which material suits their market.

We believe this is far more useful than pretending that every piece of agarwood can be accurately described by one universal grading system.

Real agarwood is natural material.

The tree has not read the catalogue.

GC-MS Testing for Professional Buyers

As the market for oud expands, buyers increasingly want more than aroma alone.

For customers considering our oud oils for use in fine fragrance, candles, massage oils, incense or other formulated products, independent analytical testing can also be arranged.

We can offer access to GC-MS — Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry — analysis through an IFRA approved laboratory in Barcelona, Spain.

GC-MS provides a chemical profile of all the compounds present in an oil.

For professional formulators, manufacturers and fragrance businesses, this type of analytical information can be valuable when assessing raw materials, developing formulations, conducting safety assessments and preparing appropriate regulatory or compliance documentation for the intended finished product.

The nose will always matter in oud.

But sometimes the laboratory matters too.

From Oud Oil to Agarwood Bracelets

One of our next projects is considerably simpler to explain.

We want to make beautiful agarwood bracelets in Laos.

Our plan is to acquire specialist bead-making equipment so selected agarwood can be shaped into beads and finished locally rather than simply exporting raw material.

There is something appealing about taking a piece of Lao agarwood and creating a personalised hand crafted bracelet an oud lover will treasure for life.

It also allows more of the value created by the tree to remain with the communities and businesses involved in the Laos supply chain.

And yes — we intend to enjoy experimenting with different bead sizes, wood grades and designs.

A Small Industry With a Very Long Story

Agarwood International™ is not trying to become a giant catalogue containing thousands of unrelated products.

We would rather remain close to the trees, plantations, distillers, growers and exporters who make the industry possible.

Sometimes stock will be plentiful.

Sometimes something exceptional will appear in only a very small quantity.

That is the nature of agarwood.

Our aim is to offer international buyers honest access to interesting Laos agarwood, agarwood chips, chunks and oud, backed by local knowledge, international communication and a willingness to show buyers exactly where their products come from.

Whenever possible, we would rather take a serious buyer on a live video call around a factory or distillery than send another glossy sales brochure.

You can see the wood.

You can see the still.

You can meet the people.

Then you can decide whether you would like a sample.

Interested in Lao Agarwood or Oud?

If you are an oud trader, agarwood buyer, perfumer, incense specialist, manufacturer or collector, we are always pleased to make new connections.

Ask Roger about our current Laos agarwood, oud oil, agarwood chips, samples and trade availability.

WhatsApp Roger: +856 20 5999 9600