Trade your dollars for scents at Hana Lalzari

In 2014, two years after getting married and moving to Lansing from other parts of Michigan, Hassan Abdul-Rasheed and Hanifah Amatul-Adil began selling fragrances part-time out of a friend’s Citgo gas station.

“We started with one crate,” Hana Lalzari owner Abdul-Rasheed said, gesturing to that exact crate on the counter next to him at the business’s new space on East Michigan Avenue. “All we had was that, a table and a handful of fragrances.

“Citgo helped us out by giving us a platform, and then we would set up at different barber shops around town and different festivals,” he continued. “It sort of grew from there as we expanded our inventory.”

In 2020, the couple moved into their first brick-and-mortar store in west Lansing. Citing rapid growth in the last year and the need for more space, the pair moved again on Aug. 31 to a storefront at 2522 E. Michigan Ave., the prior location of the local skincare store Honeyderm. Mamud Musa, the founder of Honeyderm and owner of the building, transitioned his business to a primarily online format following the pandemic. This allowed Abdul-Rasheed to take over the space while continuing to stock some Honeyderm products.

A view of some of the products at Hana Lalzari.

Hana Lalzari carries roughly 300 domestic fragrances and more than 100 imported fragrances from places like the United Arab Emirates and India.

“We’re trying to bridge that gap between what’s available overseas and what people are aware of here,” Abdul-Rasheed said. “We wanted to create a local experience, something you wouldn’t get by ordering something online. It’s endless, the amount of options we have here.”

Customers can also blend scents to create custom fragrances.

“Scent is a very underestimated emotion,” Abdul-Rasheed said. “I’ve had people smell stuff that makes them cry because it reminds them of their mom or grandma. And when you start smelling a great scent, it’s almost impossible to remain as angry as you were.”

Abdul-Rasheed typically mans the counter while Amatul-Adil homeschools their seven children. However, he credits her with being the heart and soul of the business.

“She’s the one who’s responsible for taking it from a hustle to a business. It’s really hers, the whole image, and she had the foresight to make it happen. It wouldn’t be what it is today without her,” he said.

He hopes the recent move will make the shop more visible to Michigan State University students. 

“My desire is to introduce this to the students who may be on a budget,” he said. “I don’t drink, but I like to say that they can afford both a bottle here and a beer at the party. It’s inexpensive, but it’s not cheap.”