In yesterday's post we looked at a fashion exhibition - "Sleeping Beauties" at the Met's Costume Institute - that attempts to reawaken the senses by recreating also smells of people from molecules taken from the dresses and accessories they once wore.
Smells do have the intrinsic power to evoke strong emotional reactions, soothe our senses, or recall vivid memories due to the direct connection between the olfactory cortex and the limbic system in the brain, a region typically associated with memory and emotional processes.
However, modern-day uses of fragrances, particularly bespoke ones, extend beyond mere personal nostalgia. Studies on scent's impact on consumer behavior in retail environments demonstrate that pleasant aromas can influence shoppers' perceptions, prolong their time in stores, and encourage purchasing decisions.
This phenomenon isn't exclusive to food-related establishments - think about Starbucks, Subway, or Cinnabon, enticing customers with the aroma of coffee, herbs, warm bread, or freshly baked, yet sickly sweet, cinnamon rolls. Various industries and retailers, including hotels and clothes shops, integrate scent branding into their strategies to enrich customer experience.
Marriott Hotels, for instance, infuse their distinctive scent throughout many of their lobbies and public spaces, aiming to create an inviting and reassuring ambiance for guests. Similarly, Abercrombie & Fitch strategically employs its signature scent, "Fierce" cologne, within its stores. Luxury brands such as Bulgari, Fendi, and Max Mara enlisted the expertise of scent marketing firms (in their case Integra Fragrances, but there are many more, such as ScentAir and Future of Smell, all specialized in developing custom scents tailored to specific brands and environments) to develop tailored olfactory experiences and encourage emotional connections with customers.
In these cases scents aren't just created for shops and stores, but also to temporary installations and events, they represent invisible olfactory logos that can be immediately recognized by consumers.
These instances illustrate how the sense marketing trend that started in the '90s developed and how nowadays scents serve as marketing tools to craft memorable and immersive atmospheres, ultimately strengthening brand identity and loyalty among consumers. Ambient scents can significantly influence a customer's mood, something not to underestimate after the Covid-19 pandemic, considering also that one of the earliest sign of Coronavirus infection was anosmia (complete loss of smell).
That said, some olfactory experiments in different contexts have not yielded the desired results. For instance, in 2001, an experimental fragrance called Madeleine was introduced at three tube stations of the London Underground. It was applied to station floors and released when passengers walked over it. However, despite its description as a fresh, watery floral bouquet with hints of citrus and woody accents, this attempt at creating a distinct fragrance for the underground and at deodorising these spaces, simply didn't work and was scrapped after one month. Besides, a previous fragrance (Francine) tested in the early '90s in the London underground, proved too overwhelming for passengers.
Which leads us to the question, which other places will start experimenting with unique fragrances and olfactory logos? For example, will museums venture into creating their own bespoke scents and olfactory logos to enhance gallery experiences? Or will they create scents for specific exhibitions? While this possibility remains intriguing, it also presents a formidable and potentially costly endeavor. After all, it would be a long and complex process, as a museum would have to invest considerable amounts of money to commission a fragrance that was safe enough for people and that didn't trigger allergies or environmental sensitivities, but it would also have to find ways to disperse the scent in the galleries without damaging the artworks on display.
However, museums could prioritize utilizing scents cleverly, as demonstrated at the "Sleeping Beauties" exhibition, ensuring that fragrances align with the institution's values and identity, or even better with its displays and exhibitions. In a nutshell, there should be a purpose behind these fragrances, a "scent narrative" that could serve as a complementary element enhancing the overall visitor experience.
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