Perspectives on Fragrance

Written by Crystal Ruizmun

Everyone has scents they adore and cannot stop wearing, a “signature scent” if you will. There is a science to this, with our brains being wired in a specific way to where there are scents we love to those that we never want to smell again. The use of fragrance goes back thousands of years to many ancient civilizations, like Egypt, China, and India. This includes aromatherapy such as oils, perfumes, and even candles. This has been done because fragrance has been considered a luxury, primarily used by royalty. The most common royal was Cleopatra, known for using oils and perfumes and bathing in fragrance a few days a week. 

What many fail to realize is that fragrance actually affects people in different ways. There are going to be some fragrances that are associated with memories, like places or people, and can cause emotional effects. Depending on the type of fragrance, it may evoke emotions like happiness, or nostalgia. Some fragrances like aromatherapy cause relaxing effects, residing stress and inducing calmness, especially when done in a private or quiet setting, like a spa. 

This is why there are specific scents many companies use when marketing different products. When companies market their products like air fresheners, the majority use floral or fresh scents in order to make the room it is being sprayed in feel fresh and spacious. Other companies may use more woody and earthy scents to market for comfort and privacy. Although we as consumers may not know how these companies market their products, these companies hire psychologists in order to portray their scents in specific ways in order to garner attention or sales. 

The same is done with perfumes, there will be certain scents that cater to a certain demographic, like fresh and floral scents to people who are in older age groups, and gourmand scents to those who are in younger age groups. Although there is no specific age group companies are targeting as they want to get maximum sales, there will always be a specific group that is more prone to buying a specific type of scent. 

Everyone has a type of scent they are attracted to, possibly depending on their age group. Although certain scents aren't specifically for one type of person, there is a specific type of psychology that pertains to this. So the next time you are buying your next fragrance, think about the type of fragrance group it belongs to and see if you buy a specific type of scent. I know I am more inclined to go for cherry scents, which are usually fruity, gourmand, or woody!

References

Sowndhararajan, K., & Kim, S. (2016). Influence of Fragrances on Human Psychophysiological Activity: With Special Reference to Human Electroencephalographic Response. Scientia pharmaceutica, 84(4), 724–751. https://doi.org/10.3390/scipharm84040724 

Masuo, Y., Satou, T., Takemoto, H., & Koike, K. (2021). Smell and Stress Response in the Brain: Review of the Connection between Chemistry and Neuropharmacology. Molecules (Basel, Switzerland), 26(9), 2571. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26092571 

Neurotoxicity of fragrance compounds: A review - ScienceDirect 

How scent, emotion, and memory are intertwined — and exploited — Harvard Gazette