Lisa Samalonis, Associate Editor12.01.11
A Scent & Style for Every Mood
Everything from luxury and artisanal candles to quirky holiday products are lighting up the home fragrance market.
The diverse offerings in today’s home fragrances match a variety of consumer moods, styles and desires. Holiday products, ranging from intricately designed luxe and artisanal scents to fun and frivolous ones, are attracting consumers. Environmentally conscious packages also shine.
The manufacturer sales for the 2010 home fragrance market were $3.4 billion, a 1% gain over 2009, according to Karen Doskow, industry manager, consumer products, at Kline & Co. She points out that while interest is increasing, the recession is still affecting the market. The breakdown by category includes scented candles (43%), diffusers (31%), room sprays (15%), home fragrance oils (6%) and specialty products (6%). Diffusers, including reeds and plug-ins, pulled ahead as the overall fastest-growing category.
Doskow notes that novelty products will be popular throughout the holiday season. “Mostly, this will include basic home fragrance products repackaged in holiday graphics like pine cones and berries, and festive colors, such as red, green, burgundies and blues,” she says.
Choice Scents
Choices abound in the market. A move toward artisanal products in terms of the fragrance and the packaging is a big trend in the industry right now, according to Seungah Jeong, executive vice president of Nest Fragrances. Two of the company’s recent collections, Juliska and West Elm, incorporate ceramic pieces and accessories like ceramic toppers and a matching ceramic coin on the Juliska box. “There is a little more of a handmade feel to the packaging. It is not as cold and modern like glass vessels for candles,” she says.
Florals that have more aromatic herbs or green vegetable-type notes—that might be found in the garden or in nature—intertwined with the fragrance are also very popular, she adds.
Wide-ranging brand diversity with vessels, fragrances and overall packaging is prevalent. “This is great because there is so much choice out there,” Jeong says. “In addition to artisanal packaging, there is packaging that is fun and vibrant with glasses that are unique and colored. Some can be reused as drinking glasses afterwards. There are a lot of different moods that these home fragrances are capturing and that appeal to a very wide consumer base.”
Green Going Strong
“Retailers and our brand clients have been pushing us more to find greener solutions for their projects in all our divisions, including home and beauty,” says Jill Belasco, CEO, The Maesa Group.
“This means using PET (if plastic is required), more natural papers, such as Kraft and recycled, and also post-consumer recycled components. We do a lot of work for The Body Shop and their glass is PCR, their paper packaging is all FSC (Forest Stewardship Council), their ink is organic. We find more and more retailers, from The Body shop—known for that kind of thing—to Target, are interested in this. If there is a green claim to be made, companies would like to make it,” she says.
While consumers want to be green, they also still want to be able to touch, feel and smell the products. “In a home fragrance environment, that means using lots of cut-out cartons so the customer can touch and feel what the primary packaging is,” says Belasco, adding that scratch-and-sniff techniques are also trending.
The company recently completed a large project with Jonathan Adler, in which the scratch-and-sniff element played a pivotal role. “FSC and scratch-and-sniff are elements that provide the feeling of green and allow the customer to experience the product in a different way,” she says.
Packaging suppliers have stepped up to the green challenge. Many more paper suppliers are aware of what green means to companies and they have jumped into that game, says Belasco, so the prices have gotten increasingly competitive over the last several years.
Star-Powered Packaging
For the holidays, Sir Elton John teamed up with luxury home fragrance manufacturer Nest Fragrances for a project to benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The fragrance, featuring a festive blend of evergreen and balsam fir needles combined with rich woods and a sparkling citrus accord, is available in an 8.1-oz. candle ($38) and a six-pack boxed votive set ($54).
This year’s Sir Elton John’s holiday charitable home fragrances debuted at Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus and specialty stores nationwide in October and became an instant bestseller. In fact, the first production run of the product sold out at high-end stores after only a few weeks on shelf and sent the company and its vendors into a second production run to deliver more candles before the holiday.
The design is like no other. An etching of a coat of arms crest belonging to a noble family that lived in Luxembourg during the 1800s is the inspiration of the holiday candle packaging and glass. Gold, red and green seasonal holiday foliage was drawn into the artwork. Nest’s Jeong points out that the project was a true collaboration with a number of different people. Internationally renowned calligrapher Bernard Maisner blended in custom-made, hand-written calligraphic lettering in both a gothic style from the Medieval era and an italic humanist script from the Renaissance period. The artwork blends old and new in a playful and light manner, featuring majestic gold crowns and gothic calligraphy.
“Sir Elton John lent his feedback in terms of how he wanted the packaging to be laid out and also suggested the idea for the aubergine that is on the glass and on the borders of the box,” she explains. “It harkens back to aubergine being the color of Advent. People are so used to seeing red and green only for the holidays, we felt aubergine brought a real regal feel to the packaging that made it unique.”
The carton design displays the product’s star power. “Because the artwork is so detailed we wanted to capture that luxe feeling through the execution of how we printed the box. We had a lot of processes that we went through to capitalize on contrast,” Jeong says.For example, soft touch finish was employed across the box, but then certain elements like the Nest Fragrances cartouche have a spot gloss on them. Two foil stamps were applied, both silver and gold, for the crowns. The crowns were embossed to make them stand out and then overprinted black to finish off the look.
The design proved daunting to produce because each step added another layer.“We had to make sure that the layers all came together for the final image and that the registration was perfect and the finishes were where they were supposed to be—all that was a real challenge,” she notes.
The second run is being produced on an even tighter schedule. “All of our vendors are on board for this and are excited about the product and the charity aspect of it. They are all working with us, and we are doing it in record time,” she says.
Stylized Scents
Just in time for the holidays, The Yankee Candle Company Inc. introduced its new candle form, the Perfect Pillar ($19.99/12 oz.). The pillar comes with an easy to remove peel-off label, which contributes to the overall contemporary look of the decorative candle form. The design provides the aesthetic appeal of the traditional pillar and because it is in glass, the consumer doesn't have to worry about dust, wax spillage and leaking like a traditional pillar form, says Hope Margala Klein, senior vice president, brand, design and innovation at Yankee Candle.The clear glass cylinder also protects the candle’s flame and reflects its light, adding a warm ambiance to the room.
Erin Ryan, market development director, at Aptar Group Inc., points out that today’s home fragrance packages offer stylish packaging and platforms that are so appealing, consumers want to use them as part of their home décor.“Gone are the days where you would hide these items behind a chair or under a cabinet,” she says. “Holiday inspired scents and festive package design capture consumers’ attention, tantalizing their senses and lifting joyful spirits during celebratory times,” she says.
Holiday Glade room sprays come in four different scents and are packaged in a shapely aluminum can for visual appeal. The package uses Aptar’s Glencoe valve system with sculptured twist to lock and hoodless actuator. “This platform has no hood to lose in transport and it has a safe locking system for consumers to travel with the product.Also, it uses less plastic to produce than traditional hooded systems,” explains Ryan. The Glencoe system features audible clicks for open and close confirmation as well as visible icons.
Electronic systems that offer automatic timed or motion releases also have become popular.“These systems quickly went from industrial/institutional markets to the home as consumers found them convenient and adjustable to their home fragrance needs,” she explains, adding that Aptar works with leading brands to customize refillable valve systems for electronic dispensers.
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The Juliska candle sets have ceramic accents for an artisanal feel. |
Everything from luxury and artisanal candles to quirky holiday products are lighting up the home fragrance market.
The diverse offerings in today’s home fragrances match a variety of consumer moods, styles and desires. Holiday products, ranging from intricately designed luxe and artisanal scents to fun and frivolous ones, are attracting consumers. Environmentally conscious packages also shine.
The manufacturer sales for the 2010 home fragrance market were $3.4 billion, a 1% gain over 2009, according to Karen Doskow, industry manager, consumer products, at Kline & Co. She points out that while interest is increasing, the recession is still affecting the market. The breakdown by category includes scented candles (43%), diffusers (31%), room sprays (15%), home fragrance oils (6%) and specialty products (6%). Diffusers, including reeds and plug-ins, pulled ahead as the overall fastest-growing category.
Doskow notes that novelty products will be popular throughout the holiday season. “Mostly, this will include basic home fragrance products repackaged in holiday graphics like pine cones and berries, and festive colors, such as red, green, burgundies and blues,” she says.
Choice Scents
Choices abound in the market. A move toward artisanal products in terms of the fragrance and the packaging is a big trend in the industry right now, according to Seungah Jeong, executive vice president of Nest Fragrances. Two of the company’s recent collections, Juliska and West Elm, incorporate ceramic pieces and accessories like ceramic toppers and a matching ceramic coin on the Juliska box. “There is a little more of a handmade feel to the packaging. It is not as cold and modern like glass vessels for candles,” she says.
Florals that have more aromatic herbs or green vegetable-type notes—that might be found in the garden or in nature—intertwined with the fragrance are also very popular, she adds.
New Look for Molton Brown
The Molton Brown in-house design team re-envisioned the packaging. “The candela glass is hand blown and finished and frosted by hand by glass experts for Molton Brown. The bottle color and graphics have been updated with a bolder, richer color palette to align with the candela glass,” says Kristine Naylor, Molton Brown’s regional marketing manager. In addition, the recyclable boxes and cartons all feature the green dot recyclable logo. |
Green Going Strong
“Retailers and our brand clients have been pushing us more to find greener solutions for their projects in all our divisions, including home and beauty,” says Jill Belasco, CEO, The Maesa Group.
“This means using PET (if plastic is required), more natural papers, such as Kraft and recycled, and also post-consumer recycled components. We do a lot of work for The Body Shop and their glass is PCR, their paper packaging is all FSC (Forest Stewardship Council), their ink is organic. We find more and more retailers, from The Body shop—known for that kind of thing—to Target, are interested in this. If there is a green claim to be made, companies would like to make it,” she says.
While consumers want to be green, they also still want to be able to touch, feel and smell the products. “In a home fragrance environment, that means using lots of cut-out cartons so the customer can touch and feel what the primary packaging is,” says Belasco, adding that scratch-and-sniff techniques are also trending.
|
Jonathan Adler Home fragrance features scratch-and-sniff scented packaging. |
Packaging suppliers have stepped up to the green challenge. Many more paper suppliers are aware of what green means to companies and they have jumped into that game, says Belasco, so the prices have gotten increasingly competitive over the last several years.
Star-Powered Packaging
For the holidays, Sir Elton John teamed up with luxury home fragrance manufacturer Nest Fragrances for a project to benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation. The fragrance, featuring a festive blend of evergreen and balsam fir needles combined with rich woods and a sparkling citrus accord, is available in an 8.1-oz. candle ($38) and a six-pack boxed votive set ($54).
|
A highly stylized package and complicated carton made Sir Elton John candles an instant bestseller. |
The design is like no other. An etching of a coat of arms crest belonging to a noble family that lived in Luxembourg during the 1800s is the inspiration of the holiday candle packaging and glass. Gold, red and green seasonal holiday foliage was drawn into the artwork. Nest’s Jeong points out that the project was a true collaboration with a number of different people. Internationally renowned calligrapher Bernard Maisner blended in custom-made, hand-written calligraphic lettering in both a gothic style from the Medieval era and an italic humanist script from the Renaissance period. The artwork blends old and new in a playful and light manner, featuring majestic gold crowns and gothic calligraphy.
“Sir Elton John lent his feedback in terms of how he wanted the packaging to be laid out and also suggested the idea for the aubergine that is on the glass and on the borders of the box,” she explains. “It harkens back to aubergine being the color of Advent. People are so used to seeing red and green only for the holidays, we felt aubergine brought a real regal feel to the packaging that made it unique.”
The carton design displays the product’s star power. “Because the artwork is so detailed we wanted to capture that luxe feeling through the execution of how we printed the box. We had a lot of processes that we went through to capitalize on contrast,” Jeong says.For example, soft touch finish was employed across the box, but then certain elements like the Nest Fragrances cartouche have a spot gloss on them. Two foil stamps were applied, both silver and gold, for the crowns. The crowns were embossed to make them stand out and then overprinted black to finish off the look.
The design proved daunting to produce because each step added another layer.“We had to make sure that the layers all came together for the final image and that the registration was perfect and the finishes were where they were supposed to be—all that was a real challenge,” she notes.
The second run is being produced on an even tighter schedule. “All of our vendors are on board for this and are excited about the product and the charity aspect of it. They are all working with us, and we are doing it in record time,” she says.
Stylized Scents
Just in time for the holidays, The Yankee Candle Company Inc. introduced its new candle form, the Perfect Pillar ($19.99/12 oz.). The pillar comes with an easy to remove peel-off label, which contributes to the overall contemporary look of the decorative candle form. The design provides the aesthetic appeal of the traditional pillar and because it is in glass, the consumer doesn't have to worry about dust, wax spillage and leaking like a traditional pillar form, says Hope Margala Klein, senior vice president, brand, design and innovation at Yankee Candle.The clear glass cylinder also protects the candle’s flame and reflects its light, adding a warm ambiance to the room.
Erin Ryan, market development director, at Aptar Group Inc., points out that today’s home fragrance packages offer stylish packaging and platforms that are so appealing, consumers want to use them as part of their home décor.“Gone are the days where you would hide these items behind a chair or under a cabinet,” she says. “Holiday inspired scents and festive package design capture consumers’ attention, tantalizing their senses and lifting joyful spirits during celebratory times,” she says.
|
Sculptured twist to lock, hoodless actuators use less plastic than traditional hooded systems. |
Electronic systems that offer automatic timed or motion releases also have become popular.“These systems quickly went from industrial/institutional markets to the home as consumers found them convenient and adjustable to their home fragrance needs,” she explains, adding that Aptar works with leading brands to customize refillable valve systems for electronic dispensers.
