LEISURE & HOSPITALITY
When the fragrance fades: what guests really smell
In this report from BioHygiene, we find out what guests really smell once the fragrance fades. we’ve consciously thought about it.
Walk into almost any hotel, restaurant, spa or leisure facility and you’re smelling more than clean linen or freshly brewed coffee. You’re smelling the brand.
From boutique hotels to global hospitality groups, scent has become a carefully curated part of the guest experience. Research suggests around 46% of luxury brands now use signature scents to strengthen their identity and build emotional connections with customers. The wider scent marketing industry is expected to be worth more than $7.28bn globally by 2035, reflecting just how valuable businesses believe our sense of smell really is.
It’s not difficult to understand why. Unlike any other sense, smell is processed directly by the brain’s limbic system, the area responsible for memory and emotion. A familiar fragrance can instantly transport us back to a favourite holiday, memorable meal or special occasion. Before guests have noticed the décor, tested the mattress or admired the facilities, they’ve already formed an emotional impression based on what they’ve breathed in.
For hospitality and leisure businesses, that’s incredibly powerful. However, there’s a catch: fragrance fades.
When it does, guests are left with the true condition of the environment. Just as pleasant scents evoke positive emotions and lasting memories, unpleasant odours create equally powerful reactions. We’ve all experienced that instinctive response when encountering a bad smell. That’s because our sense of smell bypasses the brain’s normal processing route, triggering an emotional response before
44 | TOMORROW'S CLEANING
If the odour beneath the fragrance hasn’t been addressed, guests are just as likely to remember the musty corridor, stale washroom or lingering kitchen smells as they are the carefully curated signature scent. Fragrance can enhance a brand, but it can’t protect it from unwanted odours.
Clean doesn’t always mean odour-free
Creating a positive first impression is only half the challenge. Maintaining it is where hospitality and leisure operators often face their biggest obstacle. One of the industry’s biggest misconceptions is that if a space looks clean, it must also smell clean.
In reality, many persistent odours have very little to do with visible dirt. They originate frommicroscopic organic residues left behind after cleaning; proteins around washrooms, fats and grease in kitchens, body oils and skin cells embedded within soft furnishings, and moisture trapped inside grout, drains and other porous surfaces. As these materials naturally break down, they release the compounds responsible for many of the odours guests notice.
That’s why an immaculate bathroom can still develop an unpleasant smell later in the day, or why freshly vacuumed corridors can still feel musty. Cleaning may have removed what guests can see, but not necessarily what they can smell.
Hospitality and leisure environments present unique challenges. Guest rooms are turned around in limited
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