The Nose Knows

How a Charlotte company uses smell to change your behavior

- Emma Speckman

AS YOU WALK INTO the lobby of the Westin in uptown, you step into a world manufactured for your pleasure and convenience.

The lobby is bathed in light, thanks to floor-to-ceiling glass walls on either side. A crystal-and-stainless steel chandelier the width of the center hallway hangs overhead. Soft music usually plays in the background; unsightly wires are stowed away. And it smells nice. You might not notice it immediately, but the Westin’s signature scent—a blend of white tea, cedar, and vanilla—has been pumping through the air vents all day.

This specific blend of fragrances is designed to make you feel at ease during your stay. The top notes of white tea and citrus energize and revitalize, while the cedar and vanilla provide a warm, soothing atmosphere. This complex smell, the Westin smell, was developed by a scent marketing company headquartered off Shopton Road, has 350 employees around the world making aromas for thousands of clients who want to enhance their spaces and create experiences—often subconscious—for customers.

“We’ve got 350 scents right now that are unique to a given customer, that is their brand fragrance,” says Mark Schmidt, the company’s vice president of marketing and product development. “So the Westin’s fragrance is the Westin’s fragrance, and we don’t sell that to anyone else.”

The company’s headquarters feels like a middle-stage tech start-up. Photos of Scent Air employees seated in one of the two Austin Powers-style pod chairs at the front of the lobby cover two walls. If an employee hasn’t yet visited the Charlotte location, his or her name is still up on the wall, along with a photo of an empty chair and sometimes a small signifier, such as Sandra from Scent Air Europe’s empty chair with a French flag sticker.