What’s On Trend in Home Fragrance?

During the holiday season, we will perpetually love the sweet reminders in scents that feature vanilla and baked notes. Sales at this time of year will always be strong for pumpkin, baked and spiced apples or pears, sugar cookies, maple sugar and all things cinnamon. The sense of adventure will take us to the edge of the box, but not outside it!
 
More recently, many Gen X and Millennials have also abandoned man-made materials for wood, stone, texture and organic origins, according to the National Candle Association. Consumers under 35 also don’t want to be labeled (dealing a heavy blow to brands like Abercrombie) or relegated to what they see as common or following. They want to identify personally and emotionally with the products they use. Their relationship with the scents they explore and select will become increasingly intimate, continuing to drive the niche scent trend in home fragrance.
 
So, how does complex, infused, eco-earthy, culinary, edgy, gender-neutral scent play out? It starts with a growing use of florals in exotic and/or unexpected blends. The color trends around the pastels and  tropical hues has them grayed slightly, making them more sophisticated, cool and less fragile. They are  more interesting and unique just as the scents are becoming when a floral is “grayed” with the addition of an opposite scent. Examples include blending rose with leather, freesia with musk, jasmine with oud or lily with ginger. Already on this trend are examples from Jo Malone of velvet rose oud, peony blush suede and dark amber ginger lily, and Diptyque’s Baies (berries and Bulgarian roses).
 
Tropical scents are also moving from sweet punch to infused cocktails. They inspire a sense of escape and adventure, enhanced by the 2016 Olympics being held in Rio. The few basic tropical fruits that have dominated this category for both candles and personal care are now too much the stuff of sun screen and kids smoothies. To stay relevant and exotically interesting, they must be paired with both unusual berries like acai or goji and richer and darker notes like bourbon, sandalwood, juniper berries, ginger, coffee and similar scents. Garnish the top of the scent with mint or a floral like lotus and the tropical category is all “grown up” instead of commonly sweet and sticky (i.e. mimosa cardamom from Jo Malone and Makassar ebony peach from Voluspa). Coconut is a perennial favorite in this category, but it will be reimagined as coconut musk or a version equally unexpected.
 
And similar to the tropical category, fruits will continue to explore how they can be paired, expressing their bitter as well as their sweet sides. In 2015 we have seen rhubarb find a strong following with its tang that gives the fragrance a bit of a bite. L’Occitane paired it with grapefruit in the pamplemousse rhubarb scent that includes accords of the bitter inner peal of the grapefruit. Expect this tartness to continue and be merged with floral notes to make fruits even more complex and interesting.
 
All in all, hitting the lux version of gourmand requires a careful balancing act that drives in complexity and avoids being cloying or novelty.