Artisan designs and unique scent stories are driving the home fragrance market right now. In fact, the home fragrance segment has registered its strongest growth since 2010, growing by more than 3% in 2015 in the US, according to global market research and management consulting firm Kline, Parsippany, NJ.

Accounting for more than 50% of total market sales, the luxury home fragrance segment registered an even stronger 5% increase. Flat to declining in previous years, the mass-market sector also registered the highest annual growth in the past five years. Market dynamics consist of stiff competition among the large players and emerging independent brands, according to Kline.

“As many new candle introductions feature new shapes of filled glass and tin containers, the category is swiftly transcending from being a mere tool to scent homes or provide lighting ambiance,” said Karen Doskow, director at Kline’s Consumer Products Practice. “The containers with various hand-painted gold accents or high shine metallics are becoming unforgettable home design elements attainable at affordable prices, even at the luxury level, which certainly contributes to the market’s success.”

Driven by a strong portfolio of seasonal or limited edition scents and vibrant new product activity, growth for luxury brands outpaces the overall category. Attractive packaging continues to play a strong role in product presentation, and candles offered in all types of eye-catching containers, shapes, and sizes are the driving force behind the category’s growth, added Doskow.

Air freshener sales rose 3.2% to $2.7 billion, according to data from Information Resources Inc. (IRI) for total US multi-outlet (supermarkets, drugstores, mass-market retailers, military commissaries and select club and dollar retail chains) for the 52 weeks ended June 12, 2016. Home air fresheners made up the bulk of this number with a 1.5% increase to $1.9 billion, the rest of the air fresheners segment includes automobile, potpourri/sachets and trash can deodorizers. Candle category sales were flat at $1.2 billion, according to IRI.

While the US prestige fine fragrance category as a whole has been experiencing increases in both dollar and unit sales, the greatest lift is coming from the $49.9 million niche of the home scents market, according to global information company The NPD Group. The heightened popularity of prestige candles and diffusers combined with their higher price tags is driving much of the growth.  

“During a time when consumers are being more prudent in their retail spending, they are also seeking services and activities that offer an experience. Home scents fulfill this desire; when it comes to fragrance, consumers are drawn to the experiential aspect of home scent,” said Karen Grant, global beauty industry analyst, The NPD Group. “Today, consumers are expanding their scent engagement from being primarily a singular, personal encounter to also being a shared experience in their home with candles and reed diffusers.”


Consumer Cravings
The right candle evokes a mood or a memory, noted Jon Bresler, founder of LAFCO home fragrance, New York. Consumers are also seeking out strength and quality in these type of products. On the heels of modernizing French florals in its Present Perfect home fragrance collection, LAFCO is adding room mists to its portfolio this season. The company is also expanding its House & Home collection that sells candles for every room—think chamomile lavender for the Master Bedroom, for example. For Fall 2016, Bresler added Gallery, a royal iris scent in an opulent blue jar, as well as an equestrian chestnut for the tack room. 

An industry veteran with more than 20 years experience in creating candles, Bresler has worked to take home fragrance to the next level. After traveling through Europe in search of the most skilled artisans and experts, he embarked on a self-imposed apprenticeship with master perfumers and leading producers of natural skincare and homeopathic remedies.

“Our soy-blend candles are very high in soy content, around 75-80% soy. It’s challenging to add fragrance to this candle—it takes extensive R&D because we have highly natural perfume oils—as well as finding a wick to burn through your fragrance. The first six months of testing the fragrance is getting it to burn—identify materials that are clogging the wick. But it’s worth it!”

A legendary fashion designer is branching out into home fragrance this season with the Ralph Lauren Collection of candles and diffusers. The exquisite scents express five destinations that have most impacted Ralph Lauren’s personal and professional life: New York City, the French Riviera, the English countryside, the American West and Africa. Scents vary from White Lily (Madagascar vanilla and spicy pink pepper) to Oud (namesake oud blended with smoky guaiac wood and incense).

Molton Brown, London’s fragrance expert, is also extending its offerings with two new additions to the Delicious Rhubarb & Rose Collection—a single wick and three wick candle. For all of the devoted fans who fell in love with the unique body and hand collection, Molton Brown is introducing this gourmand scent to its luxury home fragrance collection. Reminiscent of a scrumptious summer tart, the candles have been composed in a true, uniquely British style thanks to the distinctive combination of tantalizing, almost edible notes.

Celebrating its British heritage, Molton Brown has sourced rhubarb from West Yorkshire’s ‘Rhubarb Triangle, an area famous for harvesting the best rhubarb since the early 20th century. Housed in colored glass made in England, and nestled inside Molton Brown’s signature box, these sherbet-pink candles make a perfect gift for any hostess, said the company popular at outposts like Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue.

Molton Brown perfumer Vanessa Prudent describes it as “rhubarb spikes a bitter top note as zesty fruits fizz with a citrus twist. This contrasts with the sweetness of sugary tart in the base while gentle rose extract and vanilla combine to bring the buttery pastry of dessert to life.”

Voluspa—big at stores like Urban Outfitters—is bulking up its selections this season with a few exotic twists of its own. New scents include Mandarino Cannela, rife with notes of Italian Mandarin orange with a cream heart of vanilla cinnamon, finished with nutmeg and stem ginger to create a decadent, spicy scent; as well as Moso Bamboo, where bamboo, black musc and Japanese cypress combine for an alluring, romantic fragrance.

Meanwhile, change is in the air with Yankee Candle’s new fall 2016 fragrances. Five scrumptious scents provide a fresh take on the season—drawing on the familiarity of the crisp outdoors and cozy indoors while incorporating unexpected fragrance notes.

“This season, home fragrance shoppers are looking for unexpected pairings, contrasting yet surprisingly complementary aromatic notes which bring newness to traditions,” Doreen Smith, vice president, fragrance, trend and design development, Yankee Candle Company, South Deerfield, MA, told Happi. “Partnering fine fragrance scent cues gleaned with time-honored standards, and turning to on-trend flavor inspirations, can bring about the new ideas consumers crave: comfortably familiar and wonderfully unpredictable at the same time.”

Yankee Candle’s Fall 2016 scents include Honey Clementine, Autumn Bouquet and Crisp Fall Night. Prompted by the artisanal honey flavor trends, resinous notes in Honey Clementine are contrasted with citrus effervescence and are “perfect opposites,” said Smith. Meanwhile, Crisp Fall Night is a blend of herbaceous lavender and aromatic wood notes, inspired by fine fragrance, recomposed for home. Autumn Bouquet features rich florals, spiced for the season with a touch of patchouli, “not your typical fall scent,” according to Smith.


Some Things New in the Air
The continued demand and focus on the popular wax melt category has dimmed the prospects of other home fragrance sectors. According to Kline, other product types of home fragrance outside of classic candles—think lamps, oils and simmerings—continued to register sales declines. Still, innovation is on the rise in alternative methods of home fragrance.

Air Wick recently presented a new scented oil warmer said to offer eight times more fragrance control than its predecessors. The Air Wick Scented Oil Warmer device features five settings, which allow consumers to simply dial up or dial down the amount of fragrance.

“Fragrance is an incredibly personal experience, and now consumers can better control that experience based on the size of each room like never before,” said Air Wick marketing director Maui Valdes. “Regardless of size, from the coziest cottage to an expansive loft, having the ability to dial up or dial down the amount of fragrance is key to making any living space feel inviting and your own. Selecting from five settings now ensures each space can get the full-effect of the scent in wide and large spaces, and that the scent is not too overwhelming in smaller ones.”

At P&G, “vibrant/citrusy/spicy” scents are big for Fall 2016 with the Febreze Big Sur collection. In forms of a fabric spray, car freshener, plug-in and room spray, the seasonal fragrance is described by the company as “the perfect balance of jasmine and cherry for all the noses in the family.”

Fragrance is even making an appearance at industry events. Global scent branding agency Air Aroma teamed up with Cosmoprof North America (CPNA) as the brand’s signature scent partner for the second year in a row. In 2015, Air Aroma was enlisted by CPNA to design a custom fragrance that is representative of the show and the Cosmoprof global brand. This year’s signature scent was custom designed around CPNA’s origins, which can be traced back to Italy with classic notes of rustic Italian citrus and rich orange blossom. As part of the continued collaboration, this fragrance was diffused at The Beauty Radar event in New York as well as during the exhibition at Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. Air Aroma has a range of diffusers from small items to large commercial HVAC units.

Following the launch of a home collection, Kilian Hennessy, the grandson of the co-founder of LVMH, will introduce a new object inspired by his private world: the home spray. Debuting next month at prestige outposts for $130, four fragrances are part of the By Kilian range exclusively created by perfumers Calice Becker and Alberto Morillas: French Boudoir, a tuberose bouquet; Loukoum, a pastry-inspired treat; Noir Ottoman, a woodsy selection; and Song of Songs, an amber/incense blend. And, following Hennessy’s “eco-luxe” philosophy, there are refills available for these retro-inspired atomizers.

“Shoppers love beautiful packaging in their home fragrances. Look for scented reed diffusers in gorgeous glass containers that intermix with your home décor and unique candle holders,” said Jeffrey Weldler, marketing director, GetYourPerfume.com. “People want their home fragrance to blend in with their existing home décor and not stand out on a table or shelf. They want them to work their wonders without being overly obvious.”


Forthcoming Fragrances
For 2017, the search is on for the next best delivery system, observed Bresler of LAFCO. This includes new avenues in diffusing wax tablets, mists, steams and cartridges.

“The growth across many different aspects of home scent illustrates the heightened importance of this market, and the opportunity for further development,” agreed Grant of NPD. “This is still a niche in the prestige fragrance arena, and all signs are that home scents still have an upside for even more expansion.”

Consumers are becoming more curious, they are seeking the unexpected, and discovering or rediscovering what makes them happy. According to Smith of Yankee Candle, “In 2017, we should expect to see more reinvention and reinterpretation—embracing and embellishing the conventional, to bring it to a relevant, exciting place.”