Ikea Collaborates with Byredo on Home Fragrance
Ikea has announced it will partner with niche fragrance brand Byredo on a forthcoming project that explores how scent can be used creatively within the home.
On the first property project we worked on we created a scent. Some thought it was a little mad but oflactive branding is becoming increasingly common. Hotels invest heavily in it, most notably Ritz Carlton. Property developments have an opportunity for brand recognition through scent. Right from the start in its marketing and sales suites to when people move in, be it in their apartment or communal areas.
You know if Ikea are looking into it it’s going to become mainstream in the not too distant future.
Dubbed “invisible design”, product details are scarce apart from a 2019 launch date and a rumoured cinnamon-bun scent. But Byredo founder Ben Gorham (who also worked on Swedish fashion brand & Other Stories’ bath and bodycare line) hopes the concept will get people thinking and talking about fragrances and the feelings they evoke.
“We’re trying to develop a ton of smells, enforcing the idea that everyone has a different relationship to it, and nothing is right or wrong,” Gorham told Ikea Today. “We’re working on using scent to communicate emotions and tell stories of people, culture and design. It’s a layer we’ve imagined can add a very intimate experience to this scale that Ikea works in.”
Fragrance is beginning to play a larger role in homes and workspaces –from aromatherapy-inspired sleep mists (see Beauty 360), to luxury home-fragrance products like Parisian brand Diptyque’s new hourglass diffusers (see The New Rules of Luxury: Elevating Beauty). This collaboration points to a new opportunity for mass-market retailers to team up with artisan fragrance brands on conceptual, scent-based products and experiences.
