7:00AM GMT 15 Jan 2011
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"Lotus Flower", a floral smell with hints of moss, has been revealed as the most popular scent by the Canadian company that has pioneered the technology. "Enchanted apple", which has accents of musk, is the second most popular.
The company is now working with over 20,000 different shops in Britain to help them use sound as well as visual media, such as in-store television, to boost their sales. And its latest weapon is scent "for attracting a customer's loyalty and love of your brand".
Mood Media, a Canadian company, which is listed on the London stock market, has already created scents for Habitat, the furniture shop, Timberland, the outdoor clothing retailer and Guess, a fashion chain.
It is confident that its other clients, including many of the High Street clothes shops, gyms, banks, hotels and medical centres will start to use the perfumes, which are pumped out through the air conditioning units.
Lorne Abony, the chief executive, said: "If a shop smells bad, a customer will walk out. It's as simple as that. The longer you can get a customer to stay in the store, the more likely they are to buy.
"We've proved from our work in America that using the smell of grass cuttings in a DIY store, for example, encourages people to think about buying gardening equipment.
"It's also about brand identity so a Timberland store in North America smells the same as one in Europe."
Supermarkets have for a long time directed the ventilation units from their in-store bakeries – pumping out the smell of fresh loaves and pastries – to the entrance in order to entice in customers. But the use of artificial smells is in its infancy. "You have to be careful and subtle, so that most customers don't even notice it, except from on a subconscious level," said Mr Abony.
Studies in Britain have shown that playing German music in the wine aisle of a supermarket encourages consumers to pick German wines, while playing French music encourages them to pick up French wine.
"The science behind smell on consumer behaviour is in its infancy," said Mr Abony. "But we think it has an impact, making consumers more relaxed."
He predicted that it would not be long before banks started using smell technology. Mr Abony said: "We haven't worked out the smell of money, but when we do, we know we'll be onto something."
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