Spotlight On... Home Fragrancing

All Lit Up

As we start to think about cosying up for Autumn, fragrancing our homes is very much at the top of the list, with plum once again among the most popular trend colours for winter.

But it’s not only about fragrance and colour. Refills and re-usable vessels are also helping to drive sales, with suppliers increasingly look to sustainable options.

PG&H sniffed out what’s new for the coming season.

Left: Life In Bloom Purple Plum Blossom & Pomegranate floral reed diffuser and diffuser flower refill

It’s no secret that the home fragrancing market burns brightest during the darker, chillier Autumn and winter months, when consumers spend more time at home. And with many people still working from home, sales of home fragrancing products - candles, reed diffusers, melt burners and fragrance lamps - have soared, boding well for the coming season.

“Uptake of our new Life In Bloom collection, which features floral reed diffusers with dried flower stems, colourful scented candles and co-ordinating fragrance lamps, has been immense,” says Deborah Bettinson, Ashleigh & Burwood’s PR manager trade.

“Looking ahead, we’ve built onto the collection for AW21 with two powerful new colours and fragrances as well as adding in a refill option for the coloured gypsophila stems. Floral fragrances Plum Blossom & Pomegranate and Winter Rose & Jasmine, will be adding richness to the fragrance palette, with bold purple and vivid red colours an opulent look for Autumn/Winter.”

The company is also launching diffuser flower refills. “These further support our sustainability objectives, as customers can opt to purchase these, together with refill fragrances and reeds, to refresh their used diffuser and can also choose to mix and match their colour and fragrance to customise their vessels,” Deborah explains. In addition, Ashleigh & Burwood’s Heritage Collection, which provides a decorative vintage vibe, is adding two new fragrances and colours for AW21. “The new plum and gold colourways are introducing a brand new decorative diffuser vase design and fragrance lamp gift set,” Deborah continues, “with new scents, Blackcurrant & Cedarwood and Rose & Golden Leather, rich, warming and ideal for the cooler months.” Plum also features in the colour palette for Marmalade of London. “We’re launching two new lines in our Marmalade of London Mosney Mill Winter fragrances, where we have used colours that are very on trend this year - dark plum, dark blue, grey and teal. The fragrances have taken over a year to develop,” explains the company’s sales director Helen Flook. “One of our big passions is to help save the bumble bee, and we are proud supporters of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, with 5% of the profits of the Marmalade of London Mosney Mill range going to the Trust,” she states. “We have

Right: Inside Best Kept Secrets’ Winter Scents range, featuring 12 fragrances. Below: Marmalade of London’s Mosney Mill Winter Fir.

Protecting The Planet

At The Candle Brand - home to flower diffusers, where each flower is made from thin slices of solar wood - the company’s wax is vegan friendly, produced with a natural blend of coconut and rapeseed oils.

“For Autumn/Winter 2021, we are focusing on dark woody fragrances, with notes of rich incense oils to create inner warmth,” highlights The Candle Brand’s co-founder Christina Brand, “and will be expanding our Burn + Bloom candle collection which features a naturally flowering plantable seeded label.”

Left: A flower diffuser from The Candle Brand.

planted over 1,000 trees and plants that attract bees and other insects around our new factory in the Cotswolds.” Adds Helen: “All our products are handmade in the UK, and, where possible, we have always tried to purchase all components in the UK and to make our packing recyclable and/or reusable, and are continuing to improve on this all the time.”

New products from Best Kept Secrets meanwhile, include the Dragonfly range which features high end candles in glass in 12 of the company’s most popular fragrances, to include Plum Champagne and Hot Cinnamon. “The candles come in three different designs - Entwine, simple and contemporary; Regent, traditional, not unlike a whisky tumbler, giving a beautiful effect as the candle burns, and Panache, which has a dimple effect, giving a wonderful sparkle,” explains Best Kept Secrets’ managing director Vanessa Curry. (Each candle comes

in a branded presentation box with a matching coordinated gift bag, complete with tissue paper and ribbon handles).

In addition, the company’s wax melts, in the Seriously Scented collection, have had a makeover, and now come in an easy-touse package topped off with a satin bow. “We’re really excited to launch two new wax melt designs, as well as wax melt cubes and our packaged wax melt presentation box,” continues Vanessa. The wax melts come in our top 21 fragrances, while the wax melt presentation box allows customers to sample 12 different scents in wax melt pods. “There are two collections available - All Year Scents and Winter Scents, that includes Gold, Frankincense & Myrrh, Yuletide Cheer and Sleigh Bells.” For winter 2021, Widdop & Co. will be launching three new home fragrances in The Aromatherapy Company collection: Noel, Holiday Cheer and The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, welcoming in the Christmas spirit with festive-themed scents that range from candied orange to fresh cookies and pine and cypress. “Maintaining an eco-friendly approach with essential oils and soy wax, these new items offer quality and value for money,” says Widdop’s creative director Stephen Illingworth.

“While the trend of cosying up in our homes and home offices looks set to continue, alongside comfy cushions, a must have is a candle for creating warm, comforting fragrances whether it’s Spiced Apple Compote or a delicious Warm Gingerbread oozing with cinnamon and rich stem ginger, drizzled with vanilla syrup,” says Pintail Candles’ manging director James Long. “We have also given our Occasions candle range, featuring heartfelt messages, a make-over. With the continuing success of the range, we have followed the trends by adding a splash of colour to the design. The collection now features colourful messages with matching candle wax, presented in our most popular fragrances.”

Wax Lyrical’s brand manager Joan Grenville says that the company’s Street Mythology collection, a new launch for 2021,

New Kid On The Candle Block

New to the occasion/sentiment home fragrancing market place is Scentiment Gifts, launched last year. “There’s still a huge demand for sentiment products and our collection is very concept-led, covering the key occasions,” says managing director Richard Marsden.

The company has recently introduced a range of Scentiment reed diffusers, in Angel Oil and Cotton Fresh, to complement the candles, in dark, striking packaging, with Richard adding: “With Autumn/Winter in mind we have introduced two new candle fragrances - Fireside and Apple & Cinnamon.”

Right: Apple & Cinnamon is among the lidded candles from Scentiment Gifts. Left: Pintail’s Spiced Apple Compote. Below far left: Fresh Cookies, among The Aromatherapy Company’s new Christmas fragrances. Below: Wax Lyrical’s Mythology

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Bigger And Better

is ideal for creating a vibrant Autumn vibe. The range features striking, sophisticated designs in ceramic large multi-wick candles and diffuser vessels, with fragrances featuring a blend of floral and exotic perfumes that tell a story of a time gone by while remaining contemporary.

“The designs on reusable vessels are inspired by vintage botanical imagery to enrich home décor,” Joan explains. “A new, natural blend for diffusers, which is British made, lasts longer than alcohol, is non-toxic and a renewable resource making it more environmentally friendly,” she adds. The company has also launched new scents in HomeScenter Pets that include new fragrances for Christmas in Wax Lyrical’s Made in England range. Also putting a big focus on sustainability is Candlelight, with sales director Emma Yeardley confirming: “we are seeing a move towards more sustainable vessels on candles that can be repurposed once they have finished their life as a candle. We will therefore be focusing on developing more glass filled jars with different style lids for later in the season.” Meanwhile, the company’s Chinoiserie collection embraces an eclectic mix of painted birds, flowers and exotic leaves over candles, diffusers and fragrance. “It’s full of vibrance and colour with ochre, ether and cantaloupe pink playing with rich greens, magenta and teal accents,” says Emma.

Gisela Graham will also be expanding the company’s collection of designs and fragrances for Autumn/Winter, as well as launching a new collection of unscented pillar candles in on trend interior colours. “They’re for people who want to leave candles burning for a longer time,” highlights sales director Piers Croke.

With suppliers taking home fragrancing to another level, and sustainability the name of the game, retailers are clearly going to be spoilt for choice.

Lesser & Pavey has added hundreds of new products to the company’s Desire Aroma range for 2021. In addition to soy candles, reed diffusers and aroma lamps, there are also tea light wax and oil warmers.

The company recently launched a new, larger size of diffuser and candles, with new 500ml,100ml, 200ml diffusers in red, pink, white, silver and gold and candles made of soya. “Each product comes full of fragrance, in excellent packaging, with no expense spared in producing the finished gift item,” says managing director Julian Hunt.

In addition, new skull aroma lamps have joined the collection - one having a ceramic base to the lamp, available in white and silver, while the other is made from glass with 3D design available in silver and gothic black. “The Desire range is all about wellbeing, with these multi-coloured lamps touch sensitive, projecting light that can be used with wax melts and aroma oils,” Julian explains. Some have a remote control and can play music by Bluetooth, with the fragrance oil and wax melts available to use with the lamps. Other products in the range include ceramic humidifiers that change colour.

Right: Extra large reed diffusers from Lesser & Pavey.

Above left: Oriental Lily from Candlelight’s Chinoiserie range. Above: New from Gisela Graham.

Homing In

Non-flame products too, are continuing to make their presence felt in the home. “Having spent the majority of the last year indoors and redecorating our homes, the demand for flameless home fragrance is still very much with us,” says David Lewis, managing director of Xystos.

“However, more than ever, we want our electric melt burners and ultrasonics to be a statement piece in the home and become a standout feature of the room décor. We have also seen a surge in requests for colour rather than just the neutrals of previous seasons,” highlights David. “With this in mind, our new lines are more colourful, modern and stylish than ever before, and the use of wax melts and oils within these products mean that people can frequently change their homes fragrance quickly and easily, making it an ideal option.”

Right: Infinity 3D art glass ultrasonic diffuser from Xystos.