Mala McAlpin Most of us can instantly recognise that intoxicating, sweet smell as we approach a Peter Alexander, or that bold fresh fragrance that tells us we’re within walking distance of a Lush store. Smells intrinsically link us with memories and experiences, and having a signature scent is one of the most effective ways to make a brand stand out in our minds.
This is particularly true in the case of essential oils. We not only experience that same bold smell (like we would with any synthetic perfume) but the influence essential oils have on our mood and mental state strengthens the experience, as we remember the way that a fragrance made us feel at the time.
It is perhaps for these reasons that so many spas are now beginning to blend their own signature essential oil blends, including Cairns’ Eleme Day Spa, Brisbane’s Kailo Medispa and Sydney’s Sol Spa. As essential oils are used in day spas almost without exception, it provides a convenient branding opportunity, making your business stand out by creating an original scent that represents and personifies you as a business.
This makes custom blends a fantastic multi-faceted activity, that should be considered equally branding and marketing as it is a therapeutic exercise. When selecting essentials and scents, sit down and carefully review your business’ core values and any branding documents. How would your scent best describe your business? Is it lively and bold? Citrus or floral? Full of energy and invigoration, or soothing and calming? Feminine of masculine? And how do you want clients to feel upon entering? This is what your signature blend should reflect.
According to Pat Princi-Jones, Aromatherapy expert for Oil Garden and associate member of the International Aromatherapy and Aromatic Medicine Association, there are several points for spas to consider when blending.
“You want to choose soporific oils, oils that are relaxing, indulgent, oils that aren’t too strong, to create a lovely balance. You have to really know blending!” she says.
Another important consideration, says Pat, is selecting a high quality cold-pressed oil as a carrier for your blend, when used as a massage medium. “Cold-pressed coconut is my favourite,” says Pat. “It’s light, it doesn’t have a scent to it, it’s not coloured, I put it on skin and it glows, it doesn’t feel sticky or clammy.”
Your final step to consider is where you might be utilising your signature blend/s. Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
Signature treatments – For any signature spa treatments, your staple blend can be used throughout, given there isn’t a therapeutic need which requires a specific essential blend. Use it for initial inhalations, mist it through guided meditations, or add to your massage medium.
Bathrooms and common areas – If you only have one signature blend that best represents you as a brand, it’s often best to keep it out of treatment rooms, as it will interfere and clash with other scents and essential oils required for varying treatments and indications. Instead, pop it in a diffuser in your bathroom or dressing rooms, or an oil burner in your reception space.
Towels – Have your bathroom hand cloths and dressing room towels laundered in a couple of drops of your essential blend, or mist them lightly before hanging, for a very subtle extra touch.
Retail – Add your concoctions to your retail section, so clients can replicate your spa feeling at home between visits.
For more news and updates, subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
