Unilever is investing €100m to scale up its fragrance design and creation capabilities in-house.
The British consumer goods company said the move will give it greater control of the design and refinement of its fragrances, providing the business with the “agility to identify and respond to fragrance trends”.
Unilever’s fragrance house will be powered by the latest digital product development and AI technologies, with neuroscience techniques used to understand how fragrance impacts mood and measurably improves emotional wellbeing.
It is recruiting expert perfumers from the UK, US and India to work across its global portfolio of brands.
They will have access to more than 1,000 raw ingredients to create fragrances, focusing on evaluation, measurement, testing and data analytics.
Unilever said enhancing its in-house capability aligns with the company’s overall Growth Action Plan, which sets out to deliver “unmissably superior” products.
“We are thrilled to announce a €100m investment to build a leading-edge fragrance house at Unilever,” said Richard Slater, Chief R&D Officer at Unilever.
“This initiative will enable us to create and develop our own fragrances, as well as continue to work closely with our important existing partners in the industry.
Unilever is recruiting expert perfumers from the UK, US and India
“By recruiting expert perfumers and leveraging new capabilities, including digital technology and AI, we will help drive unmissable brand superiority in line with Unilever’s Growth Action Plan.
“Developing fragrances that consumers love and enhancing the overall experience of our products.”
Unilever has historically partnered with global fragrance houses to create scents for its products, including shower creams and deodorants.
“Such partnerships remain important to us as we move to grow our capabilities in-house, which will see Unilever transition to a hybrid model,” said a statement from the company.
“Where our digitally enabled teams are involved in every step of innovation, formulating fragrances that fit perfectly with our products.”
Unilever is not the only beauty business investing in its fragrance expertise.
Givaudan has opened its first-ever fine fragrance creative hub in Shanghai, China.
The Swiss fragrance supplier will use the space to foster partnerships with Chinese brands to co-create perfumes.