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The missing sensory layer: Why scent matters in hospitality
Scent has the power to shape how guests experience a space and how they remember it long after their stay. In this guest article, Mark Bailey, Founder of The Science of Scent, explores the role fragrance can play in hotel design and explains how the company is bringing this often-overlooked sense to life as Official Scent Partner of Independent Hotel Show London 2026.
Hotels spend enormous amounts of time considering how a guest will see, hear and experience a space. From architecture and lighting to materials, music and service, every detail contributes to the atmosphere. But there is another layer that is often overlooked... scent.
Scent can be one of the most subtle elements of a hotel environment, but it can also become one of the most memorable. A particular fragrance can transport us back to a place, trigger a feeling or become associated with an experience long after we have left. For hospitality, this presents an interesting opportunity.
The question isn't simply, “What should our hotel smell like?” It is about understanding what you want the space to make people feel.
A calm, restorative spa might call for something very different from a lively restaurant or a sophisticated city hotel. The character of the property, its surroundings, its guests and the experience it wants to create all have a role to play. At The Science of Scent, this is where the process begins.
Creating a considered scent is part science, part creativity and a lot of refinement. It can involve exploring fragrance notes, developing scent wheels, recording tasting notes, testing combinations and making those small adjustments that can completely change how a fragrance feels in a space.
For Independent Hotel Show London 2026, we are taking that process one step further as the show's Official Scent Partner.
Together with Bel Bailey, we have been developing scents specifically for the show... considering not only what smells beautiful, but how those fragrances will work within the environment and contribute to the overall experience.
There is something particularly exciting about taking a fragrance from an idea on paper, through development and testing, and eventually experiencing it in a real environment surrounded by thousands of hospitality professionals. Because scent shouldn't compete with a space. It should belong there. It should feel considered, intentional and, ideally, almost effortless.
As hospitality continues to evolve, we believe the most memorable spaces will be those that think beyond what guests can see. The future of hotel design is increasingly about creating experiences that engage the senses as a whole. Scent is an invisible part of that story.
And this October, at Independent Hotel Show London, we're looking forward to bringing that story to life as the Official Scent Partner.
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