Meet the hotel chain with a nose for marketing success
Here's an idea with the faintest whiff of desperation about it: Swissotel has announced plans to communicate its corporate identity through the sense of smell.
"Un.wind with the wind", its new in-house scent, is said to encapsulate the "subtle, pure elegance" of a five-star standard hotel: "fresh and airy as Swiss mountain air, a touch of Alpine flowers and genuine gentian, in the background delicate wood notes for a sense of wellbeing, and a light echo of wild, red berries to reflect Swissotel's corporate colour".
Hotel brand marketing via the olfactory senses is an interesting idea - but shouldn't the various elements listed below be present in the aromatic mix?
* The smell of liniment on a doorman's chest on a sub-zero winter morning
* The waft of sweat from a porter's pits as he lugs another trunk out the back of a taxi
* Chef's breath after a tasting session with a prospective new garlic supplier
* The sharp odour of laundry detergent and toilet cleaner
* The restaurant manager's hot stink of fear as he spots M. Winner in the day's bookings