Startup Creates Baby-Scent Fragrance, Sells Out in a Month

Kobe University startup Scentfest has developed a perfume that recreates the scent of a baby's head. Based in Takarazuka, Hyogo Prefecture, the company is led by 70-year-old president Mamiko Ozaki, whose idea and scientific research made the product possible. Ozaki is also a professor emeritus at Kobe University.

Soothing and Nostalgic

The company's first release, "Poupon pure" (¥2,970 JPY, about $20 USD), was released on June 15 and sold out by the following month due to its popularity. On social media, users praised it with comments about its "nostalgic" smell and "soothing" effects.

The fragrance combines floral and citrusy notes, feeling both fresh and rich, and evokes an impression that's hard to describe in words.

A 31-year-old office worker in Osaka's Naniwa Ward, who gave birth to her first daughter in October 2024, smiled as she said, "My daughter's scent has already changed, but this perfume carries a nostalgic feeling that reminds me of it."

From Ants to Inspiration

During her career as a graduate school professor at Kobe University, Ozaki studied pheromones that form the basis of ants' recognition of friend or foe.

*The company's first product "Poupon pure" sold out in a month. (©Sankei by Miyako Nagumo)*

One day, after hearing a news story about child abuse, she wondered: "If there were something that could help people recall a baby's pleasant scent and feel calmer ..." That thought became the inspiration for the product.

With support from Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Ozaki and her research team developed a stress-free method to collect newborns' head scents. They analyzed samples from five newborns, both within an hour after birth and several days later. The team identified 37 distinct components and published their findings in 2019.

Breaking Down a Baby's Scent

Further analysis of about 20 newborns revealed that all shared very similar scents, especially high levels of a floral-smelling compound called nonanal.

Ozaki speculates: "Raising a child is hard, but perhaps babies produce this scent themselves as a message: 'Please take care of me.'"

Using this data, the team recreated the scent and tested it with participants. Brain activity measurements showed that it stimulated areas linked to feelings of pleasure and the desire to keep smelling it.

After retiring from Kobe University, Ozaki founded Scentfest in 2023. She says she hopes the perfume can be enjoyed not only by mothers but also fathers and others, even suggesting it as a thoughtful gift for grandparents who don't live with their grandchildren.

On September 12, the company launched a crowdfunding campaign, offering Poupon pure and an original picture book illustrated by Ozaki as rewards.

Looking ahead, Ozaki hopes to create personalized perfumes tailored to individual children and explore collaborations with other brands. Smiling as she gazed at a bottle of Poupon pure, she said: "We've finally reached the point where it can sit in people's hands. From here, the real journey begins."

(Read the article in Japanese.)

Author: Saki Maehara, The Sankei Shimbun