It is not common for a body wash’s fragrance to last 24 hours on the skin as the scent tends to fade quickly after you get out of the shower. It’s frustrating, indeed, but what can you do to make the scent last longer? Well, you can either use a lotion and perfume in a matching scent, either you use personal care brand LUX‘s recently re-launched and improved Magical Spell body wash, which promises to shroud you in a delicate and floral fragrance for up to 24 hours. A bold statement but which the Unilever-owned brand actually proved it, in a blind test featuring a renowned smell expert.

Imagined by Wunderman Thompson Singapore, the company tapped on expert Laurine Sautour’s ability to identify different scents, challenging her to memorize the smell of six popular body wash brands in China. Then, six ladies were invited to shower with each of the liquid soaps and come back 24 hours later for the expert to see whether their skin still carried the fragrance of the body wash. So, did the products pass the one-day test?

Interestingly, in the case of those who washed with products from other brands, Laurine Sautour identified aromas such as talcum powder from a new mom, a “furry smell” in the case of a pet owner, and a metallic scent from a woman wearing a bracelet. She smelled these aromas and yet no trace of shower gel was detected on the participants’ skin. Except in one case in which the scent of black orchid stood out, the expert confirming that these notes come from a body wash that she has previously smelled. She then finds out that the fragrance is coming from LUX Magical Spell.

Speaking about her experience, Sautour said: “It was an opportunity to show people what smell experts do, and to create a deeper consciousness of the ability of scents to shape experiences and personalities.”

Creative Director Savio Fonseca, Wunderman Thompson Singapore, explained that they are constantly thinking of new ways to boost the brand’s product experience. “To bring out the uniqueness of our latest 24-hour long-lasting fragrance claim, we created an unusual and surprising demonstration involving a super smeller,” Fonseca explained.

“Fragrance is invisible and so it’s harder to show it in a video format. With our great collaboration with Wunderman Thompson, we were able to come up with this concept of using a “Smell Expert” to highlight the superiority of our fragrances in a novel, interesting way. It was an eye-opening experience as we watched our expert Laurine in action, and we believe that consumers will be just as blown away as we were by this incredible demonstration,” Swarnim Bharadwaj, LUX Global Brand Director, concluded.

Wunderman Thompson proves once again (at least creatively) that it got your back: Using a “formula” based on scent detection methods, the agency trained a team of dogs to “guard” beachgoers and let their attendants know when people were not using sunscreen in a campaign for Human Nature to encourage sun safety.

Credits:

Client: Unilever

Brand: LUX

Global Brand Vice President, Lux: Severine Vauleon

Global Brand Director, Lux: Swarnim Bharadwaj

Global Brand Manager, Lux: Megan Zhu

Global Assistant Brand Manager, Lux: Lynn Goh

Agency: Wunderman Thompson Singapore

Chief Creative Officer, WPP@Unilever: Marco Versolato

Creative Director: Savio Fonseca

Creative Director: Gayle Lim

Junior Art Director: Sixin Wu

Business Director, Global Lux: Hinoti Joshi

Senior Account Director: Len de Rosales

Senior Account Manager: Geru Gotico

Planner: Josslyn Li

Director of Integrated Content, WPP@Unilever: Gerri Hamill

Post Producer: Hafiza Yussaini

Production Coordinator: Sharmaine Ng

Production Coordinator: Hayaya Ibrahim

Senior Editor (Offline): Jeremiah Marcelo

Junior Editor (Offline): Emma Jeman

Senior Editor (Online): Luis Calvo

Production (Shooting Gallery)

Director: Bertrand Lee

Senior Producer: Daniel Wong

Producer: Shelley Yip