• The Smart Essence 4 Kids project has analyzed the response of a new mask aromatizer in the young public with new consumer study technologies

In the context of the beginning of the global pandemic caused by COVID-19, we began to incorporate the mask into our daily lives, becoming the indispensable complement to our limited socialization. A protection accessory that children and young people have also had to learn to use. This is how the TEB Cooperative Group, product handler and packer, and the aroma and fragrance manufacturer Carinsa, began working on a product that could improve the experience of use and the interaction of users with the mask, and make the process of adaptation more bearable: this is how the mask aromatizer was born.

Given the potential of the product, it was decided to collaborate with entities representing both sectors involved, packaging and children's, together with the Packaging Cluster and KID’s Cluster, to study the launch of the new product through new market analysis techniques, and test the solution accompanied by the manufacturer Sentinel, which would analyze the acceptability of the aromatizer in the mask, and Abacus, a retailer connected to the consumer. Smart Essence 4 Kids is the project that unites each of these partners to learn how to increase the impact of a new launch thanks to new technologies and systems such as neuroscience.

The mask aromatizer

In March, the Smart Essence 4 Kids project ended, an initiative that aims to connect the children's value chain and that of packaging to generate a positive impact on the emotions of young people with the design, manufacture, distribution and application of a product aromatic for masks. Therefore, a pilot sprayer test was created with four aroma options: mint, strawberries with cream, peach and piña colada.

Market analysis to connect with the new generations

To find out the public's response to the new product, two analyzes were carried out: on the one hand, a study of the final consumer with previously selected boys and girls, who interacted with the product as an unboxing, as we see on platforms such as Instagram or YouTube. And, on the other, a neuronal study as a complement, in which the brain response was analyzed when the product was smelled, to find out the objective sensations produced by each essence.

These answers have allowed us to get to know the product and the interaction with it much better, refining the personalization of the aromatizer to the current needs of the new generations. Likewise, with the insertion of a QR in the labeling of the packaging, a new channel of communication and feedback from users regarding the product will be created.

Collaboration as a path to innovation

The fact that it is a collaborative project between different agents has made it possible to share conclusions in terms of open innovation, new systems that will allow data management to go a step further, and new technologies in support of Industry 4.0.

Innovation and digitization have a direct impact on the productivity and competitiveness of companies, a necessary condition for their sustained growth and continuous improvement, which is why it is necessary for clusters to design processes and promote collaborative projects such as Smart Essence 4 Kids that push companies, especially SMEs, towards innovation, digitization and technological transformation.

The Smart Essence 4 Kids project has been possible thanks to the funding received from the support program for AEIs of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, for the competitive improvement of the SMEs involved.

Find out more about the Smart Essence 4 Kids project HERE.