Smell This
Set in the back of a beautiful garden is Arline Trividic’s studio for Smell this! Aromatherapyproducts. As Arline and her staff work, gentle scents of bergamot, rosewood, lavender and eucalyptus waft through the studio. This is just a small sampling of the many essential oils packed tightly onto the shelves of this sanctuary.
When you enter the studio you are immediately greeted by Arline with warmth and friendliness. There shelves are packed with little bottles of the ingredients that are the base construct of all the products made at Smell this!
“We bring in raw materials from all over the world but we formulate it all here,” says Arline, when describing how she makes her most popular products including Vivify Deep Moisturizing Cream, Ultimate Skin Treat and Chocolate Body Butter.
It is this attention to what goes into her products that has made Smell this! a sought after brand in the boutique market. Smell this! avoids the use of parabens, sodium laurel sulfates, mineral oils and harmful ingredients. Arline’s products contain only natural preservatives.
“We produce a product that the user can put on and know exactly what is going onto their body,” she says.
That’s not the only reason the Smell this! product line is doing so well. Arline is a Registered Aromatherapy Health Practitioner, a provincially-backed designation she earned after attending the West Coast Institute of Aromatherapy under the instruction of the well-respected founder of the school, Beverley von Marksfeld-Fuhrherr.
“Major companies use aromatherapy as a marketing tool, and it is hard to educate the public about the difference between synthetic fragrance and an essential oil,” says Arline.
It is no wonder that spas are carrying the Smell this! line and asking Arline to create private label products. Clients such as Vida Wellness Spas, Le Petit Spa, Waterspell Esthetics and The Love Nest are among the most devoted clients. There are also international clients in New Orleans and Hong Kong. Launching as a full-time business in the summer of 2005, the company has seen strong and consistent growth since its inception as a part-time endeavor in 2002.
“I was pleasantly surprised,” says Arline when asked about the response from the spa market. “I thought my main customers would be health food stores, but after doing the spa show last February we were welcomed by the spas for having natural products. Their customers were looking for natural alternatives.”
The contemporary apothecary look of Smell this! products was also welcomed by the spas. Arline’s daughter and part-owner, Nicole O’Keefe, is responsible for the design, packaging and marketing of the company. Her granddaughter Paige, who is the face of Smell this!, is also the charming embodiment of the company’s spirit.
Above Arline’s door are prayer flags with the words splendour, freedom, abundance, peace and gratitude. Maybe it’s magic or maybe it’s attitude – either way it’s wonderful.