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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

This bus shelter smells like a McCain potato

By: Thandi Fletcher

Posted: 02/18/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

POSTMEDIA NEWS ARCHIVES Enlarge Image

Commuters in the U.K. press a button on a 3-D stuffed potato that releases the smell of potatoes baking in an oven.

CANADA'S McCain Foods is taking "scratch-and-sniff" advertising to a whole new level with its latest campaign: potato-scented bus shelters.

At 10 bus shelters across the U.K., from London to Glasgow, the British arm of McCain Foods has created sizable 3-D spuds mounted on large posters with a button that, when pushed, releases the smell of potatoes baking in an oven.

"People like the whole oven-baked smell that comes from a jacket potato," said Emily Pickard, a spokeswoman for the U.K. McCain Foods. "It's quite a warm, comforting smell."

Upon activation, the faux potato, made out of fibreglass, also heats up and dishes out discount coupons to commuters.

The olfactory campaign is for the Canadian frozen-food maker's latest microwaveable product, Ready Baked Jackets, advertised as pre-baked potatoes that can be warmed up in five minutes.

In creating its signature spud scent, McCain Foods teamed up with a specialist scent lab to develop an aroma that mimicked their product.

"They sent up a few different versions to us to make sure it did emulate the smell very closely," said Pickard.

But the $2.2-million campaign, which was launched in early February, will soon be coming down.

"It was just for two weeks," she added.

However brief the campaign's stint, 'scent-sorial' advertising -- an idea hinged on the hope a consumer is likely to follow their nose to connect with a brand -- is not a new concept, said Queen's University marketing professor Ken Wong.

Perfume samples have long been glued to the pages of fashion magazines and retailers such as Abercrombie & Fitch are known for pumping their stores full of its signature men's fragrance, Fierce.

Bakeries and food stalls have also relied on the power of scent to lure customers with familiar fragrances, such as fresh-baked cookies or apple pie.

However, in a world where hospitals, schools and workplaces are increasingly labelling themselves as "scent-free" spaces, Wong said, aromatic ads do stand the risk of offending some noses.

"It is an unanticipated risk that they're running," said Wong. "The thing that creates the potential danger in the McCain campaign is that you're imposing yourself on the public."

-- Postmedia News

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 18, 2012 B4

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