Perfume Odor Categorization: To What Extent Trained Assessors and Consumers Agree?

The perfume industry is increasingly interested in developing perfume classification systems based on their odor character profile to improve consumer shopping experience. However, concerns have been raised regarding the external validity of the classifications performed by experts and trained assessors. In this context, the aim of the present work was to evaluate the influence of training on perfume odor characterization based on a sorting task, by comparing sensory maps of perfumes and descriptions provided by trained assessors and consumers. Fifteen commercially fine female perfumes were evaluated by trained assessors and consumers using a sorting task, followed by a description phase. Trained assessors and consumers provided similar sample configurations. However, there was no perfect agreement in their classifications and some differences in the conclusions regarding similarities and differences between samples were identified. Although the descriptions provided by trained assessors and consumers to characterize the odor profile of the perfumes were different, the most frequently mentioned terms were similar and were used in a similar way. Practical Applications Results from the present work showed that training affected to some extent the way in which perfumes are categorized and described, which suggests that consumer perception could be a valuable complementary tool when developing classification systems as well as perfume descriptions for marketing or communication purposes.