Why do we all want to smell like baked goods? The viral perfume trend taking over TikTok

The scent of freshly baked goodies wafting through the kitchen is unbeatable. If only there was a way to bottle up the smell - as it turns out, there is.

Many buyers of perfume have been tempted by generally sweet, vanilla scents in the past, but perfume and body spray lovers are now craving more specific aromas. Gourmand perfumes have been around for decades, but now scents that evoke the smell of specific treats, like a tray of cookies or a caramel drizzle cake, have hit the market.

Fragrance fanatics have gone to TikTok to share their lists of appetising gourmand fragrances that smell good enough to eat. Videos in the ‘Perfumes That Smell Like Baked Goods’ and ‘Perfumes that smell like a bakery’ topics have cooked up hundreds of thousands of views. Popular ‘realistic’ gourmand scents in a number of videos include Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Crush Cheirosa 62 perfume mist, which is infused with scents of salted caramel and sandalwood and the Kayali Yum Pistachio Gelato 33 by Huda Beauty.

In a Reddit thread about bakery perfumes, one user shared: "My coworker told me she needed to know what delicious pastry I brought to the office when I was wearing Kayali Vanilla."

The past year has seen a number of unique launches in the gourmand space. From an American company called Snif and their Crumb Couture aroma collection inspired by French patisseries to Dolce & Gabbana’s fresh out the oven Devotion Eau de Parfum Intense, which draws inspiration from the Italian hazelnut panettone.

Although too sickly sweet for some, consumers are mostly enamoured by this craze. Lush in particular is satisfying these cravings by expanding its Sticky Dates range, which has a cult following after it originally launched as a limited edition Eid product.

Sticky Dates originally launched as a limited edition productLush

The brand released a popular Sticky Dates body spray this year, and if your nose hasn’t had a chance to have a sniff, it’s pungent, rich and warm like a sticky toffee pudding. The product was Lush’s number one best selling product for August in the UK and Ireland.

This Christmas customers will be able to pick up a bottle of the Posh Chocolate body wash, and walk around smelling like a chocolate lava cake.

Are gourmand scents less elitist?

We’re all familiar with the smell of freshly baked cookies, cakes and chocolate, and is communicating these scents to a perfumer much easier for more people?

Emma Vincent, an in-house perfumer known as the "nose of Lush", believes it’s no coincidence that scents directly inspired by baked goods are on the rise. "They appeal to everyone,’ she tells Indy100. "Anyone can wear a gourmand scent, there's no historic bias of the fragrance being either masculine or feminine, so it opens up for everyone to enjoy.

"The language around perfume is still elitist and confusing for the majority," she adds about gourmand perfumes overcoming class divides. "Who really knows what a chypre is?! But you can communicate that you want to smell like vanilla, coffee or caramel as these are familiar reference points."

Tasty nostalgia

Gourmand fragrances also capture specific nostalgic and comforting memories. Hayley Jones, head of buying at The Fragrance Shop says people are naturally drawn to scents that "evoke powerful feelings of comfort, warmth and nostalgia" but also with an "element of indulgence", like Bake by Akro that smells like lemon cupcakes.

Estée Lauder is aiming to be at the forefront of this memory-focused perfume trend by commissioning research on perfume’s connection to memory. In September the brand announced a partnership with the Dresden University of Technology to delve into the connection between scent and memory and emotion.

There is a belief that the new foodie gourmand trend links back to how people sought comfort during the Covid-19 pandemic and all the lockdowns. The banana bread obsession has had a lasting impact.

“Millions of people stayed at home, worked from home, with many seeking comfort in things such as baking, interlinked with a feeling of nostalgia and reflection,” Lee Howes, fragrance category lead at Lush, said.

“Gourmand scents are more grounding, subtle and familiar so it makes sense that people would want to reach for these scents as we entered back into the world, and tried to feel comfortable again in social settings and work."

Gourmand lovers are now craving specific bakery-inspired scents Photo by Mink Mingle on Unsplash

What's the appeal of smelling good enough to eat?

Smelling and feeling indulgent is also something dessert gourmand wearers desire. Another TikToker shared a list of perfumes she recommends if you want a man to devour you ‘like the delicacy you are’.

While the pheromone fragrance trend never really caught on, a much more worthwhile spritz if you want to bag yourself a bae is dessert gourmand. Sex expert Isabelle Uren from Bedbible explains: "When we smell someone wearing these deliciously sweet perfumes, these pleasant associations are activated, and can evoke feelings of comfort, happiness and pleasure, which are all conducive to sexual attraction and arousal.

"Who doesn't want to kiss, lick, or nibble a partner that smells like their favourite sweet treat!"

How do actual bakers feel?

Matthew Jones, founder of Bread Ahead bakery, says he understands why people want to smell like a bakery. "When people choose to wear or surround themselves with scents inspired by baked goods, they're not just celebrating the aroma; they're embracing a parcel of emotional delights that remind them of simpler, comforting times."

Sophie Carey, bakery development manager at Matthews Cotswold Flour adds: "These scents also tend to be crowd pleasers, with most enjoying the smell.

"I don’t think we’ll be seeing a garlic bread perfume hit the shelves any time soon!"

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