The paper aims to identify the important determinants of scented ambience that helps consumers in the formation of positive feeling towards their shopping experience in a retail store. It further tried to find out if there was any preference for specific scents among consumers in a retail environment. This article has contributed to the preliminary investigations on identify the important determinants of scented ambience that helps consumers in the formation of positive feeling towards their shopping experience in a retail store. The study involved collection of relevant data through a survey of 547 respondent consumers. The study found that scented ambience in a retail outlet enhances the overall shopping experience of consumers by making it enjoyable and more exciting. The study found that scented ambience in a retail outlet enhances overall shopping experience of consumers by making it enjoyable and more exciting. Such scented ambience makes time spent in queuing line exciting, shopping interesting, and queuing for help enjoyable. Further, it was found that lavender fragrance was most preferred among consumers in a retail environment. The current research will add value to the existing marketing research. Further, it will assist managers in creating a more interesting and scented ambience.

Adams, P. (1998). Network typologies and virtual place. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 88, 88-106.

Aaker, D.A., Kumar, V., Leone, R.P., & Day, G.S. (2016). Marketing Research (11thed.). New Delhi: Wiley India (P) Limited, 345-400.

Baker, J., Parasuraman, D., & Grewal, A. (1994). The influence of store environment on quality inferences and store image. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 22, 328-339.

Banat, A., &Wandebori, H. S. T. (2012, October 13-14). Store Design and Store Atmosphere Effect on Customer Sales per Visit. Paper presented at the Second International Conference on Business, Economics, Management and Behavioral Sciences (BEMBS’2012), Bali, Indonesia. Retrieved from http://psrcentre.org/images/extraimages/10%201012545.pdf.

Bell, S., & Bell, C. P. (2007).  Future Sense:  Defining Brands through Scent. The Journal of the Marketing Society,38(Autumn). Retrieved from http://www.marketing-society.org.uk/About/manifesto/growthdrivers/Documents/ML_Stephen_Bell.pdf.

Bellizi, J., Crowley, A., & Hasty, R. (1983). The effects of colour in store design.Journal of Retailing, 59(Spring), 21-45.

Ber?ík, J., Neomániová, K., Mravcová, A., and Gálová, J. (2021). Review of the Potential of Consumer Neuroscience for Aroma Marketing and Its Importance in Various Segments of Services. Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(16), 7636; https://doi.org/10.3390/app11167636

Bitner, M. J. (1992). Servicescapes: the impact of physical surroundings on customers and employees. Journal of Marketing, 56(April), 57-71.

Bone, P. F., & Ellen P. S. (1999). Scents in the marketplace: explaining a fraction of olfaction. Journal of Retailing, 75, 243-262.

Brown, M. (2005, November 3). Sniffing out an overlooked branding opportunity. Media: Asia's Media & Marketing Newspaper, p.22.

Chawla, D.,&Sondhi, N. (2011). Research Methodology (1sted.). Noida: Vikas Publishing House Private Limited, 303-311.

Chiguvi, D. (2017). Impact of Ambiance Conditions on Customer Satisfaction in the Restaurant Industry; Case Study of Debonairs Pizza Outlets in Botswana. International Journal of Science and Research, 6(2), 1825-1833.

Cooper, D.R., Schindler, P.S., & Sharma, J.K. (2019). Business Research Methods (12thed.). New Delhi: McGraw Hill Education, 516-640.

Danziger, P.N. (2017, September 21). Retailers, Time to Brand Your Store with a Signature Scent- Pumpkin Spice, Anyone? Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/ pamdanziger/2017/09/21/retailers-time-to-brand-your-store-with-a-signature-scent-pumpkin-spice-anyone/#8d2b6b79b27e.

Davies, B. J., Kooijman, D., & Ward, P. (2003). The Sweet Smell of Success: Olfaction in Retailing. Journal of Marketing Management, 19(5/6), 611-627.

Desjardins, C. (2014, May 27). Why retailers need to pay attention to the smell of their stores?The News: Concordia University, Montreal. Retrieved from https://www.concordia.ca/cunews/main/stories/2014/05/27/why-retailers-needtopayattentiontothesmelloftheirstores.html

Devgan, D., & Kaur, M. (2010). Shopping Malls in India: Factors Affecting Indian Customers’ Perceptions. South Asian Journal of Management, 17(2), 29-46.

Douce, L., Poels, K., Janssens, W., & De Backer, C. (2013). Smelling the books: The effect of chocolate scent on purchase-related behavior in a bookstore. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 36, 65-69.

Economist (1998, September 3). The Sweet Smell of Success. Economist-Section Science and Technology. Retrieved from http://amp-economist.com.cdn.ampproject.org.

Flavián, C., Sánchez, S., & Orús, C. (2021). The influence of scent on virtual reality experiences: The role of aroma-content congruence. Journal of Business Research, Volume 123, pp. 289-301, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.09.036.

Gowrishankkar, V. (2017). A Strategic Importance of Store Ambience for Retaining Customers. International Journal of Management Research & Review, 7(2), 129-133.

Goldberg, R. & Niekerk, C. (2021). The Influence of Scent Marketing on Consumers' Approach and Avoidance Behaviour in the High-End Fashion Industry. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences. 12. 10.36941/mjss-2021-0024.

Gao, Y., Wang, C., Huang, M.& Guo, W. (2022). A New Perspective of Sustainable Perception: Research on the Smellscape of Urban Block Space, Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9184, https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159184.

Gardner, M. P. (1985). Mood states and consumer behavior: A critical review. Journal of Consumer Research, 12(2), 281-300, doi:10.1086/208516.

Gulas, C.S.,& Bloch, P. H. (1995). Right under your nose: ambient scent and consumer responses. Journal of Business psychology, 10(1), 87-98.

Hair Jr., J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2006). Multivariate Data Analysis (6thed.). New Delhi: Pearson Education Private Limited, 125-186, 794-865.

Herz, R. S. (1998). Are Odours the Best Cues to Memory? A Cross-Modal Comparison of Associative Memory Stimuli a Source. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 855(1),670.

Herz, R.S., Larsson, M., Trujillo, R., Casola, M.C., Ahmed, F.K., Lipe, S., and Brashear, M.E. (2022).  A three-factor benefits framework for understanding consumer preference for scented household products: psychological interactions and implications for future development. Cognitive Research 7, 28 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41235-022-00378-6

Hirsch, A. R. (1990, November 16). Preliminary results of olfaction Nike Study. Note distributed by the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation, Chicago, IL. Bone, P.F., and Jantrania, S. (1992), Olfaction as a cue for product quality, Marketing Letters, 289-296.

Hirsch, A. R. (1995). Effects of ambient odours on slot-machine usage in a Las Vegas casino. Psychology & Marketing, 12, 585-594.

Hirsch, A. R., &Gay, S. E. (1991). Effect of ambient olfactory stimuli on the evaluation of a common consumer product. Chemical Senses, 16, 115–136.

Hunter, B.T.(1995). The sales appeal of scents. Consumers’ Research Magazine, 78(10), 8-9.

Hussain, R.,& Ali, M. (2015). Effect of Store Atmosphere on Consumer Purchase Intention. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 7(2).

India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) (2021, December 17). Retail Industry in India. Retrieved fromhttps://www.ibef.org/industry/retail-india.aspx.

Insights Success (2020, April 21). Challenges Retail Industry is Facing in India. Retrieved from https://www.insightssuccess.in/challenges-retail-industry-is-facing-in-india.

Keefe, A. (2015, October 15). Scent Australia fills Ubet with Fresh Grass. Scent Australia. Retrieved from https://www.scentaustralia.com.au/about/news/a-foolproof-guide-to-using-fragrance-in-store.

Kaplan, S. (1995). The restorative benefits of nature: Toward an integrative framework. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 15(3), 169-182, doi:10.1016/0272-4944(95)90001-2.

Keefe, A. (2016, June 24). How one supermarket saw sales soar when it pumped out the scent of melon? Scent Australia. Retrieved from https://www.scentaustralia.com.au/about/news/a-foolproof-guide-to-using-fragrance-in-store.

Keefe, A. (2017a, March 21). A foolproof guide to using fragrance in-store. Scent Australia. Retrieved from https://www.scentaustralia.com.au/about/news/a-foolproof-guide-to-using-fragrance-in-store.

Keefe, A. (2017b, March 21). Nivea Experiments Scent. Scent Australia. Retrieved online from https://www.scentaustralia.com.au/about/news/a-foolproof-guide-to-using-fragrance-in-store.

Knasko, S. C. (1989). Pleasant odours and congruency: Effects on approach behavior. Chemical Senses, 20, 479-87.

Lantos, G. P., &Podoshen, J. (2005). Brand Sense: How to Build Powerful Brands Through Touch, Taste, Smell, Sight and Sound. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 14(4), 278-279.

Lindström, M., & Kotler, P. (2005). Brand Sense: Build powerful brands through touch, taste, smell, sight and sound. New York: Free Press.

Lund, C. (2015). Selling through the Senses: Sensory Appeals in the Fashion Retail Environment. Fashion Practice, 7(1), 9–30.

Malhotra, N. K.,& Dash, S. (2016). Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation (7thed.). Noida: Pearson Education, 67-220, 254-394, 494-501, 598-618, 718-719.

Malhotra, N.K., & Dash, S. (2019). Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation (7thRevised ed.). New Delhi: Pearson Education, 476-522.

Mattila, A. S., & Wirtz, J. (2001). Congruency of Scent and Music as a Driver of In-store Evaluations and Behavior, Journal of Retailing, 77(2), 273-289.

McPherson, A.,& Moran, A. (1994). The significance of fragrance and olfactory acuity for consumer household market. Journal of Consumer Studies and Home Economics, 18, 239-51.

Mehrabian, A., & Russell, J.A.(1974). An Approach to Environmental Psychology.Cambridge, USA: The MIT Press.

Merrilees, B., & Miller, D. (2001). Superstore interactivity: a new self-service paradigm of retail service? International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 29, 379-389.

Minsky, L., Fahey, C., &Fabrigas, C. (2018, April 11). Inside the Invisible but Influential World of Scent Branding. Harvard Business Review, 47.Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2018/ 04/inside-the-invisible-but-influential-world-of-scent-branding.

Mombaerts, P. (2004). Love at First Smell- The 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.The New England Journal of Medicine, 351(25), 2579-2580.

Morrin, M., &Ratneshwar, S. (2000). The Impact of Ambient Scent on Evaluation, Attention and Memory for Familiar and Unfamiliar Brands. Journal of Business Research, 49(2), 157-165.

Murwani, I., Rooseno, D., Cakramihardja, A., & Widjaja, J. (2023). The Impact of Sensory Marketing: Analysis of its Attributes Towards Online Perfume Users’ Behavior. International Journal of Professional Business Review, DOI:10.26668/businessreview/2023.v8i9.3439

Nunnally, J. C. (1978). Psychometric Theory (2nded.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Randhir, R., & Latasha, K. (2016). Analyzing the Impact of Sensory Marketing on Consumers: A Case Study of KFC.  Journal of US-China Public Administration, 13(4), 278-292.

Sliburyte, L.,&Vaitieke, J. (2019). Exploring the Effect of Ambient Scent on Consumer Impulsive Buying Behavior: Theoretical Insights. Sciendo, 101-118.

Spangenberga, E. R., Sprotta, D. E., Grohmann, B., & Tracy, D. L. (2006). Gender-congruent ambient scent influences on approach and avoidance behaviors in a retail store. Journal of Business Research, 59(120), 1281-1287.

Spangenberg, E. R., Grohmann, B., & Sprott, D. E. (2006). It began with the smell of smoke. Marketing Letters, 17(4), 265-275.

Spence, C., Puccinelli, N. M., Grewal, D., &Roggeveen, A. L. (2014). Store Atmospherics: A Multisensory Perspective. Psychology and Marketing, 31(7), 472-488.

Stangor, C., &Walinga, J. (2014). Introduction to Psychology (1stCanadian ed.) [e-book]. Victoria, Canada: BC campus. Retrieved from https://opentextbc.ca/introductionto psychology.

Strugnell, C.,& Jones, L. (1999). Customer perception and opinions of fragrances in household products. Nutrition and Food Science, 99, 21-24.

Sudman, S. (1976). Applied Sampling. San Diego, CA, USA: Academic Press.

Tisdale, S.D. (2007). Scent of Desire: Discovering Our Enigmatic Sense of Smell. U.S. News & World Report, 143(23), 48-48. 

Vlahos, J. (2007, September 9). Scent and Sensibility. The New York Times, September 9. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/09/realestate/keymagazine/909SCENT-txt. html

Vega-Gómez FI, Miranda-Gonzalez FJ, Pérez Mayo J, González-López ÓR, Pascual-Nebreda L. The Scent of Art. Perception, Evaluation, and Behaviour in a Museum in Response to Olfactory Marketing. Sustainability. 2020; 12(4):1384. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12041384

Wilkie, M. (1995). Scent of a Market. American Demographics, 17(8), 40-47.

Zaltman, G. (2003). How Customers Think: Essential Insights into the Mind of the Market. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press.

Zameer, A., & Mukherjee, D. (2011). Food and Grocery Retail: Patronage Behavior of Indian Urban Consumers.  South Asian Journal of Management, 18(1), 119-148.

Zoladz, P.,&Raudenbush, B. (2005). Cognitive Enhancement through Stimulation of the Chemical Senses. North American Journal of Psychology, 7, 125-140.