Do ambient scents affect customers’ behavioral responses at fashion stores in Vietnam?

Abstract

This research aims to study the effect of a carefully selected congruent and simple ambient scent in a real-world shop setting and to study how scent affects shopper’s mood and behavior. Using electrostatic aroma diffusers, the research applies a carefully selecting vanilla scent at two fashion stores in district 6 and district Tan Binh. The results show that the scent has a significant positive effect on shopper’s fashion store emotion’s state (pleasure and arousal), and emotion’s state of customer has a significant positive effect on behavioral responses of shopper (time spent in-store, amount of money spending and intention of a revisit of the customer). Implications for marketing and store management are discussed.