The ODORA story begins with a sensation. Two feelings, in fact.
Posted yesterday at 11:00 a.m.
The first is nice. While going for a walk with her dog, in May 2017, Claudine Desnoyers was carried away by the smell of lilacs in bloom. This feeling – pleasant, it goes without saying – was quickly interrupted by another, much less pleasant to Claudine’s nose: that of the dryer outlets. You know that characteristic smell of commercial laundry soap?
The Montreal entrepreneur wondered why manufacturers weren’t looking for scents closer to flora, closer to nature. She promised herself to put herself on the file.
“Some people love the smells of Tide or La Parisienne, for whom it’s a reference, and that’s fine, says Claudine Desnoyers, also owner of Comptoir Chocolat. I wanted to go elsewhere. I wanted something else. »
Last month, after four years of hard work (and a pandemic that gave her much-needed free time!), Claudine Desnoyers launched her new company’s first fragrance line, ODORA. It comes in nine flavors: spring lilac (Le temps des lilas), blue chamomile (Wild Mediterranean), lime blossom (Effluves de juin), peony (Exuberant peony), white jasmine (Jardin des traditions), Juniper (Souvenir de Chasse ), wild blue lilac (Malibu Waterfalls), Iris and lemon balm (Serenity) and vetiver (Walk in the forest).
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, THE PRESS
ODORA relies on floral scents.
These are perfumes that could be described as “household”. They can be added to laundry soap (with or without scent), but also to all-purpose cleaner or dish soap. Since perfumes contain a surfactant, a small amount can also be diluted in hot water to clean floors or cabinets. Verification made: it cleans very well.
Developing these products took time. It must be said that Claudine Desnoyers has given herself the mission of developing the most ecological perfumes possible.
“I was never happy with my lilac. I always wanted it greener, greener, greener,” says the trained graphic designer, according to whom the patience of her team of perfumers and chemists was put to the test.
The fragrances are free of alcohol, parabens, benzene, toluene, lilial and liral, among others.
What distinguishes ODORA perfumes from perfumes already integrated into ecological laundry soap, “is the outfit”, explains Claudine Desnoyers. The Press was also able to confirm it: even after a spin in the dryer, the floral scent remains impregnated in the clothes.
Half of the perfumes in the range contain only natural raw materials, while the other half also contains synthetic aromatic materials, which also contribute to fixing the smell in the clothes. “Lilac is impossible to have naturally,” sums up Claudine Desnoyers, who also markets an odorless concentrated laundry detergent.
The entrepreneur does not intend to stop there. The next step, scheduled for the fall, is the launch of a range of cosmetic fragrances to add to shampoos, baths, shampoos for animals… Also on the program: the launch of a shampoo, a lotion body wash, hand soap, scented mist and concentrated window cleaner.
For Claudine Desnoyers, the pandemic has definitely been productive.
ODORA laundry and household fragrances, between $28.50 and $45.50 for 400 ml (80 loads), between $14 and $17 for 70 ml (14 loads)