Zeya unveils diffuser with changeable “scent cards” made of cellulose

American fragrance company Zeya has designed a scent diffuser with compostable cellulose scent cards that are inserted into a small device.

The design was informed by the 90s-era floppy disk.

"I am a child of the '90s, and maybe it was because social media and cell phones were not a thing, but there was a freedom to explore different versions of who you could be," Zeya's founder Aimee Blank told Dezeen.

Most scent diffusers on the market rely on mist, heat, or reeds to disperse fragrance. Zeya uses a fan to push out the scent through the cellulose cards, with no mist involved.

Blank said she wanted to bring some fun and nostalgia to the scent experience. To achieve this, she designed changeable scent cards that people can insert based on their mood.

The custom scents were developed by luxury fragrance house Fermenich. One of them, called Welcome, smells like grapefruit and blackberry. Another, Conversation, features warm amber and mint.

The scent cards are made from FSC-certified cellulose and can either be recycled or composted at home once the scent has faded.

"Figuring out the right material for the card that held the oil in the way that we wanted, but wasn’t too soft and allowed the card to kick out in that satisfying way was a real challenge," Blank said. "I lost count of the amount of materials and blends we experimented with to find the correct one."

The device comes with two settings –high and low – which dictate how fast the proprietary fan inside it spins. Blank said one scent card can last up to 45 days, and can fill a room of up to 300 cubic feet.

Portability was key when designing the product.

"It was important to me that the device was something people could put wherever they wanted to in the home without worrying about using an outlet," Blank said.

After more than a dozen prototypes, she landed on a battery-powered design that can keep the device running for three to four months before the batteries need to be changed. "Achieving this goal took a lot of engineering and creativity to figure out," she said.

The team is now in the process of designing a rechargeable version to eliminate the use of single-use batteries in the product.

It is also tinkering with a concept that would allow people to swap out the cards before the scent fades if they want a different mood.

"We are also exploring ways to mark the cards, so that people can more easily identify which card is which scent after it’s out of the packaging," she said.

Zeya launched online this month, as well as at 700 Target stores nationwide. It was designed with Gen Z in mind – a generation that has long been nostalgic for the 90s.

"I love that the 90s are having a moment with the Gen Z audience," Blank said.

"Gen Z is also the most conscious when it comes to product ingredients, so creating clean fragrance products our customer can feel good about using and breathing every day is important to us as well."

Other recent products with compostable elements include a pair of ear plugs made out of mycelium by Gob and a pair of compostable trainers.

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