Quest Enters Textiles Market With Fragrance Technology

03 March 2003 00:00  [Source: ICB Americas]

Quest International, ICI's fragrance and flavors operation, is moving into textiles by launching a technology that incorporates fragrances into garments, upholstery and flooring.

The initiative could bring Quest into competition with the leading producers of textile additives, which include Ciba Specialty Chemicals, Clariant and BASF.

However, Quest says it is creating a new market segment through a process of micro-encapsulating tiny droplets or particles. The technology enables substances containing fragrances, moisturizers, deodorants, fresheners, insect repellents or anti-odor agents to be released by movement or touch.

"It will be a totally new market, which we believe will have a huge potential," says Shibani Mohindra, Quest's new business development director.

"It will be different from the textile additives sector because we will market,in a much softer, way products that give sensory benefits to consumers," she explains. "We will be focusing much more on owners of brands and on designers. It is an entirely new concept which will enable moisturizers, for ex-ample, to be applied to the skin through clothes, or deodorants to deodorize both the body and garments."

Quest has formed a marketing alliance for the project with the sales organization Woolmark Company, which has a worldwide network. The innovation will be promoted under the Quest brand name Sensory Perception Technologies.

The technology could revolutionize the textile sector by "offering new ways to use fabrics, while having the potential to add considerable financial value to the industry," says David Hellens, marketing director of Woolmark.

The encapsulated products will be retained in garments for up to 30 washes but can then be replenished by "top-up" sprays lasting for another five to six washes.

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