To help solve the problem we added a new sense to the smartphone: olfaction.

Introducing: NOSE. A global innovation allowing smartphones to smell human male sweat and inform them if it’s OK, if it’s TIME or if it’s urgent.

A breakthrough for the internet of things in men’s daily care routines.

NOSE combines a hardware sensor technology - hidden in the smartphone cover - with a mobile application. Both are connected via Bluetooth and make sure that male body odor is analyzed in few seconds and your ‘smell status’ is shared.

NOSE has been in prototype development since 2015. Since early March 2016 NOSE is beyond a Beta-phase. Meaning that the first NOSE smartphone covers are in production and the NOSE app is to be found in the app store.

In April 2016 the first hundred NOSES were dispatched to influencers and press. For now on iPhone 6 only. Information was gathered. The learning Algorythm improved. By end of 2016 NOSE will be available for an even broader group. In 2017 NOSE will be available on all smartphones for broad audience, helping men globally to be aware and care for their body odor.

In April the first hundred NOSES will mainly reach influencers and press. By end of 2016 reach will be broader: few countries. By 2017 it should be available for all consumers. But Since NOSE is live since end of April it's too soon for meaningful results. However it is instantly clear that NOSE influences behaviour and builds the reputation of NIVEA MEN as an innovative brand.

Nivea Men Nose is an innovation that generates interaction and influences men’s behavior. It engages and helps men to be aware and care about their body odor and activates them to go directly to the e-store of Nivea Men in case of 'trouble'.

Over 4000 field tests (smell data of over 4000 males, different races, different countries, different continents, different humidity context, ... ) have been held to improve and stabilize the 'smell status'-algorithm, hence the performance. The ever learning algorithm – the more data, the more accurate the algorithm – is now at 80% accuracy.

With 40% less brain area perceiving odor versus females, the male olfaction is much less sensitive on average. This combined with the fact that our nose is very used to our own body odor makes that men have a little problem: they can not smell their own sweat.

As a global leader in functional care NIVEA MEN wanted innovative solutions to help solving that problem and by doing so helping men to be aware and care about their body odor.