I can’t count the number of times my friends overseas have spoken to me and admitted that they’re homesick and longing for familiar comforts. When asked what specifically they mean, items such as Mrs Balls Chutney and biltong, droewors and rooibos, are mentioned, along with the scent of the bushveld and forests, and a taste of a hot masala curry.

Then their thoughts turn to the familiarity of companionship and outdoor braais, with the scent of wood smoke and wine. Some friends recounted tales of hiking up mountains, while others reminisced about chilling on golden sandy beaches, touring one of the beautiful wine farms, or going on a game drive.

It’s an accepted fact that scents conjure up memories at a faster rate than any of our other senses. It would seem that South Africa has a host of different scents which make it unique when compared to anywhere else in the world. So what is a heart sore ex-pat or adventurer to do, but wait longingly until they can once again return to the welcoming shorelines of South Africa?

Well, that used to be the only option, until a very clever girl by the name of Angela Jones came up with the idea of making scents that dig deep into our culture, and founded a company in 2003. The company is called Homecoming Revolution, and their product is aptly titled Scents of Home. The range has three fragrances titled Karoo Stoep, Zulu Leather, and Highveld Thunderstorm.

A trial was run in June 2012, in which London based ex-pats were lovingly rounded up and given scented wristbands with one of the above three fragrances. Out of those who participated 67% admitted, many with a tear in their eye, that the fragrances awoke their reminiscence for home. At one Homecoming Revolution expo, Western Cape premier Helen Zille and rugby icon Francois Pienaar spoke about the benefits and drawbacks of living in South Africa. As a result, many expats present decided it was time to return home again – though it’s unclear how many actually made the move back.

This first trial was done in partnership with a company called Aroma Logo, which designs custom scented and branded logos. The ultimate goal for Homecoming Revolution is to incorporate these scented logos into air-conditioners, and install these in places that expats frequent; such as South African embassies, and South African themed restaurants and shops.

The campaign was considered a success on all counts, and was created and run by Toni-Lee Cheiman and Jonathan Campbell from Morrisjones ‘ALLVERTISING™’ agency. Currently, there are no plans to mass produce this range and sell it to the public, but should that happen, we’ll likely find droves of people making the move back home.

Let us know what your favourite South African scents are, and if you’d buy one of the above fragrances, when they are finally released to the public.

Main image credited to Derek Keats (Flickr)