How we make the AirSpace Fragrance Card.
Three decisions made this card: the format, the five scents and the design. Here is what we found, and what we decided from it.
We did not start with the scents we like. We started with what drivers in the US already buy.
Why a hanging card?
What we found. Hanging fresheners are the largest format in North America: roughly 42 percent of the market in 2024. That market is about USD 1.09 billion in 2025, and the United States is close to 88 percent of it.1
What we decided. Start with the format most drivers already use. It is also the format where a mistake costs a new brand the least.
Why these five scents?
What we found. In July 2025 we pulled the 100 best-selling car air fresheners sold online in the US. New Car led the list. Ocean scents, breeze scents and vanilla kept repeating behind it. US car-wash suppliers report the same pattern: their fastest sellers are Black Ice, New Car and Vanilla.2,3
What we decided. New Car, Ocean, Summer Breeze and Vanilla.
What we found. We asked men around us who fit the people we make this for. They prefer a steadier, woody scent.
What we decided. OUD is the fifth. And because what you want in the car changes with the day, the 5-Pack holds one of each.
Why does it look like this?
What we found. The people we make this for are men who work in business and tech. For them, a business card stands for who they are. And in January 2026, before the first card was drawn, our design proposal named three problems with the fresheners already hanging in cars. They block the view. They swing at the edge of your vision. And most have a white back or bright colors, so they flash every time they turn.
What we decided. The card has the size and shape of a business card. It is dark on both sides, so nothing flashes when it turns. Each scent is written as a system status, such as "Reset to default." for New Car, so the card reads as part of the car and not as an ornament.
It comes in three designs, because a card says something about the person who carries it.
- Style 1. The statement leads. Direct and easy to read.
- Style 2. A star with dots radiating from it, to show scent spreading. The scent name sits in a readout: Vibe, Status, Latency.
- Style 3. Framed like an interface, with a fine dot gradient in place of blocks of color.
How did we check it?
In September 2026 two of us went to the factory in Guangzhou while our second batch was being packed. We laid out every card in the range and checked each one against the drawings with a caliper. Then we packed alongside the line for the afternoon.
What do we still not know?
A sales list shows what a market buys. It does not show which of the five you will reach for, or whether the strength is right for you. Two questions, just below.
What we learned once that batch was out is its own entry: What our second batch taught us about design for manufacturing.
Sources
- Mordor Intelligence, North America Car Air Freshener Market. Estimates differ between research firms. We quote one and name it.
- Superior Car Wash Supply, What are the best-selling car air freshener scents?
- Kleen-Rite, Our top ten Little Trees scents.
TWO TAPS
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