How Smellwalks Help Us Understand the Feel of a High Street
Place managers and leaders often describe the importance of a place’s “feel” - that hard-to-define emotional quality that makes one high street feel lively and welcoming, while another feels flat or uneasy. But how can we capture or communicate that feeling in practice?
One idea comes from sensory place research. The Institute of Place Management (IPM) recently supported a smellwalk workshop in Manchester, led by Dr Kate McLean - internationally recognised Smellwalk Leader, creator of Smell Maps, and author of the world’s first Atlas of Scents, Smells & Stinks, commissioned by Orion Press.
The event was led by Dr McLean as part of the International Place Branding Association (IPBA) Conference hosted at Manchester Metropolitan University last month. She invited participants to experience the city through scent - noticing how smells shift from street to street, doorway to park, café to tram stop. Participants ‘caught’, ‘hunted for’ and ‘explored’ different smells as they walked around the city of Manchester, and later communicated these through a creative smell visualisation exercise. Findings from the smellwalk will be exhibited at the next IPBA Conference in Lisbon in 2026.
You can learn more about Dr McLean’s innovative work on smell walking and mapping on her sensory maps website.
Connecting sensory methods to place research
The Manchester smellwalk complements ongoing research at Manchester Metropolitan University by Dr Chloe Steadman (Senior Lecturer in Marketing) who is exploring new ways of accessing high street atmospheres - the feel of place - through creative and sensory methods. Together with researcher Loretta Lipworth, Dr Steadman has co-produced six practical how-to guides about innovative methods which can be used to access a place’s emotional feel: drawing/mapping, photography, poetry, sensory participation, smellwalks, and soundwalks.
These resources provide practical starting points for anyone - from local authorities and consultants to students and researchers - wanting to explore how people experience a place in emotional, sensory and embodied ways.
Dr Steadman said, “I really enjoyed Kate’s smellwalk. It encouraged me to consider a city I’m so familiar with in a new light, as I encountered smells I often neglect as I’m rushing through the city. It helped me to (re)think about my own use of sensory data collection and communication methods in a fun format”.
Why this matters for place management
Smellwalks and other sensory methods are becoming increasingly relevant for place managers, urban designers, and community leaders. They help to:
- Understand what gives a place its distinctive ‘feel’
- Move beyond visuals to include sound, smell, taste, and texture;
- Strengthen engagement by encouraging communities to share lived experiences in fun and creative ways.
If you’re interested in experimenting with sensory methods - or want to try a one the of guides in your own town centre or high street - you can access the Atmospheric Methods Guide and individual method guides here, or contact Dr Chloe Steadman to discuss the research at ipm@mmu.ac.uk.
(Image: Participants sharing reflections from the Manchester smellwalk during a follow-up workshop.)
About the author
Formed in 2006, the Institute of Place Management is the international professional body that supports people committed to developing, managing and making places better.