Our Story
ScentClip by Aroxel was created to put a new spin on the idea of wearing a mask—it shouldn’t be a nuisance, it should be an enjoyable experience!
The company began as many inventions do, with an experience and an observation. Dr. Mark Pizzini, an anesthesiologist, was working in the OR in his job at a nationally ranked cancer center. This particular surgery led to very unpleasant odors, as is the case with many surgeries. The overpowering smell created a stressful and unpleasant environment. The team, including the surgeons and nurses and Dr. Pizzini, placed mint scented lidocaine jelly on their masks to cover the odor. Lidocaine is a potent numbing medicine; it was usually mixed with the mint to numb up the mouth for work in the oral area. This worked to cover the odor, but also left the team with numb lips and soiled masks. Dr. Pizzini decided there had to be a better way to combat odors.
At around the same time, he noticed that recovery room nurses were using essential oil scents to help post-operative patients with nausea and anxiety. The nurses were convinced that the scents helped their patients. After some research, Dr. Pizzini found a great deal of literature which supported the use of aromatherapy for mood enhancements and relaxation. The idea then came to him; create a device that would fit into a mask, and release a pleasant scent that could even help with many negative feelings like stress, anxiety and nausea. Aroxel was founded along with Dr. Clarissa Ceruti, a researcher who loved the idea of natural scents and the concept of pairing this with a mask insert. They created and patented the device for the mask. Unfortunately, Dr. Ceruti moved out of the country with her spouse and the idea and company remained dormant for years until Dr. Pizzini and his oldest daughter, Maria, restarted the company. Joined by his wife, Dr. Deborah Sesok-Pizzini, an MD with an MBA, the company was reestablished.
Maria moved on to financial work in a multinational corporation after college, and Drs. Pizzini partnered with a successful Wharton entrepreneur, Norman Feinstein, who loved the concept and idea. They began collaborating in 2019, and had a new redesigned patented device to create, when COVID19 struck and shocked the nation. The countrywide closure slowed progress, but working with a national device manufacturer and an aroma creation corporation, they persevered. With masks as a standard now across the world, they felt this was the perfect time to bring this idea to life. Individualized and personal scents can be worn within any mask, and will last for days! They are now producing what is a novel, inventive design—Scentclip®-- to make wearing a mask fun, relaxing and enjoyable for adults in the workplace, in the marketplace, and at home, and with interesting and exciting new scents coming soon for children. Scentclip® by Aroxel is truly a family oriented business, and that mindset is at the heart of everything we do. We hope you will try this cool product, and that it makes wearing a mask a pleasurable experience!