Melanie Werner had her “Eureka!” moment while staring at her vanity shelf, realizing that she had over $600 worth of high-end perfume, all with a limited shelf life. The marketing professional saw a product problem that was begging to be solved and her subsequent research showed that the market had no response for it. So she set out to create it.

That was 8 years ago. In 2011, she founded Mouse Trap Design as a product innovation and design company to develop her packaging vision. This year, Werner has launched MixByMe, with a patented multi-chamber dispenser that enables customers to customize and craft their own scent. Werner has signed the first national brand that will launch a product using MixByMe’s innovative dispenser.

“This is a fragrance industry first. Consumers typically layer a few fragrances—spray a little of this and that—to create their unique scent,” she says. The innovative packaging concept has a metered pump system and “dials” that change each chamber’s concentration, allowing the end-user to truly customize their scent.

“There is no technology that offers this level of precision,” Werner says. “From one fragrance in one bottle, you can have a thousand variations.”

“The technology also offers a greener packaging option for consumer products. Rather than having five things on your shelf, you can get it down to one,” Werner adds.

Werner sees many applications of the packaging technology beyond the fragrance industry—from pharmaceuticals, to household cleaning products, and food—think of an on-the-go cocktail mix, for one.

The first fragrance using MixByMe technology is going into production by the end of the year and will be available in early 2015.

Learn more at www.mixbyme.com.

Original article: http://www.nextpittsburgh.com/