About
Our Story
The story of Man-Sniff-O-Scent began a number of years ago with the Henning & Sons Apothecary, located in a sunny corner of newly founded San Diego, California. One morning the head proprietor of Henning & Sons, Bartholomew Theophilius Henning, awoke to find he had inherited the Henning curse of hair loss. Despite his years of experience in the medicinal alchemy and chemistry he couldn't find any cure within the means of his education and the resources of his small apothecary. He went to the San Diego chapter of the esteemed Adventurer's Society to enlist it's well traveled rogue's gallery in finding him exotic cures for his inevitable baldness. The explorers brought him exotic scented plants from across the globe to aid in his experimentation. Though he would ultimately fail generations of Henning men would carry on his banner while growing the Henning & Sons Apothecary.
A few generations past when the Henning line had seen fit to shorten their sons' names to more reasonably fit tax documents, the talented chemist and inventor Bret Henning rediscovered Bartholomew's original research in the family's old apothecary. Though he didn't see a remedy for common baldness within his ancestor's notes he did notice that the components described bore a striking resemblance to modern conditioners and styling products for men. With some simple tweaks he was able to reproduce balms, oils and pomades with completely organic components!
Upon this discovery Bret wrote to his son Luke, who at the time had been traveling the country with a string band. Luke had acquired a knack for marketing from his years of odd jobs and travel. He suggested adding some of the exotic ingredients described by Bartholomew T. Henning to help increase the appeal of these new organic hair products. Together the two sold off the old Henning &Sons Apothecary and opened Man-Sniff-O-Scent.
Pursuing a handmade business model in which everything was made in small-batch production, the two got to work, curating new formulas and recipes for pomades, waxes, oils, and more that use totally organic ingredients. After months of laborious trial and testing, the partners had arrived at the introductory line of Man-Sniff-O-Scent products. The new brand was born.
Using the nature and environmental beauty around them as inspiration, they draw on natural elements in the design and creation of their new Man-Sniff-O-Scent products.
Bret Henning
Prior to founding Man-Sniff-O-Scent, Bret had carried on the family apothecary trade with his work as an inventor and chemist. He was well known within the San Diego medical field for making several contributions within to the field of diabetes research and medicine. Aside from his love of chemistry he is also an accomplished woodworker, metalworker, herbalist and musician.
Luke Henning
Much like his father, Luke had an early passion for music. Before working with Man-Sniff-O-Scent he had made a name for himself playing upright bass with the Elektric Voodoo String & Brass Ensemble. He also spent many years working odd traveling salesman jobs were he learned the trade of marketing and sales. He may not share his father's talents for inventing, but he makes up for it with his ear for language.
Our Company
Man-Sniff-O-Scent is an eCommerce, full-service organic men’s skin and grooming products platform, providing oils, pomades and waxes to interested consumers in the U.S. Including free shipping on orders over $20 from coast to coast, Man-Sniff-O-Scent works to curate a community of men who care about their appearance and skincare, using only organic ingredients for deep cleansing and effective skin, hair, and beard remedies. Working to create new products year-round, Man-Sniff-O-Scent continues to introduce new solutions that enhance any kind of natural manliness – no questions asked.
Walk, talk, and smell like a man.