The Corsage & the power of experiential marketing

It’s peak exam season and a million thoughts dart about your mind. It’s impossible to distract yourself. Your phone is constantly abuzz and all the best study spots have been taken. Amid this academic chaos, how do you find an escape?

Enter The Corsage, a student-led experiential marketing event conceived by Media and Creative Industries finalist Gobi Cheung (Cheung Nga Man Gobi) as part of her final-year dissertation. Following the ‘cult-acclaim’ of last year’s fashion show Shrine, Cheung’s newest project navigates the intersection between events, branding, and public relations, exploring how immersive experiences shape how consumers connect with products.

The Boar was fortunate to receive a coveted invitation to The Corsage, described as “an intimate and exclusive fragrance and wellness retreat, hosted in collaboration with Warwick Yoga Society”.

The room was dimly lit with warm lighting, the dark curtains of the rehearsal room parting to make way for projections depicting a misty, green forest

I arrived on time, waiting outside among a larger group of legging-clad attendees. Once gestured towards the room, the setting of The Corsage was unveiled. Tucked away in a quiet corner of the FAB lay a peaceful retreat meticulously curated to evoke a sense of calm. The room was dimly lit with warm lighting, the dark curtains of the rehearsal room parting to make way for projections depicting a misty, green forest. A tranquil nature soundscape mirrored the projected images. At the center of the room, three rows of yoga mats were set up to accommodate guests.

Upon arrival, I was handed a white t-shirt, a cloth bearing The Corsage branding, and slippers. Prior to the event, attendees were tasked to fill out a form expressing their fragrance preferences to test their compatibility with the product. Only 25 out of over 70 respondents got a place. Sitting down at a mat with my new offerings, it already felt like a luxurious experience.

At the center of Cheung’s event is a fragrance. ”Corsage”  draws inspiration from what Tie Guan Yin Gobi describes as “a Chinese oolong tea known for its floral undertones and depth”. Containing notes of Sandalwood, Cedar, and Jasmine, Cheung relates that  “Corsage” was “developed to evoke stillness, presence, and the quiet intimacy of a personal memory, the kind of fragrance that lingers gently in the background, soft yet unforgettable.” 3D renderings of the bottle are displayed on TVs at the back of the room. Designed in collaboration with product designer Matthew Akuamoah-Boateng, Gobi’s “Corsage” resembles a gourd fruit, a traditional symbol of longevity and heritage. Rather than a mere vessel, the object was designed to convey a ‘subtle art’, with “celadon tones and sculptural twines that wrap around the form like blooming leaves”. 

The Corsage offered a forgiving environment, accommodating movements for a range of comfort levels

After a couple of minutes of pleasant chatter, the soundscape dimmed and our experience began. Warwick Yoga instructor Ben led the room through a gentle routine oriented around awareness of the senses, grounding participants in the space. Attendees were prompted to listen to the audio of falling leaves, notice the smells around the room, and find a rhythm through breathwork, tuning into how their body felt within the space. I purposefully selected a mat at the back of the room. While yoga is a relaxing experience for most, it remains a relatively unfamiliar environment; foreign movements and unfamiliar poses can bring some discomfort. Fortunately, The Corsage offered a forgiving environment, accommodating movements for a range of comfort levels.

To complete the experience, participants took part in a tea ceremony, “designed to deepen your connection to mindfulness and scent”, alluding to the parallels between tea and fragrance. The tea was parcelled out in white cardboard cups to attendees who sat upright on their mats. Though the tea had gone cold by the time it was served, it still held an identifiable ‘earthy’ scent. Ben guided us through an examination of the tea. Admittedly, the subtleties were somewhat lost on me (I mostly smelled cardboard), but I respected the gesture. In an age where one’s attention is routinely split between three screens at once, it is grounding to take pause and savour simplicity.

The scent carried with it a set of fresh, positive associations: the nature soundscape, the gentle movements, a sense of calm

Along with the tea, we were given a sample of the Corsage fragrance. After all the build-up, I wasn’t sure what to expect – or whether the perfume could live up to the anticipation. I am no expert when it comes to perfume, but I found the scent to be delightful. What’s more, the scent carried with it a set of fresh, positive associations: the nature soundscape, the gentle movements, a sense of calm. 

As The Corsage came to a gentle close, chatter once again filled the room. Participants filed out one-by-one, collecting goodie bags containing tea and perfume samples among other spoils. It was surreal to find myself back in the FAB, feeling distinctly more zen than when I arrived, a feeling that carried through the rest of my day. Perhaps that’s what fragrance can offer at its best: a way to bottle a feeling, in this case, to preserve a fleeting moment of calm and carry it forward.

Attendees echoed similar sentiment, praising, “I really enjoyed my experience at The Corsage! It gave me a moment of stillness in my busy life, and allowed me to sit back and relax.” Others expressed how the event acted as an important reminder, “ I usually take small things for granted and to pay extra attention to them in my day to day moving forward.”

Whether in the careful curation of the event, the controlled breath drawn through a stretch, or the delicate notes in a perfume, The Corsage is a meditation on the power of attention. Communicating through scent, fragrance can be a powerful medium to anchor us in the present. That said, at projected £50 a bottle, fragrance might not be everyone’s preferred outlet for mindfulness. 

For those fortunate enough to experience it, The Corsage demonstrates that experiences hold tremendous power to transform how audiences perceive a product. Beyond its scent, Corsage became associated with a feeling – an entire atmosphere – that remained long after the event itself. Credit is due to Gobi Cheung for her thoughtful execution of this project. The Corsage’s perceived authenticity, storytelling root, attention to detail, and creative vision are what makes experiential marketing so powerful for audiences, reflecting the people and values behind the product.

Guided Movement in collaboration with: Warwick Yoga Society Bottle Design in collaboration with: Matthew Akuamoah-Boateng
Videography: Arabella Ladiero
Photography: Seong Yeon Cho
Event Volunteers: Isaac Phelan, Amina Galal, Yukie Hiruta

Read more about the event here: https://www.gobicheung.com/the-corsage