News: Corsage Survey of Floral Educators

2006 - National Ribbon Corsage Survey

In August, 2006 National Ribbon surveyed 78 floral education schools in the United States. The purpose was to gain the perspective of top floral educators on the behaviors around corsage usage and practices in the market. The survey was kept short and basic to encourage a high response rate.

Of those invited, 33 floral design educators responded, a very strong 42% response rate. The following summarizes our results, and we thank those who participated for their helpful knowledge.

Corsage Purchase Occasions

When asked to rank the occasions on which corsages were purchased and given or used, we clustered the top three occasions. Results were:

1. Proms were the highest ranked occasions for corsage use with 85% of respondents ranking them in the top three occasions.
2. Weddings almost tied Proms as the second highest occasion for corsage usage with 82% of respondents ranking them in the top three occasions.
3. Homecoming as an occasion ranked third with 62% of respondents ranking it in the top three occasions.

No other occasion ranked close to these three, with Valentines Day noted by 24% as a top occasion for corsage purchase.

Most Popular Stems Used

Asked to rank the flowers used and the colors most popular, the respondents were clear in defining these as follows:

1. Roses were noted in the top three by 84% of respondents.
2. Carnations were in the top three by 60% of respondents.
3. Orchids were noted in the top three by 55% of respondents.

Note that, because many respondents merely checked rather than numerically ranked their top stems, we have reported results here by inclusion in top three. Where numerically ranked, roses overwhelmingly were chosen as #1.

Colors by Stem Used Most Often

Rose usage ranks White #1, followed closely by Red #2. Pink roses were a distant third Orchid usage was almost unanimous with White the dominant color of orchid used in corsages Carnation color usage varies with both white and pink noted by an equal number of designers, and red carnations used almost as frequently. No single carnation color dominates the carnation corsage.

Number of Stems Used: We asked the design teachers how many stems they taught their students to use in a corsage. Results fell into just two buckets.

• 3 stem corsages were taught by 66% of the educators.
• 5 Or More stems were taught by 20% of educators

Of the remaining, several different sizes were checked, indicating a wide behavior depending on flower type and occasion. Variations of Worn Flowers Taught: We inquired about the range of teaching around experimental or extended use of flowers for wearing. The results speak for themselves Headband Flowers are being taught in almost all classes by the educators-94%. Wrist Corsage Variations are also being taught in virtually all classes – 94% Arm Corsage creations are being taught by 79% of the design educators Ankle Flowers or Corsages are being taught by nearly two thirds at 64% of classes.

If this simple survey proves helpful, please let us know.

National Ribbon will field further surveys of florists, wholesalers and consumers in the future. As they are actuated, the results will be summarized here for anyone interested.