Title: Mobilising the cultural consumer through the senses: festivals as sensory experiences

Authors: Maria Laura Toraldo

Addresses: Department of Economics, Institutions and Management, University Federico II of Naples, Via Cintia, Complesso Universitario di Monte S. Angelo, 80126 Napoli, Italy

Abstract: This paper presents an analysis of the role of the senses in the discursive construction of consumer anticipation. The context for this analysis is festivals, an area of scholarship dominated by managerial approaches and an under-appreciation of the multi-sensory nature of consumption. Specifically, this paper revolves around a discursive analysis of publically available promotional texts used to market two boutique festivals in the UK: The Secret Garden Party; Harvest at Jimmy's. The paper demonstrates the visual and textual means by which the festival is conceived as a form of sensory consumption, with the purpose of creating anticipation among festival goers.

Keywords: consumer anticipation; boutique festivals; consumers; culture; emotions; discourse analysis; festival management; senses; sensory experiences; sensory consumption; UK; United Kingdom; festival goers.

DOI: 10.1504/IJWOE.2013.057403

International Journal of Work Organisation and Emotion, 2013 Vol.5 No.4, pp.384 - 400

Published online: 28 Jun 2014 *

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