"We will make it to Paris": From self-belief to the L'Oréal Brandstorm Global Top 6

Competing against more than 380,000 participants worldwide, the final-year Bachelor of Digital Marketing students earned a place among the Global Top 6 at the L'Oréal Brandstorm 2026 Global Finals in Paris. The achievement was not built on one breakthrough idea or one outstanding presentation. It came from six months of questioning one another, refining every detail and believing every idea could be better. 

Unlike many competitions, Global L'Oréal Brandstorm did not end with one submission. Every round challenged the team to revisit their idea, strengthen their strategy, and refine their presentation before moving on. 

"Our meetings were full of endless debates because we constantly challenged each other's ideas and refused to settle for the first solution," Quynh Lam said. "After nearly two months of brainstorming and refining, we landed on our final concept, which was actually a combination of several of our initial ideas." 

Throughout the competition, the team built its solution around Jacquemus, one of L'Oréal Luxe's brands, with the goal of reimagining how consumers experience its fragrance line. That process eventually led to LE MATCH, a concept inspired by one simple question: Why does perfume have to be invisible? 

Rather than designing another fragrance bottle, the team imagined a portable device that prints temporary scented tattoos onto skin, clothing, and other surfaces, transforming fragrance into both a visual and sensory experience. 

"We wanted perfume to be both visible and invisible," Thu said. "That's why we stepped away from just thinking about the bottle." 

That same mindset extended to the technical side of the project. 

"We researched many different technologies because realism was one of the judging criteria," Trung said. "The more we researched, the more we realised we had to keep adapting the idea to make it technically possible." 

Looking back, Quynh Lam believes the team's greatest achievement was not simply creating one strong idea, but learning how to improve it together. 

"Throughout the assessment process, we kept improving our solution based on feedback, and that collaborative, iterative approach ultimately led us to Paris," she said. 

Improving their idea was only part of the challenge. Outside the competition, the three students were completing their final year at RMIT while balancing Capstone, internships and part-time work. Finding time to work on Brandstorm became another test of their commitment. 

"We had to balance work, study and the competition," Thu said. "We're teammates at university and in the competition, so scheduling our time became really important." 

Whenever the workload became overwhelming, the team returned to the same phrase. 

"We'll make it to Paris." 

Trung said it began almost as a joke. "I kept telling everyone, 'We'll go to Paris no matter what.' At first, everyone laughed." 

As the team progressed through each stage, however, the affirmation gradually became genuine confidence. 

"After every round, we felt like we actually had a chance," he said. "The confidence kept building throughout the six months." 

For Thu, believing in the idea mattered just as much as improving it. 

"If you want something to happen, you have to believe in what you're doing," she said. "We debated so much to arrive at our final solution that we truly believed in it." 

There were difficult moments along the way, but quitting never became part of the conversation. 

"We complained a lot," Trung shared. "But none of us ever said we wanted to quit. We'd complain, then we'd get back to work."

While the team's determination drove the project forward, they say they never achieved it alone. 

Throughout the competition, the trio regularly sought feedback from RMIT Digital Marketing lecturers Dr. Anh Nguyen, Thai Le, Lucky Phan and Hanh Tran, using every consultation to test their thinking, refine their strategy and strengthen their presentations before the next round. 

"One consultation with them was worth the whole course," Trung said. "In just one hour, we could revisit everything we'd learned and immediately apply it to a real project." 

As the competition progressed, that guidance became more than academic mentorship. When the team arrived in Paris for the Global Finals, Digital Marketing lecturers Lucky Phan and Hanh Tran were there to cheer them on. 

"We never imagined we'd meet our lecturers in another country," Trung said. 

"It wasn't just academic support," Thu added. "It was emotional support too." 

For Quynh Lam, the experience reinforced that Brandstorm was as much about personal growth as it was about marketing. 

"We learned not only from each other, but also from our lecturers at RMIT and the managers and directors at L'Oréal who believed in us from day one," she said. "Beyond marketing knowledge, we learned how to truly work as a team over six months—supporting one another through challenges, celebrating successes and growing together." 

Looking back, the team believes their Global Top 6 journey was shaped by more than determination alone. It was built on a community that challenged them to think bigger, encouraged them to keep improving and stood beside them from their first brainstorming session at RMIT to the global stage in Paris. 

Six months earlier, "We'll make it to Paris" was simply a phrase exchanged between three classmates after another long brainstorming session. 

Today, it tells a much bigger story. 

Minh Trung, Thu and Quynh Lam's journey reflects what can happen when RMIT students embrace opportunities beyond the classroom, challenge one another to think differently and commit to continuous improvement. Their Global Top 6 finish is more than a milestone for the team - it is a reminder that the skills developed at RMIT, combined with curiosity, resilience and collaboration, can take students further than they first imagine. 

Sometimes, the journey to the global stage begins with a simple belief - and the determination to keep showing up until those words become reality. 

Story: Le Thanh Van, Professional Communication student. This article does not reflect the views of RMIT Vietnam as an institution.