Jefferson’s Unique Pop-Up Shop Program Keeps Students on the Cutting Edge
The Fashion Merchandising and Management Program at Jefferson (Philadelphia University + Thomas Jefferson University) features an immersive, career-focused curriculum that prepares students to contribute across all aspects of the fashion industry. Ranked as one of the nation’s top fashion schools by Business of Fashion, the program prepare students to be leaders in both current and future jobs in a fast-evolving global fashion marketplace.
Global Fashion Insight (GFI) is one such course at Jefferson that helps to provide an immersive experience. This course exposes fashion merchandising and management students to the business of fashion in their freshman year. It blends theoretical and practical applications, giving students the opportunity to work on a real-world project and present to industry practitioners, giving students hands-on experience examining the supply chain process. The students collaborate and work in teams to engage in product development, merchandising, and marketing strategies to create an on-campus pop-up shop to sell an assortment of merchandise to kick off the holiday season.
Global Fashion Insight students collaborate with students in Retail Strategy & Structure (RSS) and Visual Merchandising (VM). As a group, these 200 students work together to organize and curate their products for their pop-up stores. Students in GFI identify three products that have the potential to increase sales. Then, the RSS team members serve as buyers and select one product category to feature in the store. Students have been successful developing jewelry, handbags, t-shirts, digitally printed scarves, and hand-painted denim jackets.
There are many fashion roles students can select, such as product development, marketing, technology, or production. The roles are directly linked to key areas of career concentrations that will support future internship opportunities. Students work rigorously with their teams to produce 15 or more units of an upcycled or handcrafted product that is sold for $30 or less. Through this project, students gain insight and experience in sourcing, brand management, philanthropy, costing and customer service.
The net proceeds from the merchandise sales are donated to ChemoClothes, a non-profit organization that supports cancer research and provides assistance to families of those with cancer. Over the course of this project, Jefferson has donated over $40,000 to ChemoClothes.
Other courses fashion merchandising and management students take during their time at Jefferson include Survey of the Textile Industry, Introduction to Digital Imaging, Operations and Supply Chain Management, and Retail Strategy and Structure, among many others. Jefferson’s comprehensive core courses provide holistic knowledge of the merchandising and marketing aspects of the fashion industry, while the career-focused specializations enable students to customize their skill-set and academic experience. With this approach, core classes and specializations work together to build a curriculum informed by the multifaceted fashion industry, creating a dynamic approach to career-driven education.
Fashion merchandising and management at Jefferson jumpstarts its students’ careers in the fashion industry with leading-edge curricular options and real-world experience both in and out of the classroom. With the chance to explore different centers of fashion both home and abroad and work on collaborative projects, Jefferson students gain a global perspective and valuable professional experience and connections.
For more information, visit www.eastfalls.jefferson.edu/fashionmerchandisingmanagement.
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