Katelyn Vu is a Fashion & Luxury MBA candidate, specializing in Luxury Marketing and Strategy. Prior to Stern, she worked at Neo Media World (WPP) as a Marketing Manager. Katelyn has 5+ years of experience in digital advertising and strategy, partnering with EssilorLuxottica, Amazon, Sony and a variety of tech companies.
Our first semester has officially come to an end. What an exciting but intense summer! I never imagined watching a fashion show in business school, but we did. Our first NYC Immersion class started with a short clip of the Louis Vuitton 2023 Cruise Fashion Show. We, then, progressed to discuss the evolution of luxury and the marketplace through time. Throughout the course, we had the opportunity to learn about the “business of fashion”. The interactive course covered the history of retail, retail landscape & strategy, fashion business models, as well as entrepreneurship and sustainability in luxury. We had the chance to meet executives from top fashion and luxury brands in NYC through the NYU Fashion & Luxury Council to understand more about the industry and to explore potential career paths.
Below are some highlights from our first Fashion & Luxury NYC Immersion class:
F&L students at Estee Lauder Companies HQ
Company Visit: Watches of Switzerland
We were joined by WOS executives at their US Flagship store in SoHo, where they gave us an overview of the luxury watches industry from a multi-brand retail perspective.
Company Visit: M.M. LaFleur
M.M. LaFleur Founder and CEO, Sarah LaFleur, shared her experience from a management consultant to starting a multi-million DTC company.
Company Visit: Panerai
We had the opportunity to visit the Panerai NA office and learned about how the company pioneered and promoted sustainable practices through its commitment to sustainability and healthy oceans, as well as its environmental outreach initiatives to educate the public.
F&L students visiting the Costume Institute Exhibits at the MET and mingling with alumni
F&L students getting coffee at Ralph’s Coffee after visiting Ralph Lauren
My favorite part of the NYC Immersion course would have to be the consulting project with Estee Lauder Companies. As a group, we performed market research and competitive analysis for our assigned brands to understand their key consumers’ shopping behaviors and digital usage. We learned to work in teams and presented our findings and recommendations to brand executives at the end of the semester. This project was very fulfilling and eye-opening for someone like me who is not from a traditional fashion background.
Final Presentation Day at Estee Lauder Companies
We only have one semester under our belt, and have already had the opportunity to work with so many incredible industry leaders. The NYC Immersions have been instrumental in our learning so far, and I look forward to the experiences we will have throughout the rest of the year.