B.Sc Fashion & Apparel Merchandising(FAM)

Fashion merchandising is the strategic analysis, marketing, management, and distribution of fashion products in order to maximize profits. Fashion merchandisers stay acutely aware of past and present fashion trends to project what consumers will want in the future.

Fashion merchandising is a dynamic and exciting field. Merchandisers are not fashion designers, but they stay close to the fashion world and use their fashion sense and analytical minds to determine how much of each style to stock, negotiate with manufacturers, and work with designers to determine emerging or existing trends. In a way, you could say fashion merchandisers buy clothes for a living but the job is much more challenging and rewarding than that would make it sound.

Fashion merchandising is a broad term. So, what does a fashion merchandiser do? Typically, a fashion merchandiser will have several potential areas of focus and is used to juggling different responsibilities. As the name implies, the role of a fashion merchandiser combines fashion and merchandising, and requires a strong sense of style and fashion in addition to business acumen. What does a fashion merchandiser do on a day-to-day basis? Here are a few key responsibilities of a fashion merchandiser.

• FASHION TREND ANALYSIS AND FORECASTING
  To successfully manage the profitability of a retail store you have to be in tune with fashion trends to know what will sell. To do this fashion merchandisers keep up with the latest fashion news, attend fashion shows, and communicate regularly with fashion designers. Fashion merchandisers are able to blend fashion sense with quantitative analysis to look at how products have performed in the past and forecast consumer demand for coming seasons.

• FASHION BUYING AND MERCHANDISE PRICE MANAGEMENT
  This is primarily where fashion and merchandising aspects come together. Knowledge of fashion and trend analysis is used to decide how to stock retail stores. This includes which new styles to order, which items to reorder, quantity of items, and the colors and sizes to stock. The fashion merchandiser works within a budget and has to make sure stores can be properly stocked within that budget. Part of this process is buying and negotiating with manufacturers and designers to make sure items can be priced in a way that will sell and make a profit. If responsible for multiple retail stores, fashion merchandisers also need to determine how each store should be stocked since different stores likely have a different surrounding clientele with different tastes.

• MARKETING AND PROMOTION
  In many cases fashion merchandisers are also responsible for drawing in customers via promotion of products. That requires marketing skills and a keen understanding of local customer demographics. To get their products out to the world and draw in consumers, fashion merchandisers may develop marketing campaigns, design store displays, and create sales strategies.

As mentioned, fashion merchandising requires both fashion sense and business acumen. Fashion merchandisers will be challenged to use their knowledge of emerging fashion trends and data to determine the success of retail stores, so candidates for this career should be prepared to use both quantitative and qualitative skills. Good fashion merchandisers are creative, up for a challenge, and willing to work in a fast-paced-environment. As we say at LIM College, this career is where business meets fashion. If you have a passion for fashion and an appetite for business, fashion merchandising could be your dream job.

• Introduction to the Fashion Business

• Advanced Buying & Planning

• Buying & Merchandise Math

• Fashion Forecasting

• Fashion History & Global Attire

• Fashion Show Production

• Global Retailing

• Omni channel Retailing

• Product Development & Merchandising

• Street Style

• Retail Merchandise Management

• Fashion Branding & Promotion