Cherie Serota
Director of Fashion Merchandising
516-299-4126
The B.S. in Fashion Merchandising program offers students with an eye for style a unique interdisciplinary program with experts at the helm and close proximity to New York City, affording entree to “fashion laboratories” where they can acquire experience in real-world environments.
The Fashion Merchandising curriculum allows students to combine a myriad of academic majors, such as marketing, public relations, management, economics, and journalism, with a Fashion Merchandising minor, giving them dual knowledge and skills that will enhance status with future employers.
Proximity to fashion centers has afforded LIU’s fashion students opportunities for jobs and internships in the industry and to interact with masters of the retailing and design universe, including the head of menswear for Ralph Lauren, executives from Macy’s, and President of the Americana Manhasset Deidre Costa Major.
The faculty is led by Cherie Serota, co-founder of an international apparel company whose experience includes work in the buying, fashion, and marketing offices at Saks Fifth Avenue and Henri Bendel. Her insider’s knowledge of the industry’s design, marketing, and management mechanisms, gained from developing a business that became a multi-million dollar, go-to brand for both everyday women and celebrities, make her classroom lectures a wealth of real-world knowledge.
With professionally-oriented coursework that covers sustainable practices, sourcing/supply chain management, pricing, digital marketing, social media, allocations, visual merchandising, special events, textile fundamentals, legal aspects, branding, licensing and export/import regulations, this major provides a solid grounding in the business of fashion merchandising, its practices and its management. This includes how to target audiences as well as identify and forecast trends in the industry. Nearby premiere luxury shopping destination partners and New York City’s fashion hub offerings and museums provide exciting opportunities for students to visit and test their interests first-hand in the industry through internships, experiential projects, and partnerships.
Admission Requirements
Core Requirements |
|
In addition to all major requirements, students pursuing the B.S. in Fashion Merchandising must satisfy all core curriculum requirements as follows: |
|
POST 101 |
1 credit |
First-Year Composition |
6 credits |
Economics/Political Science |
6 credits |
Fine Arts |
6 credits (excluding all ART courses) |
History/Philosophy |
9 credits |
Laboratory Science |
8 credits (may be satisfied in major) |
Language/Literature |
6 credits |
Mathematics |
3 - 4 credits |
Social Sciences |
6 credits (may be satisfied in major) |
Competencies |
Computer, Library, Oral |
For a more detailed listing of these requirements, see the core curriculum section of this bulletin. |
All courses required from the following: |
||
FM 10 |
Introduction to the Fashion Industry |
3.00 |
FM 12 |
The Business of Fashion Merchandising |
3.00 |
FM 14 |
Math for Merchandising |
3.00 |
FM 20 |
Buying for the Fashion Industry |
3.00 |
FM 24 |
Fashion Trend Forecasting |
3.00 |
FM 26 |
Importing and Exporting |
3.00 |
FM 30 |
Advertising and Promotion in the Fashion Industry |
3.00 |
FM 40 |
Fundamentals of Textiles |
3.00 |
FM 50 |
Visual Merchandising and Display |
3.00 |
FM 60 |
Fashion Law |
3.00 |
FM 92 |
Capstone |
4.00 |
Choose one of the following: |
||
FM 36 |
Digital Marketing Tools |
3.00 |
FM 38 |
Social Media Tools |
3.00 |
Take both of the following: |
||
MKT 11 |
Marketing Principles and Practices |
3.00 |
MKT 14 |
Consumer Motivation and Behavior |
3.00 |
Elective Fashion Merchandising Courses Choose one from the following: |
||
FM 32 |
Fashion Media |
3.00 |
FM 34 |
Special Events |
3.00 |
FM 36 |
Digital Marketing Tools |
3.00 |
FM 38 |
Social Media Tools |
3.00 |
FM 56 |
Branding |
3.00 |
FM 70 |
Fashion Entrepreneurship |
3.00 |
FM 72 |
The Fashion Stylist |
3.00 |
FM 87 |
Fashion Merchandising Internship I |
3.00 |
FM 88 |
Fashion Merchandising Internship II |
3.00 |
FM 149 |
History of Style |
3.00 |
Electives: Courses that are not being used to satisfy major or core requirements. |
Credit and GPA Requirements
Minimum Total Credits: 120FM 10 Introduction to the Fashion Industry
This course explores the relationship of the fashion industry to society and consumer demand. It includes fashion history development, a survey of select fashion industries, fashion design, apparel manufacturing, textile marketing, fashion merchandising, and accessory marketing in a global marketplace.
Credits: 3
Every Fall
FM 12 Business of Fashion Merchandising
This course covers the business side of the fashion industry. It provides students with realistic information about the evolving landscape of the retailing and apparel merchandise industries. Whether working for a fashion brand or starting a business in fashion, this course explores how a line is created from the research and design stage to the marketing, sourcing, production and distribution stage. It provides insight on how the industry is organized, how apparel and accessory companies operate, and how they are affected by changing technology and globalization. To engage students with real world application, the course meets regularly in The Student Body Boutique. Further to this, the course will include periodic excursions to trade shows, visits to vendors and showrooms.
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 14 Math for Merchandising
This course develops the mathematical and EXCEL skills for individuals who will be directly or indirectly involved in the activities of merchandising and buying for a fashion company or at the retail level. This course explains the essential concepts, practices, procedures, formulas, calculations, and interpretations of figures that relate to producing profitable buying and selling operations. At the same time, this course uses real world examples often modeled using EXCEL that reflect current industry practices and trends, so students are prepared for merchandising careers.
Credits: 3
Every Fall and Spring
FM 20 Buying for the Fashion Industry
This course provides students with the skills and savvy needed to become effective buyers in any area of retail. Typical buying tasks, such as identifying and understanding potential customers, creating a six-month merchandising plan, and developing sales forecasts, will be discussed in the context of current business automated software. Additional topics will include the coverage of important retailing trends and technological advances, including social responsibility, sustainability, fast fashion, and the use of new media and social networking. This course will meet periodically in The Student Body to engage course concepts in a retail environment and on occasion work with the buying team at an actual trade show.
Pre requisites: FM 10 and FM 14
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 24 Fashion Trend Forecasting
Fashion trend analysis and forecasting is vital to product and brand development. Through trend analysis and forecasting using current industry forecasting service software, students gain an understanding of how consumers and industry serve as product developers, gatekeepers and promoters of fashion. This course explores the roles of how fashion consumption impacts the environment and economic development. It looks at how socio-cultural changes, social responsibility and the digital consumer affect fashion trends. An ideal mix of creativity and professionalism are employed toward course deliverables including trend boards and associated presentations - always popular with students.
A pre requisite of FM 10 and FM 12 is required.
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 25 Brand Management
Students will develop core skills needed towards understanding, crafting, measuring, and managing brand strategies across a variety of industries, such as fashion, sports, and entertainment. The course draws on marketing, sociological, psychological, and technological theories of consumer behavior and culture and examines branding as a co-creation of consumers, marketers, and culture. The course objectives are to: 1) design effective brand identities and value propositions as part of overall business strategy; 2) develop brand-building and licensing programs (including associated legal issues); 3) apply brand licensing and creative elements for effective branding; 4) license key brands to expand retail channels internationally; and 5) leverage digital technologies, such as social media marketing, to promote branding and licensing programs.
Prerequisite of MKT 11 is required.
Credits: 3
Every Fall and Spring
FM 26 Importing and Exporting
A global industry for sourcing, the fashion industry must take advantage of low-cost producing countries and their respective manufacturing. However, international trade is a necessity in order to grow and generate profits. The U.S. export-import trade policies/ procedures, current trends and key trade relationships are covered in this course. Students will become skilled in what research, resources and analysis skills come into play in order to decide whether to export or import and then how global trade issues affect the textile and apparel industries.
A pre requisite of FM 10, FM 12, and FM 14 is
required.
Credits: 3
Every Fall
FM 30 Advertising and Promotion in the Fashion Industry
This course introduces the various principles and methods of advertising and promotion used by producers, manufacturers, designers, and retailers in the fashion industry. Students will analyze how marketing objectives and strategies influence advertising and other forms of promotion.
A pre requisite of FM 10, and FM 12 is required.
Credits: 3
Every Fall
FM 32 Fashion Media
This course will successfully cover how Fashion Media marketing communicates the value of a brand’s product or service to their target customer.Presently, with the emergence of new media: eCommerce, social media, digital content, GPS, interactive media, and mobile apps, the marketing process is moving at light speed. Companies and marketers with this enhanced customer information must be prepared to engage dynamically. In this class, students will explore all facets of new media, through video tutorials, virtual and actual field trips, discussions, readings, and critical analysis. Special emphasis will be placed on current new media applications, activities and campaigns, using topical articles and case studies. Students will learn to identify and differentiate key media platforms and understand the pros and cons of each to effectively build targeted marketing strategies.
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 34 Special Events
Students will learn about a variety of special events
and how to organize and manage them.
Additionally, they will learn about special events
history, rationale, goals and strategies, as well as the
value of special events in a public relations strategy.
The types of events to be discussed include fashion
shows, tours of business facilities, conferences,
openings, employee and customer recognition
initiatives, product and services launches,
community relations, sports promotions,
fundraisers, galas, anniversary celebrations, and
entertainment premieres. (Note that this course is
cross-listed with PR 14)
A pre requisite of FM 30 is required.
Credits: 3
On Occasion
FM 35 Computer Aided Design: CAD for Merchandising
This fundamental course introduces the basic two dimensional
and three-dimensional graphic design
software platform, known as Computer Aided
Design (CAD). This tool can be used in various
design and technical applications to enable
designers to create and produce various design
presentation products, such as visual display
concepts, retail design, space planning, digital trend and concept boards, textile color developments,
among other things. This course offers students the
opportunity to upgrade their digital visual
merchandising skills to industry standards and add
an additional technical capability to their resumes.
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 39 Sustainability in Global Fashion
Sustainability has emerged as a central issue for
contemporary societies and for the world
community as a whole. Furthermore, many of the
social and environmental concerns that are
embodied in the term 'sustainability' are directly or
indirectly related to design and the world of fast
fashion. Sustainable fashion refers to fashion
products that are manufactured, marketed and used
in the most sustainable manner possible, taking
into account both environmental and socioeconomic
aspects. Designers help to define our
human made environment- how it is produced,
how it is used, and how long it endures. This course
provides students an opportunity to acquire a
foundational understanding of the scientific,
political and social issues related to the design of
resilient urban futures. The topic of sustainability
in textile manufacture has been the subject of
considerable research. In this course, we will also
explore the textile industry from the perspective of
social sustainability, shifting the focus from the
materiality of
textile production to the industry's relationships
with the communities from which the products
originate.
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 40 Fundamentals of Textiles
This course explores the science of textiles
including information regarding fabric
identification: fabric name, fiber content, yarn
construction, count, coloration, finishes, weight,
and list of characteristics. Students will learn the
inherent performance properties and construction
of fibers and yarns which are relevant for
professionals in the fashion industry, such as
product developers, stylists, buyers, designers, etc.
This course brings together a wide variety of
information enabling students to spend less time
trying to connect the ideas and more time applying
the concepts so they can make appropriate choices
in textile selections for a product.
A pre requisite of FM 10 is required.
Credits: 3
Every Fall
FM 45 The Business of Fashion and Sports Event Planning
In this course we will cover the dynamics of event
planning, integrating social media, marketing and
public relations as well as project management. We
will cover a broad rang of industries with an
emphasis on sports and fashion organizations.
Student will perform actual event planning in real time across fashion, sports and other disciplines.
Credits: 3
On Occasion
FM 50 Visual Merchandising and Display
This course will uncover the many techniques used
in the visual merchandising industry. A hands-on
approach is utilized whereby students design and
construct interior displays. By the use of ingenuity
and creative thinking, apparel items are employed
to produce selling displays. Institutional and
abstract concepts will be discussed and practiced.
The language of the retail industry will also be used
to explain and familiarize each student to this
discipline. This course will also include possible on
site retail visits and the awareness of store design.
Discussions on digital retailing “Pop Up” shops and
Brick and Mortar environs will be integrated within
the information provided in this course.
A pre requisite of FM 10, and FM 12 is required.
Credits: 3
Every Fall and Spring
FM 56 Luxury Branding
Luxury has been both celebrated and condemned
throughout history right up to the present day. In
this course, we will examine luxury and its
relationship with desire, status, consumption and
economic value, exploring why luxury always
triumphs in spite of the economy and world affairs.
Brand strategy is the compass directing creative
brand solutions. To this means, students will study
the brand, its purpose and target audience, shop
the market and analyze merchandising and
marketing strategies to reveal insights and create
meaningful brand ethos. We will take a look at case
studies from the luxury sector such as like Chanel,
LVMH and Tiffany, as well as luxury travel, retail
store design, tech, beauty and accessories in
exploring how the most successful luxury brands
function and defining what luxury represents in the
contemporary world. Explore old luxury and the
democratization of modern affordable luxury with
its criteria and strategy for today's consumer. The
final project of the program results in a deliverable
that responds to current trends in the luxury
marketplace, culminating in a paper and
professional presentation.
Credits: 3
Every Fall
FM 60 Fashion Law
From fashion start-ups to ongoing business, fashion
professionals must be savvy regarding the legal
decisions and regulatory developments that affect
fashion companies. This course explores intellectual
property protection, licensing, anti-counterfeiting
and litigation. It also covers the legal aspects for
start-ups, and commercial transactions in local,
custom, and international settings. Just as
importantly, students will learn about the legal
challenges and caveats in fashion advertising,
marketing and celebrity endorsements.
Pre requisites: FM 12; FM 25 or MKT 25
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 70 Fashion Entrepreneurship
Starting a business is a daunting task whether
individuals want to open their own stores, sell their
own products or establish their own brands. This
course focuses on the ready-to-wear process so
students can identify market opportunities and
execute a business plan in a competitive retail
environment. It examines how products are
planned and developed. From the perspectives of
consumers, manufacturers and retailers in a global
context, students will look at the requirements and
relationships needed to develop a plan, build a
business, launch a brand and channel it to the
ultimate consumer.
Credits: 3
On Occasion
FM 72 Fashion Style Writing
Clear, compelling and correct writing skills are
essential for success in any field. A fashion writer is
someone who writes journalism or copy relating to
aspects of fashion and style. This course
incorporates the construction of creative prose into
the field of fashion with an emphasis on style.
Features and copy for a variety of media including
fashion magazines, advertising, trade publications,
newspapers and increasingly online forums such as
blogs and social media will be addressed. Ideas for
source material will be identified in this course the
same way as in the industry by attending fashion
shows and collaborating with professionals to
identify trends in the marketplace. Pitching
articles, conducting interviews, and writing fashion
features are some of the learning activities
incorporated in this course.
A pre requisite of FM 10 and FM 12 is required.
Credits: 3
Every Spring
FM 87 Fashion Merchandising Internship
This internship opportunity permits students to
supplement classroom instruction with real-world
experience. After preparation of a resume for review
by the faculty mentor, the student selects an
appropriate internship geared to the individual
student’s interests and abilities with the mentor.
The student works approximately 120 hours per
semester, with times arranged by the student and
employer. Meetings with a faculty mentor, a
journal, and periodic papers are required.
Pre requisites: FM 10, FM 12, and FM 14 and
permission of the Program Director is required.
Credits: 3
On Demand
FM 88 Fashion Merchandising Engaged Learning
This course is designed for students to take
advantage of working at the Student Body Boutique
(one of LIU's Student Run Businesses). The student
works approximately 40 hours per semester, with
times arranged by the student and employer. Students will participate in engaged learning
activities and work with a designated faculty mentor
on appropriate deliverables to earn credit for the
course.
This is a one-credit course that can be repeated up
to three times for a total of up to three credits upon
approval of the Director.
Credits: 1
On Demand
FM 92 Capstone
The Capstone Project, a culminating project,
integrates experience, knowledge and skills acquired
and developed during the course of study. This
project reflects the many ways fashion
merchandisers connect with business information,
media, communication professionals, and valuable
assets within the fashion, textile and luxury sectors.
Students will develop a Fashion Start up
Entrepreneurial Venture by analyzing their target
market, competition and brand, culminating in a
comprehensive plan that will include a mission
statement, company name, product description,
design/renderings, SWOT analysis, samples,
merchandising plan, timeline, media and marketing
strategy, and a pitch. The final work can be used to
demonstrate to future employers and other
interested parties your skills and aptitude for similar
independent external work assignments. A written
and oral presentation will be required.
Pre req: Senior status with a GPA of 2.00 or
program director permission is required.
Credits: 3
Every Fall and Spring
Join the LIU Community!
We can't wait to welcome you to Shark Nation.
The application process is quick and easy, but if you have
any questions, our admissions counselors are here to help.
Apply Now!
© Long Island University
720 Northern Boulevard, Brookville, New York 11548-1327
CONTACT
College of Management
LIUPostbiz@liu.edu
EXPLORE
LIU Post Campus Life
Scholarships & Financial Aid
Bursar & Enrollment Services
ADMISSIONS
516-299-2900
post-enroll@liu.edu