Fashion Merchandising Program

Majors

B.S.in Family and Consumer Sciences with a concentration in Fashion Merchandising and Product Development 

The world of fashion merchandising can be an exciting field for a person who enjoys traveling and working with people. Today’s fast-paced fashion industry is looking for people with mathematical, analytical, and social skills. The fashion merchandising program, with its specialized classes and education, gives you an opportunity to meet your specific goals based on an individualized focus and can help you prepare to enter this challenging and competitive field.

Fashion Merchandising and Product Development

The fashion merchandising curriculum prepares students to work in various fashion industries that produce, manufacture, and forecast goods in apparel, home industries, accessories, and other services. Students are able to develop an understanding of theories, concepts, principles, and elements which impact fashion goods. Codes develop an understanding of human needs; culture, heritage, and nationality impact the creative solutions that are constantly evident in the fashion business.

Fashion merchandising is geared to practical and real-world concerns. Students majoring in this fieldwork honing their retailing, business, creative, visual, and presentation skills. Fashion merchandising majors become aware of assortments, merchandise planning, space allocation in retail, buying, selling, managing, presenting, and providing solutions to various merchandising cases and problems. Students complete projects (i.e., designer worksheets, computer-aided programs, visual displays) that allow them to forecast future trends, develop original ideas, plan fashion production, and select and create images for retail settings.

Career Opportunities

Career opportunities are limitless in fashion merchandising.  Graduates in fashion merchandising and product development are able to find work in the following positions:

• Fashion Consultant
• Fashion Coordinator  
• Fashion Illustrator
• Fashion Sales Representative
• Fashion Stylist
• Retail Buyer
• Personal Stylist
• Retail Merchandiser
• Visual Merchandiser
• Department Manager
• Retail Manager
• Showroom Sales Representative
• Textile & Apparel Marketer
• Store (Boutique) Owner
• Sales & Marketing Representative