Global luxury management students meet with execs, recruiters in NYC

Forty-two graduate management students preparing for careers in the global luxury market traveled earlier this month to one of the world’s premier luxury markets – New York City – for a study tour that included meetings with executives and decision makers for some of the world’s leading luxury brands.

The students are in the dual degree global luxury management program offered jointly by the Jenkins Graduate School in the NC State University Poole College of Management and SKEMA’s Sophia Antipolis campus in France.

This year’s study tour, held October 7 through 9, 2014, included the program’s first Career Fair and Interview Forum held at The New York Hilton Midtown on October 8. The career event connected the students with company decision makers for networking and provided a chance to learn about career opportunities with the individual companies.

During the Interview Forum, employers conducted both informational interviews and actual interviews for internships and full-time employment positions. Participating companies included BCBG, Cartier, Esquel, Huson Media International, Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren, Richemont and Tiffany & Co.

The students’ focus on the luxury market was a plus for the recruiters. “This was a worthwhile college career fair for us to participate in,” one of the participating luxury executives stated. “It was good to meet students who have a true sense for the luxury mindset, who were prepared and have a passion for the industry and who have oriented their work experiences toward our industry.”

In the course of the study tour, the students met with executives in design, development, marketing, branding, finance and retail sectors of leading luxury brands. This is the second year that the dual degree program’s global luxury management students have participated in a New York Study Tour.

The study tour also included:

• Networking reception with the GLM Industry Advisory Board at the Italian Trade agency, hosted by Alberto Milani, chief executive officer of Buccellati-Americas and member of the global luxury management graduate program’s Industry Advisory Board (IAB)
• Private showroom visits to Ralph Lauren, Holland & Sherry, and Vietri
• Networking social with the New York-based Young Luxury Marketing Council, hosted by Greg Furman, IAB and founder and chairman of The Luxury Marketing Council
• Industry panel discussion hosted by Alberto Milani, chief executive officer of Buccellati-Americas
• Tour of the Time Warner Medialab
• Windowswear.com Walking Tour, including discussions about and stops at Macy's, Lord & Taylor, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, Henri Bendel, Louis Vuitton, Barneys and Bloomingdale's
• Retail and corporate tours at the sites of brands like Buccellati, Ralph Lauren, and Dolce and Gabbana
• GLM alumni networking event hosted by Ralph Lauren at Ralph Lauren Women's and Home flagship store on Madison Avenue
• Tour of the Waldorf Astoria New York

The GLM program received support for the tour from the Luxury Marketing Council, one of the program's strategic partners, and other members of the program’s 20-member GLM Industry Advisory Board. In conjunction with the tour, the advisory board held its annual fall meeting on October 9 at the Italian Trade Agency, hosted by Milani. Board members include executives from luxury organizations such as Cartier, Peter Millar, Ralph Lauren, the Luxury Institute and The Umstead Hotel and Spa.

Next up for the global luxury management students is a Carolinas experiential tour in late October, including visits to the High Point Furniture Market and Ralph Lauren Media.