{"id":17975,"date":"2021-03-15T11:34:13","date_gmt":"2021-03-15T15:34:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/?p=17975"},"modified":"2022-07-08T11:19:34","modified_gmt":"2022-07-08T15:19:34","slug":"everyday-luxury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/2021\/03\/15\/everyday-luxury\/","title":{"rendered":"Lauren Ginsberg ’13: Everyday Luxury"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A few years into working in investment banking, Lauren Ginsberg decided to switch gears and pursue a career change. Returning to NC State, where she completed a bachelor\u2019s degree in business administration, Ginsberg joined the inaugural class for the Global Luxury and Management Program<\/a>, a dual master\u2019s degree program through the Poole College of Management and the Skema Business School.

\u201cAfter a few years working for a large investment bank in futures and options trading, I found the job to be too robotic and wanted to explore something that would allow me to have more creative license,\u201d Ginsberg says. \u201cI thought about getting an MBA, but my love for the luxury industry swayed my decision to join the GLAM program instead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Ginsberg, GLAM was the best of both worlds \u2013 offering an academic experience that allowed her to combine finance with creativity.
\u201cI really enjoyed the diverse learning experience \u2013 a curriculum that overlapped MBA, design and textile course material,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd I loved being part of the inaugural class. As there were only 18 of us, we were exceptionally close, experiencing it all together for the first time.\u201d

Since graduating from GLAM, Ginsberg has spent nearly seven years with Gap, Inc., working as a leader with four of the company\u2019s brands \u2013 Banana Republic, Weddington Way, Intermix and Athleta. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, she is a general manager for Athleta\u2019s Hudson Yards store in New York City. While it has the fewest square feet of Athleta\u2019s 199 store locations, the store holds a strategic position in Hudson Yards\u2019 luxury shopping environment.

In addition to overseeing her own four walls, Ginsberg leverages opportunities to lead externally, as well.

\u201cI act as the talent ambassador for the district, supporting centralized staffing,\u201d she says. \u201cRecently, I\u2019ve also taken on creating and facilitating a training and development academy for leaders across the Tri-State area.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working in the retail industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, she says, has grown her appreciation for Athleta and its product line.

\u201cThe last year has been very difficult on the retail industry. It makes me both grateful and proud to work in the luxury athletic sector and for a company that remains in a growth trajectory, when so many of its retail peers are closing their doors,\u201d she says. \u201cThe reality is that as people work from home, they are looking for a completely different wardrobe than they were 12 months ago. Athleta makes beautiful, technical and sustainable clothing that can be functionally worn in every aspect of life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Ginsberg, working with Athleta is more than an opportunity to work with a luxury brand \u2013 it\u2019s also a chance to identify with a mission.

\u201cAthleta\u2019s brand mission is to empower women and girls to live their limitless potential \u2013 which speaks to me as a female leader. In keeping with this mission, we offer an inclusive shopping experience with inclusive sizing and unbiased shopping,\u201d Ginsberg says. \u201cAnd as a B-Corporation, Athleta focuses its energy on people and planet over profit. It\u2019s highly focused on sustainability \u2013 which is something important to the Athleta customer.\u201d

Her time in GLAM, she says, prepared her to excel in her career and be a leader within the luxury industry.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\n

“GLAM offered me real-life experiences working with real life examples in local organizations \u2013\u00a0and prepared me to speak more eloquently to the luxury market and industry.”<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Since graduating eight years ago from GLAM, Ginsberg has remained close to the program. In 2019, she returned to Poole College as a guest lecturer for the Wells Fargo Executive Leadership Series<\/a>, teaching undergraduate, graduate and GLAM students about B-Corps by sharing Athleta\u2019s journey through B-Lab\u2019s rigorous certification process.

Staying close to GLAM has also given her the opportunity to see the program grow.

\u201cMy experience in the inaugural class is so different from that of students in the program today. GLAM has evolved so much \u2013 I almost wish I could do the program again.\u201d

For current students, Ginsberg passes along a piece of advice that was once given to her.

\u201cYour first job isn\u2019t as important as the job it will lead you to next.\u201d

<\/p>\n","protected":false,"raw":"\n\n\n\n\n

A few years into working in investment banking, Lauren Ginsberg decided to switch gears and pursue a career change. Returning to NC State, where she completed a bachelor\u2019s degree in business administration, Ginsberg joined the inaugural class for the Global Luxury and Management Program<\/a>, a dual master\u2019s degree program through the Poole College of Management and the Skema Business School.

\u201cAfter a few years working for a large investment bank in futures and options trading, I found the job to be too robotic and wanted to explore something that would allow me to have more creative license,\u201d Ginsberg says. \u201cI thought about getting an MBA, but my love for the luxury industry swayed my decision to join the GLAM program instead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Ginsberg, GLAM was the best of both worlds \u2013 offering an academic experience that allowed her to combine finance with creativity.
\u201cI really enjoyed the diverse learning experience \u2013 a curriculum that overlapped MBA, design and textile course material,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd I loved being part of the inaugural class. As there were only 18 of us, we were exceptionally close, experiencing it all together for the first time.\u201d

Since graduating from GLAM, Ginsberg has spent nearly seven years with Gap, Inc., working as a leader with four of the company\u2019s brands \u2013 Banana Republic, Weddington Way, Intermix and Athleta. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, she is a general manager for Athleta\u2019s Hudson Yards store in New York City. While it has the fewest square feet of Athleta\u2019s 199 store locations, the store holds a strategic position in Hudson Yards\u2019 luxury shopping environment.

In addition to overseeing her own four walls, Ginsberg leverages opportunities to lead externally, as well.

\u201cI act as the talent ambassador for the district, supporting centralized staffing,\u201d she says. \u201cRecently, I\u2019ve also taken on creating and facilitating a training and development academy for leaders across the Tri-State area.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working in the retail industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, she says, has grown her appreciation for Athleta and its product line.

\u201cThe last year has been very difficult on the retail industry. It makes me both grateful and proud to work in the luxury athletic sector and for a company that remains in a growth trajectory, when so many of its retail peers are closing their doors,\u201d she says. \u201cThe reality is that as people work from home, they are looking for a completely different wardrobe than they were 12 months ago. Athleta makes beautiful, technical and sustainable clothing that can be functionally worn in every aspect of life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Ginsberg, working with Athleta is more than an opportunity to work with a luxury brand \u2013 it\u2019s also a chance to identify with a mission.

\u201cAthleta\u2019s brand mission is to empower women and girls to live their limitless potential \u2013 which speaks to me as a female leader. In keeping with this mission, we offer an inclusive shopping experience with inclusive sizing and unbiased shopping,\u201d Ginsberg says. \u201cAnd as a B-Corporation, Athleta focuses its energy on people and planet over profit. It\u2019s highly focused on sustainability \u2013 which is something important to the Athleta customer.\u201d

Her time in GLAM, she says, prepared her to excel in her career and be a leader within the luxury industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GLAM offered me real-life experiences working with real life examples in local organizations \u2013\u00a0and prepared me to speak more eloquently to the luxury market and industry.<\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Since graduating eight years ago from GLAM, Ginsberg has remained close to the program. In 2019, she returned to Poole College as a guest lecturer for the Wells Fargo Executive Leadership Series<\/a>, teaching undergraduate, graduate and GLAM students about B-Corps by sharing Athleta\u2019s journey through B-Lab\u2019s rigorous certification process.

Staying close to GLAM has also given her the opportunity to see the program grow.

\u201cMy experience in the inaugural class is so different from that of students in the program today. GLAM has evolved so much \u2013 I almost wish I could do the program again.\u201d

For current students, Ginsberg passes along a piece of advice that was once given to her.

\u201cYour first job isn\u2019t as important as the job it will lead you to next.\u201d

<\/p>\n"},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A few years into working in investment banking, Lauren Ginsberg decided to switch gears and pursue a career change. Returning to NC State, where she completed a bachelor\u2019s degree in business administration, Ginsberg joined the inaugural class for the Global Luxury and Management Program, a dual master\u2019s degree program through the Poole College of Management and the Skema Business School.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":17976,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"source":"","ncst_custom_author":"","ncst_show_custom_author":false,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"ncst\/default-post-header","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"{\"showAuthor\":true,\"showDate\":true,\"showFeaturedVideo\":false,\"caption\":\"\",\"displayCategoryID\":938}","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1802,938,286,9],"tags":[],"_ncst_magazine_issue":[],"class_list":["post-17975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni-profiles","category-global-luxury-management","category-newswire","category-students"],"displayCategory":{"term_id":938,"name":"Global Luxury Management","slug":"global-luxury-management","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":938,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":1808,"count":47,"filter":"raw"},"acf":{"ncst_posts_meta_modified_date":null},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17975"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17975\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21882,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17975\/revisions\/21882"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17975"},{"taxonomy":"_ncst_magazine_issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/poole.ncsu.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/_ncst_magazine_issue?post=17975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}