Master’s in Marketing of Luxury Goods
Master’s Scientific Director: Andrea Coscenza
The MA in Marketing of Luxury Goods is offered during the following term/s:
September 2012 – January 2013
This program is not yet validated by the University of Wales. Students will receive a Master’s Diploma from Domus Academy at the completion of the program.
| INTRODUCTION |
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Economic, political and cultural changes are influencing the future of the luxury industry. Over the last few years, the luxury business has been undergoing a radical change. Its customer base is shifting dramatically, as wealth continues to spread to new parts of the globe. The sheer proliferation of luxury goods has made them accessible, at some level, to many millions more. Luxury distribution is changing. Online luxury, once an oxymoron, is now omnipresent.
What is luxury? Is there an old luxury and a new one? How is the former contaminating the latter and vice versa? How does the concept of luxury resonates with concepts such as “masstige” or “massclusivity”? How does it matter? What are the business implications?
The very nature of luxury goods and services is also evolving. Rather than flash, luxury consumers are now seeking discretion, special access, surprise, humor, even secrecy. Members-only services for dining, travel, entertainment and retail are proliferating. New luxury consumers want meaning, emotion and connection. They are more about ‘being’ versus ‘having’.
Delivering the goods to ever more discriminating and demanding luxury consumers is requiring companies to rethink their business models. A younger generation of luxury consumers has grown tired of the usual offerings. At the same time, they have more money to spend on luxury purchases than their parents did and are looking for new types of goods and services.
At the same time, luxury brands have to face different luxury consumers around the world, with different maturities.
Also the tremendous growth of the luxury industry has attracted many investors. Private equity firms have been snapping up luxury brands in the last 5 years, from fashion to design, furniture, wines and hospitality. This infusion of cash should infuse the luxury sector with energy. It is helping more niche brands to grow and survive. The growing availability of funding, and the ability of small brands to reach faraway audiences via the Internet, but also the tastes of a new kind of consumer are creating new business opportunities.
| THE COURSE |
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Some luxury brands are part of major international groups, some, especially in Italy are still family-owned. But whether large or small, with the international environment becoming increasingly competitive, luxury brands require a new breed of managers.
Those who plan to work in luxury have to be able to match the management and business skills with the culture and the spirit of luxury and have to carefully blend innovation and creative skills with a strong history and culture.
The goal of the Master in Marketing of Luxury Goods is to help participants to develop a global vision of the business, some leadership and managerial abilities combined with the capacity to dialog with innovation & creativity, in order to successfully manage a luxury brand.
| PROGRAM |
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Throughout the Master program, students will have the opportunity to learn how to approach problems from complementary perspectives. They will integrate academic and theoretical knowledge with a more practical and professional approach and learning by doing / designing philosophy. Students will assess situations from business, creative, design & cultural standpoints.
The Master is divided into 3 main periods.
- The first period (“induction period”), which focuses on gaining familiarity with luxury industry and learning the fundamentals of the general disciplines and skills required for a Master degree (marketing, organization, finance & accounting, business planning). This period also includes lectures to present the students with international luxury market trends and the current challenges facing the luxury sector.
- The second period is devoted to an in-depth study of the main luxury brand management matters. This period is comprised of 5 distinct workshops, during which students carry out projects for companies operating in the luxury sector.
- Finally, the third period is devoted to the Master Final Project when students work individually on a subject of their choice. The Final Master Project is the conclusion of the overall didactical path.
Throughout the program, the students work in teams to carry out projects for companies operating in the luxury sector.
Workshops are monitored by a member of the Domus faculty, a Project Leader, a tutor and a company executive
Month 1: Induction
Month 2: Workshop 1: Designing Luxury
Month 3 and 4: Workshop 2: Marketing and Brand Management
Month 4 and 5: Workshop 3: Retail Channels/Places
month 5 and 6: Workshop 4: Luxury Project Management
Month 7: Workshop 5: Fashion and Luxury Communication
Month 8 – 12: Final Project
| VISITING PROFESSORS |
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Domus Academy can count on the collaboration of a network of visiting professors, designers, representatives of companies, coming from different fields, for the realization of its lectures, workshops and for a constant involvement in the most prestigious international initiatives.
| REQUIRED SOFTWARE |
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Information coming soon!
| IN COLLABORATION WITH |
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The Master Program in Marketing of Luxury Goods can count on a number of industry connections with best-in-class lifestyle & luxury companies such as High Fashion, Jewellery, Luxury Beverages & Spirits, Luxury Hotels, Automotive, etc.
| CAREERS |
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This Master course represents a unique opportunity for those who want to give a new start to their career and in particular, it offers interesting opportunities for position such as:
- Marketing Manager
- Brand Manager
- Product Manager
- Business Development Manager
- Communications Manager
- Luxury Industry Consultant
| COMPETITION: “LUXURY AND THE STIGMA OF CONSPICUOUS COMPETITION” |
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Over the last few years, people have become more discerning about their purchases, and the crisis has significantly accelerated this trend. Luxury consumers are now less interested in acquiring status symbols and more interested in the actual worth of products. Consumption is more about ‘being’ than about ‘having’. There is a renewed emphasis on substance over style. Also, some luxury consumers are moving towards a more introverted kind of consumption that involves family, friends, and living well. Companies will need to position their brands to appeal to the discreet connoisseur and fulfill a growing appreciation for experience-based luxury.
The Competition: Candidates will identify a luxury company located in their home country that, in their opinion, has understood the recent evolution in the ways luxury brands and services are being consumed, and has started to implement the change. Candidates will analyze the levers (new brands, products or services, new distribution channels, new communication strategy, etc.) this company uses to succeed in maintaining its exclusive status while integrating the trend towards a more human and social consumerism.
Materials Required:
- Project description: maximum 3 A4 pages, or a 10-slides PowerPoint presentation (including pictures);
- Curriculum vitae of the participant: maximum 1 A4 page;
- Statement of purpose: maximum 5 lines on an A4 page.
The candidates are asked to send their materials in one sole file in .PDF format. Any further attached material will be considered a plus and will be evaluated by the jury.
Prizes:
- One scholarship covering 70% of the total tuition fee of the Master Program.
- One scholarship covering 50% of the total tuition fee of the Master Program.
- One scholarship covering 30% of the total tuition fee of the Master Program.
Deadline: Electronic entries must be sent to: micaela@saiprograms no later than May 4, 2012. Candidates will be informed about the results of the competition by e-mail on May 18th, 2012.