Graduate Certificate in Fashion Management Humber College - Lakeshore Campus, Canada

Humber’s Fashion Management graduate certificate program prepares you to work in the dynamic fashion industry and focuses on the management, marketing, sales of fashion apparel and accessories. Courses cover new product development and branding, fashion buying and retailing, multi-channel sales, international marketing and product management. Visual merchandising skills combined with colour theory skills and trend forecasting give this program a dynamic, hands-on approach to the business side of fashion.

Students in the program can choose the promotions or sustainability profile. The promotions profile covers the rapidly growing promotional side of fashion including courses in integrated marketing communication and social media brand management. Students will learn how to leverage and promote a brand through social media, personal blogs, Instagram, Twitter, online selling and personal website development.

Sustainable fashion profile provides students with opportunities to learn about the important aspects of fashion sustainability such as ethics and supply chain, creative innovations in the fashion industry and how to make a case for sustainability from a financial and managerial perspective. There is a growing demand for industry professionals with knowledge of sustainable solutions and innovation. Students graduate from the program prepared with tools to lead the industry to a lasting sustainable fashion change.

Learning Outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the program, a graduate will:
  • Review political, economic, social, environmental and regulatory factors affecting fashion industry and global sourcing decisions to achieve cost-effective, sustainable, quality product procurement and operations.
  • Apply accounting, finance and supply chain operation methods to make sustainable business decisions that build competitive advantage for fashion products.
  • Recommend merchandising, store-level operations, promotions and product offering improvements for retailers based on detailed competitive analysis.
  • Develop entrepreneurship strategies that inform start-up business plans to achieve profitability and sustainability goals.
  • Develop a merchandising plan and replenishment process using industry specific tools in accordance with an allocated budget to achieve desired profitability and performance metrics.
  • Justify a promotional marketing and visual merchandising plan based on analysis of the business’s current position in the market to appeal to target audience and support strategic business objectives. 
  • Formulate evidence-based and innovative business plans that serve to solve identified fashion business problems related to production, profitability and market position.
  • Defend a mutually beneficial wholesale fashion line proposal to a retailer based on analysis of the buyer’s performance and profitability, target market and current fashion trends.
  • Employ language of the fashion industry to communicate effectively with direct and indirect stakeholders in line with businesses’ strategic objectives to establish and maintain working relationships.
  • Develop textual and visual online and in-store content to engage target clients through variety of media platforms to strengthen market position and business profitability.
  • Analyze historical and current development in the fashion industry together with predicted future trends to create competitive and sustainable business solutions.

Work Placement
Gain first-hand experience in the industry with a four-week (160-hour) work placement which takes place either part time during the program or full time at the end of the program. Placements provide the valuable work experience employers seek.