By Alice Trimmer
For the past 5 seasons, Murray Hill Institute, in collaboration with the Fashion Institute of Technology and Villanueva Centro Universitario (Madrid), has hosted one-day Fashion Intelligence Symposiums. These events have brought together designers, buyers, bloggers, image consultants, and consumers to reflect on themes vital to the development of the fashion industry. We are pleased to announce that next summer we will host our first MHI Fashion Week, a 5-day program for university students. I recently spoke with Terri Carron, who is part of the team who has developed MHI's Fashion Intelligence Symposiums and who is now developing MHI Fashion Week.
Terri Carron: These are the goals we want to achieve with our Fashion Week. First, to offer students the incredible opportunity to study right in the heart of the fashion industry—New York City! Everything you ever wanted to know about fashion is right here in Manhattan, and with our partners at the Fashion Institute of Technology, we want our participants immersed in the many facets of this expanding industry.
As you know, Murray Hill Institute’s mission is to mentor professional women in their respective fields of business, fashion, and culture, and to help them become effective and ethical leaders. In the Fashion Week program, we will use the fruitful experience we gained from our past Fashion Intelligence Symposiums to create a comprehensive week of fashion classes, hands-on activities, and on-site visits to designers’ studios, all under the guidance of experienced industry professionals.
What is unique this year is our emphasis on university students. Our goal is to help young women become leaders in all segments of the fashion world. Today, through the multiple platforms of social media and internet commerce, young women have access to fashion like never before, which gives them the ability to influence current and future trends. We want to equip our participants to go out and make a positive impact on the industry—an impact that helps reflect the dignity of all women.
Classes, which run from July 6-10, will be taught by faculty from Villanueva Centro Universitario as well as working professionals from a variety of fashion-related industries. We are grateful to the Fashion Institute of Technology for hosting us on their campus, in the center of New York’s Fashion District.
MHI Fashion Week is intended for all university women, whether you are currently focusing on fashion or whether you, as a liberal arts, business, finance, or other major, are interested in exploring the creative or business side of fashion as a potential career path or as an educated consumer. Questions? Email us at fashion@murrayhillinstitute.org