LVMH Fundamentals in Luxury Retail: A CPC/Parsons Collaboration

 

 

The LVMH Fundamentals Luxury Retail: A CPC/Parsons Collaboration is a new program that Parsons is partnering on with LVMH and the Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC). The program is designed to educate under- and unemployed Mandarin and English-speaking New Yorkers for jobs in luxury retail.

The program grew out of a need that retailers have for Mandarin speakers in their NYC stores. Several brands have sought out the CPC to help them staff their stores, and LVMH stepped up to spearhead this unique project. The CPC is an established service organization in the city and has similar programs to help train and place employees for careers in hospitality and other industries. Because this program is specifically accepting under- and unemployed individuals, it is also underwritten by The Robin Hood Foundation.  (Please see the press release for more background.)

The program will run three times this year, starting on March 3^rd. Classes will be held at Parsons and will be comprised of 16 students for the first cohort. The students will be in classes for eight weeks with roughly half of that time taught by Parsons professors and half taught by LVMH executives. They will learn about fashion history, luxury retail, selling and in-store operations. Then students will have the opportunity to intern at an LVMH store for two weeks.

Since the program was announced and the press conference on Jan. 27^th, each partner organization has received press and inquiries from individuals wanting to be included in the program from all over the world. The potential students are being evaluated and interviewed now, and it’s already clear that we’ll have an amazing class for this first of three cohorts.

The program has already garnered quite a bit of media interest from outlets like WWD and Luxury Daily as well as Chinese press, which you can see here: 1, and 2. We’re expecting additional press once the program begins on March 3^rd. And Parsons will promote the involvement of each of our guest speakers.