The Fashion Retailing Course is comprised of 17 comprehensive lessons. They are easy to follow, yet challenging and stimulating at the same time. Each lesson begins with a subject matter preview and objectives, an introductory note from your instructor and a vocabulary builder of new words and terms.
Next comes the reading assignment. Practice exercises help you check and review what you've learned. At the end of the lesson is an open-book exam, which you may take online.
Lesson 1: Fashion Merchandising: An Introduction
A history of fashion retailing; types of retailers; direct marketing; trends in the retail industry; qualifying for employment; options for self-employment in fashion.
Lesson 2: What is Fashion
The fundamentals of fashion; fads and trends; how fashions develop and spread; the role of style and fashion in contemporary society.
Lesson 3: Consumer Behavior
The psychology of consumer behavior; the sociology of consumer buying patterns; how consumers make fashion purchasing decisions; spending characteristics at different stages of life.
Lesson 4: Store Organization and Management
Creating an organization chart; departmentalizing and decentralizing; recruiting, training, evaluating, and compensating employees.
Lesson 5: The Buyer's Job
The global marketplace; deciding what and when to buy; buyer and assistant buyer duties; negotiating purchases; fashion forecasting; using reporting services.
Supplement: Time Management Guide
How to work more efficiently and productively.
Lesson 6: Merchandising Pricing
Markup; factors affecting pricing: competition, quality, inventory turnover, promotional activities, store image, alterations, pilferage, and markdowns.
Lesson 7: Advertising and Promotion
Sales promotion and advertising basics; promoting the small store; preparing advertising; selecting media; special events; fashion shows; publicity.
Lesson 8: Store Layout and Visual Merchandising
Selecting the right site; exterior and interior layout and design; changing window displays; interior graphics, signage, and display fixtures; using color; props; selecting a theme.
Lesson 9: Fashion Direction and Research
The responsibilities of fashion directors, coordinators, and stylists; fashion trend forecasting; sources of data.
Lesson 10: Preparing a Fashion Show
The three types of fashion shows; working with the promotion calendar; how to develop a theme and budget; publicity; staging, lighting, and music.
Lesson 11: Executing and Evaluating a Fashion Show
Choosing clothes and accessories; selecting and notifying models; the fitting; packing and shipping merchandise; rehearsing; commentating; the closing; critiquing the show.
Lesson 12: The Marketplace
The market calendar; working with store buyers, designers, and wholesale reps; the fashion director's roles in a buying office, the textile industry, and manufacturing.
Lesson 13: Direct Retailing
Why direct retailing is growing; from retailer to cataloger; competition; kiosks; direct mail; targeted mailing lists; opportunities in cable television.
Supplement: Franchising
Kinds of franchises and franchise arrangements; the mobile franchise; finding a franchiser; franchising costs; understanding the contract; franchise trends.
Lesson 14: Personal Shopping
Essentials for the salesperson; keys to successful selling; suggesting additional merchandise; promoting future business; sources of product information.
Lesson 15: Merchandise Handling and Loss Prevention
Centralized receiving; branch and chain store receiving; inventory shortages; detecting and preventing shoplifting.
Lesson 16: Inventory Control
Accounting procedures; inventory, dollar, unit, and expense control; stock turnover; the expense budget; classifying the various expenses.
Lesson 17: Customer Service and Credit
Why retailers give credit; kinds of retail credit; personal shopping; gift wrapping; the gift registry; alterations; approaches to improve customer service.
Supplement: Career Search Guide
Finding career opportunities; your résumé; acing the interview; getting off to the right start.
