MA Luxury Brand Strategy & Business Course Review
Graduate, Kevin De Silva takes you through what it’s like to study MA Luxury Brand Strategy & Business from start to finish with Condé Nast College.
I chose to do the MA Luxury Brand Strategy & Business straight after completing my BA in Fashion Photography at University for the Creative Arts. I decided on Condé Nast because of the unique access into the creative industry as well as the insights to key industry guests.
Brand Communication & Marketing Strategy
Term 1 focused on the importance of strong branding and marketing strategy for contemporary fashion business. It provided us the chance to examine current and contemporary practices in brand communication and marketing strategy within the fashion and creative industries.
Throughout Term 1 we were introduced to contemporary communication methods adopted within fashion and the creative industries to convey brand attitudes and examine successful communication strategies used by brands. We explored the various formats, themes and technologies harnessed by brands to produce positive experiences for intended audiences whilst developing our software and visual communication skills.
During the term, I also had the opportunity to become a Student Representative for my cohort and the role was to talk to as many students on my course to gauge their thoughts and their experience whilst presenting these points to the college in regular steering group meetings. Additionally, I joined the Editorial Team where I had the opportunity to develop digital writing skills, and learn how to develop journalism and copywriting skills that managed to get published and shared through Condé Nast College portals. One of the highlights for me was Vogue Education Presents: In Conversation with Victoria Beckham and Anders Christian Madsen talk.
The Business of Luxury
Term 2 ran alongside the module ‘Critical Research: Understanding Audiences’ and focused on developing the ways in which luxury brands innovate, strategise and develop their businesses to respond to economic, social and market influences and challenges. I thoroughly enjoyed this module as I was able to research and critically analyse both traditional and current business practices utilised by luxury brands within the fashion and creative industries and illustrate how luxury businesses should future-proof through the development of a strong, contemporary strategy.
The module overall enabled me to explore various aspects of luxury business. It encouraged us to integrate knowledge that we learnt from the Critical Research module with the understanding of how luxury brands adapt to market trends, societal changes, and consumer preferences. The module focused on how luxury businesses evolve by adjusting and innovating their strategies to uphold their market position and growing the attention and loyalty of their audiences. Overall the module aimed for us to facilitate the cultivation of a contemporary and proficient understanding of luxury business practices and strategies. From already building on strategic research and analysis frameworks introduced in Term 1, it encouraged us to strategically think regarding the unique demands and prerequisites of present-day luxury enterprises.
Critical Research: Understanding Audiences
The module ‘Critical Research: Understanding Audiences’ ran alongside Term 1 and 2. The purpose of this module was to provide ourselves with an overview of the range of research methods, approaches and tools that are crucial for postgraduate study. The module was
intuitive as it covered philosophy of research, ethics, primary and secondary research methods that included qualitative, quantitative and visual research methods and how to analyse, evaluate and even disseminate research findings. Overall this module considered researching into a range of contexts relevant to the media industry and enabled us to understand the relationship between theory and practice. See the final outcome of my project here.
Luxury Innovation & Futures: Live Luxury Project
Term 3 was a collaborative group project where I developed confidence when dealing with an industry-set brief from professional clients, developing clear concepts and strategies, managing collaborators, and working as a team.
Throughout this module we were asked to think in a highly innovative way but also in a commercial way and continuing to develop our analytical skills in relation to understanding how to respond to particular consumer needs and evolving cultural phenomena. This module provided us the opportunity to explore how the luxury industry might look in the future and investigate the impacts and opportunities brought about by technological advances both from a consumer and business perspective. We had the amazing opportunity alongside my peers to pitch our presentation at Condé Nast – The Adelphi Building.
Final Masters Project
The final term was spent working on my ‘Final Masters Project’. This module consolidates key aspects from previous terms whilst enabling you to develop my own themes, ideas and luxury business, branding or marketing concepts within a chosen luxury sector. The Final Masters Project presented me with the opportunity to present a body of work supported by a dissertation that demonstrated my academic ability, creative process and independent thinking.
“My time at Condé Nast has been a journey to say the least, I have met some amazing people from all over the world. Thank you to my incredible tutors for supporting me throughout this academic year and I look forward to seeing what the future holds in the new era of my professional career.”
My experience studying my MA in Luxury Brand Strategy & Business at Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design has exceeded my expectations. From the moment I began on this journey, I was captivated by the access to the professional industry that Condé Nast offered, including the opportunity to engage with my expert tutors and industry visionaries.
Throughout the course, each term presented me with valuable insights and knowledge that enriched my understanding of luxury brand strategy and business. For those thinking about applying to this course, I highly recommend you do!
By Kevin De Silva