2012/2013  KAN-CBL_FADE  Fashion and design industries

English Title

Fashion and design industries

Course information
Language	English
Exam ECTS	7.5 ECTS
Type	Elective
Level	Full Degree Master
Duration	One Semester
Course period	Autumn Changes in course schedule may occur Tuesday 09.50-12.35, week 36-41, 43-46
Time Table	Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Min. participants	40
Max. participants	70
Study board	Study Board for BSc og MSc in Business, Language and Culture, MSc
Course coordinator
Lise Skov - Department of Intercultural Communication and Management
Birgitte Hertz, bhe.stu@cbs.dk
Main Category of the Course
Management Marketing Economic and organizational sociology
Last updated on 27-04-2012

Learning objectives

At the end of the course the student should be able to: Describe and compare relevant theories of fashion, including aesthetic, semiotic, social and business-oriented perspectives Describe and analyze the organizational structure of fashion industries, and account for the different types of companies and strategies that make up these industries. Evaluate the broader significance of the fashion industries with respect to the relationships between such issues as consumption, creativity, business strategy, entrepreneurship, organizational structure, sustainability, and government policy Apply the concepts and theories discussed in the course to empirical examples, case studies and specific companies

Examination

Fashion and design industries

10-page essay: Type of test Home Assignment Marking scale 7-step scale Second examiner Second internal examiner Exam period December/January, Essay must be submitted app. 2 weeks after last class Aids Open Book, Written and Electronic Aid is permitted Duration Please, see the detailed regulations below

Course content

Fashion industries and fashion culture are characterized by the interdependence of what can seem like two very different cultural realms—the realm of aesthetics, glamour, beauty, and taste, on the one hand, and the realm of business strategies, organizational structures, market drivers, and competitive forces on the other.  The dynamics of the fashion industries can help us understand other forms of cultural production and other industries that combine these two realms.  This course therefore explores the many lessons to be learned from the fashion production and consumption — about creativity and innovation, branding and differentiation, social competition and self-expression, management and leadership in a competitive and turbulent environment.  Towards this end, the course will draw on multiple disciplinary perspectives and theories, from traditional business literature, from sociology, from cultural studies and semiotics.  The course also addresses key contemporary issues, such as the branding of Danish fashion and the role of ethics and CSR in fashion production. As a unique feature, the course includes a creative, collaborative project in which students of the elective will visit one of the Danish design schools to conduct a mini-project with design school students on a realistic topic. This offers insight into the situation and outlook of young up-and-coming designers and a first-hand experience of the fragile communication between business people and creative people.

Teaching methods

Traditional lectures alternate with exercises and case-study discussion. Film and visuals are used to a large extent. The course includes a visiting practitioner and a small collaborative project in conjunction with design school students.

Expected literature

To be announced on Learn, but most likely: Preliminary literature Barthes, Roland ‘”Blue is in fashion this year”: A note on research into signifying units in fashion clothing’ p.41-59 inRoland Barthes: The Language of Fashion. Berg 2006 Djelic, Marie Louise and A. Ainamo 1999 ‘The Coevolution of New Organizational Forms in the Fashion Industry: A Historical and Comparative Study of France, Italy and the United States’, Organization Science 10:5 Kawamura, Yuniya (2004): The Japanese Revolution in Paris Fashion, Oxford: Berg. Chapter 2: “The Modern Fashion System in France”, p. 35-55. Melchior, Marie Riegels, Lise Skov & Fabian Faurholt Csaba: “Translating Fashion into Danish”, Culture Unbound, Volume 3, 2011: 209–228. Hosted by Linköping University Electronic Press: http://www.cultureunbound.ep.liu.se   Thomas, Dana (2007) Deluxe: How Luxury Lost its Lustre. Allen Lane (excerpts). Veblen, Thorstein (1934, 1998) ‘The Economic Theory of Woman’s Dress’ p.65-78 in Essays in Our Changing Order