Develop Your Business & Merchandising Skills with a Fashion Merchandising Degree Online
The fashion marketplace is dynamic - seasons, cultures, new materials and retro ideas all influence hot new trends. It takes a trained eye and skillful manager to showcase and sell style to a fashion-conscious public.
In the online Bachelor of Science in Fashion Merchandising Management program, you'll develop a timeless sense of style and gain a firm grasp of business strategy. Study fashion marketing, color and textile theory, consumer behavior and retail operations, planning and management. You'll learn how to identify what styles will sell and how to present visual cues that prompt consumers to buy.
See Yourself Succeed in Fashion Merchandising Management
The fashion merchandising degree online courses are taught by industry experts who know the fashion marketplace intimately. Class sizes are small, so you'll have the opportunity to interact with instructors who understand how style, business and technology intersect. You’ll also gain valuable real-world experience by completing a fashion merchandising internship that gives you the opportunity to show employers the value you can add to their business.
In the bachelor’s in fashion merchandising program, you’ll learn how to:
- Create fashion merchandise planning strategies that integrate the retailer’s positioning, vendors' interests and plans for generating profit
- Apply management theories and techniques in the fashion merchandising environment to achieve retail objectives and remain competitive
- Collect and organize industry data through the use of qualitative and quantitative tools
- Interpret data to predict influences of trends in fashion merchandising
- Employ effective decision-making to select textile and production sources from domestic and international markets
As a private, nonprofit university, SNHU has one mission – to help you see yourself succeed. The benefits of earning your fashion merchandising degree online at SNHU include:
- Affordability. Take advantage of some of the most affordable tuition rates in the nation
- Convenience. Attend class when it’s convenient for you – online education means 24/7 access
- Efficiency and flexibility. Complete your undergraduate degree at your own pace, over six 8-week terms per year
- Expert instruction. Learn from instructors with relevant, real-world experience
- Networking. Tap into our nationwide network of alumni for internship and career opportunities
- Simple application process. Just fill out an online undergraduate application, and we’ll retrieve U.S. transcripts from your previous institutions and automatically complete an official credit evaluation. Plus, there’s no application fee
- Student support. Count on the ongoing support of dedicated academic and career advisors specialized in your area of study
- Transfer-friendly enrollment. Transfer up to 90 credits toward an undergraduate degree
Career Outlook
Earning a degree in fashion merchandising online from SNHU can position you for an exciting career that puts you, and fashion, in the public eye. Students in our fashion merchandising program will find opportunities as buyers, visual merchandisers, sales representatives, vendor relations specialists, store and product planners, and sales managers. In fact, openings for sales manager roles are expected to increase by 7% through 2026.*
Curriculum
In SNHU's fashion merchandising degree online program, you'll combine your understanding of design and color theory with business planning and marketing. Textiles, retailing and merchandise planning are just the beginning - you'll also choose from electives in consumer promotion, retailing management and global fashion merchandising topics.
Courses To Prepare You For Your Career
SNHU's bachelor's in fashion merchandising and management program includes:
- General education
- Business core
- Degree-specific courses
General Education Program
Our programs are designed to equip you with the skills and insights you need to move forward. In recent years, employers have stressed the need for graduates with higher order skills - the skills that go beyond technical knowledge - such as:
- Writing
- Communication
- Analysis
- Problem solving
All undergraduate students are required to take general education classes. Through foundation, exploration and integration courses, students learn to think critically, creatively and collaboratively, giving you the edge employers are looking for.
Business Core Program
Programs in the School of Business require learners to complete the business core program, which includes a variety of business-specific courses. This program focuses on 10 core competencies to prepare you for success wherever you go.
Courses May Include
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FMM
114
Introduction to Fashion Merchandising
Fashion principles and procedures used in planning, selecting, pricing and selling fashion goods in retail stores, catalogs and on the Internet are studied. Merchandising systems, assortment plans and inventory control methods are analyzed.
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FMM
204
Textiles and Color Theory
Textile information pertinent to merchandising is included in this course. Analysis of fibers, yarns and weaves, fabric recognition, and a detailed study of natural and man-made materials are emphasized.
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FMM
208
History of Fashion and Costume
Fashion is another term for the costume of a time and place, an expression of a period with all of its passions, politics, attitudes and history. This course considers textiles, silhouettes, shapes, and design adaptations in light of the technological capacities of the time, the geographic environment, social structure, political systems and economic conditions around the globe and over time. Students will gain an understanding of appreciation of how these underpin and influence contemporary fashion design and development.
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FMM
225
Merchandise Planning
This course seeks to instill in students a complete understanding of the influence of merchandise planning and purchasing on retail profit. Students analyze profit and loss statement and demonstrate a complete understanding of the factors that influence the retailer's financial performance.
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FMM
325
Sustainability in Fashion
The overall objective of this course is to explore the role that sustainability plays in fashion merchandising managers' decision to buy from vendors. It explores production and commercialization decisions with respect to buying green. It exposes students to the influence of social responsibility on fashion retailers' decisions.
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FMM
340
Merchandise Management Strategies
Effective merchandise management involves efficient decision making. Ordering, keeping and managing the right merchandise in terms of size and quantity are the key to a retailer's success. Retail merchandise management brings to light the vital relationship between the manufacturer and the retailer. Students explore various strategic techniques that influence profit including vendors-fashion retailers' negotiations over merchandise. Offered online and offered on campus only in Spring semester.
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FMM
410
Fashion Research and Forecasting
This course applies the qualitative and quantitative investigations approaches to fashion and fashion accessories. Students will analyze descriptive and inferential statistics to understand consumer taste for current and future trends in fashion.
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FMM
457
Strategic Fashion Management
Students utilize knowledge accumulated in various courses of the program to design a fashion merchandise strategy for a local fashion and apparel retailers or a strategy for fashion accessory retailers. This course considers both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to investigate management issues or examine opportunities for fashion retailers. Offered online and offered on campus only in Spring semester.
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QSO
330
Supply Chain Management
This course focuses on effective supply chain strategies for companies that operate globally with emphasis on how to plan and integrate supply chain components into a coordinated system. Students are exposed to concepts and models important in supply chain planning with emphasis on key tradeoffs and phenomena. The course introduces and utilizes key tactics such as risk pooling and inventory placement, integrated planning and collaboration, and information sharing.
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QSO
330
Supply Chain Management
This course focuses on effective supply chain strategies for companies that operate globally with emphasis on how to plan and integrate supply chain components into a coordinated system. Students are exposed to concepts and models important in supply chain planning with emphasis on key tradeoffs and phenomena. The course introduces and utilizes key tactics such as risk pooling and inventory placement, integrated planning and collaboration, and information sharing.
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Total Credits: 120
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Program Outcomes
- Develop fashion merchandise planning strategies that integrate the retailer’s positioning, vendor’s interests, and plans for generating profit
- Apply management theories and techniques in the fashion merchandising environment to achieve retail objectives and remain competitive
- Collect and organize industry data through the use of qualitative and quantitative tools
- Interpret data to predict influences of fashion trends in the fashion merchandising environment
- Employ effective decision-making skills to select textile and production sources from both domestic and international markets
Tuition & Fees
Tuition rates for SNHU's online degree programs are among the lowest in the nation. We offer financial aid packages to those who qualify, plus a 30% tuition discount for U.S. service members, both full and part time, and the spouses of those on active duty.
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Online Undergraduate Programs
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Per Course*
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Per Credit Hour*
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Degree/Certificates
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$960 |
$320 |
Degree/Certificates
(U.S. service members, both full and part time, and the spouses of those on active duty)
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$675 |
$225 |
*Tuition Rates are subject to change and are reviewed annually.
Additional Costs
No Application Fee, $150 Graduation Fee, Course Materials ($ varies by course)
University Accreditation
Southern New Hampshire University is a private, nonprofit institution accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education as well as several other accrediting bodies. More...
This program is accredited by ACBSP. Consumer information is available on the College Navigator.
*Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, on the Internet, at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/sales-managers.htm (viewed online November 6, 2017). Cited projections may not reflect local and/or short-term economic or job conditions and do not guarantee actual job growth.