I graduated from my PG Cert in 2018 with "Merit," and "Distinction" from my MA Academic Practice in March 2022. For the past year, I have been lecturing on the BA (Hons) Design Management (BA DM) program at London College of Communications, and as of June 1st 2022, will be joining the MA Design Management program as a lecturer in Entrepreneurship.

As I understand it there is soft and hard expertise, as well as experience, and I recognize that I am privileged to possess both. Hard experience and expertise come through 20+ years' global industry experience, as a Fashion Designer (own namesake sustainable luxury brand), a communications professional (having worked on several projects including landing the advisory role of Rihanna Fenty's website UX Design), and consulting with then-start up luxury concierge & housekeeping service company, Savior Vivre (SV) based in Dubai. My experience of designing services (and products) in the public and the private sector matches the role of being a lecturer on this program. 

Working on the SV project, as both a product and service designer, catering to the world’s royal, elite and, HNWIs clients, allowed for working in a participative, iterative, and qualitative manner with all stakeholders considering wider systems at play.  

However soft experience comes through managing commercial teams in industry, building trust with stakeholders to lead large scale international programs, and building communities of practitioners across the globe. This scale and varied scope of experience in industry makes for purposeful and transferable attributes that I continue to apply in academia and having this expertise in UX Design, Service Design and Design Management means I understand tools, knowledge and disciplinary context drawn from the industry that can inform my academic leadership and shape the direction of this short course. 

Working for the past year on the BA DM program, has equipped me with the ability to share my experiences to date with all audiences, using inclusive methods to both demonstrate and communicate design principles, interdisciplinary practices, and contemporary visualisation methods and techniques within culturally defined contexts. 

I embrace the responsibility of helping students realize their true potential, through my gained pedagogic approaches, informed by my extensive research into several different types of theories.

I am also a qualified Mental Health First Aider (MHFA), so I take the well-being of my students and peers, very seriously. 

An interesting fact about me = 

The very first dress I designed was at the age of 16, which featured on the Brit Awards Carpet in 2001, worn by a then pop icon, Samantha Mumba: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/music/newsid_2234000/2234338.stm 

&

https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2002/sep/29/featuresreview.review 

2. How could you use this new knowledge within your own practice?

3. What is still unclear?

Inspiration: Rationale behind your business? 

What problem is your business solving?

 Sustainable / Ethical considerations?

Consumer: Who is your business aimed at? 

Who is he/she/they?

Where do they live?

Where do they go on vacation?

 What do they do for a living (occupation)?

 What do they like to do socially?

Market Level: For what market level is your design/brand?

Who are your competitors?

Marketing: How will you let your consumer know your brand exists? (Marketing activities...)

Sales Channel: Where will you sell your design/services?

Brick & Mortar: (Independent Boutiques/ Pop-Up Shop/ Department Stores/ Hotel Gift Shops/ Private 1-2-1 Consultations / Community Design Studio)

Online; E-commerce; (Own website/online retailer)? MetaVerse? NFTs? Digital Fashion like DressX maybe…?

KEY INSIGHTS

• The top 2 percent of luxury customers drive 40 percent of luxury sales, according to Bain.

• Engaging and retaining these very important clients (VICs) will remain critical to brands that want to continue to flourish amid the broader market slowdown. Doing so, however, is only becoming more challenging, as competition for their attention intensifies.

• Carefully executed strategies that fuse elevation, emotion and experience will foster greater loyalty among this consumer cohort and increase their spending in the long term.

Additional resources: https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/about-proposition-65

Was sad to see how impacted the smaller suppliers/retailers were from this: "The administration process in the UK (which is akin to Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US) can be murky. Insolvency practitioners are tasked with maximising returns for secured creditors as a top priority — typically this means repaying loans from banks or other lenders. As a result, it is often the larger stakeholders that are offered the most protection, while the smaller suppliers are the most exposed." - Vogue Business https://www.voguebusiness.com/story/consumers/what-really-happened-with-matches-and-where-do-we-go-from-here

• Brand image: Ted Baker has had a difficult few years. During 2019, the company issued four profit warnings – and was forced to admit that it had overstated the value of clothing in its inventory by as much as £25m. In the same year, founder Ray Kelvin – who denies wrongdoing – was forced to step down following accusations of inappropriate workplace behaviour.

• Decline in officewear: A Retail Week report found that office wear sales have dropped by 67% since the onset of the pandemic.

• Inflation and cost of living crisis

OR

Actively engage with and comment on at least three posts made by myself as your tutor or students from previous cohorts.

I anticipate your presence in our next meeting.

Kindest,

Romero Bryan

The People’s Republic has been a disaster zone for luxury groups of late. For example, Kering, which owns brands like Gucci, suffered, opens new tab a 30% year-on-year fall in Asia-Pacific sales excluding Japan in the quarter to September 2024, mainly driven by China.

Companies need to review their strategic priorities — investing in talent development, product excellence and finding new ways to engage with clients.

Bookings should be requested at least 1 day before you want to visit. You must have received a booking confirmation before you visit. Please note there is no wait list.

Among the greatest challenges fashion businesses face today is convincing increasingly discerning and discount-driven shoppers that their products are worth the buy — at full price. This case study explores how brands, from luxury to mass market, can communicate value in a competitive and choosy environment.

Visiting SAMAB will provide National and International Top Buyers with an opportunity to access knowledge, connections and resources essential for success in the global fashion market.

All useful prerequisites to create a stimulating environment for collaboration and the development of new ideas and the global fashion market.

The free ticket is valid for the three-day event and will allow you to visit SAMAB from 27 to 29 May at Superstudio Maxi in Milan. It will give you access to the exhibition area, thematic workshop, B2B meetings and networking moments that will animate the three days.