Program Overview

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Fashion Business & Management BA (Hons)

Kick-start your career in the fashion industry with our BA (Hons) Fashion Business & Management degree, taught at UCA Epsom. This fashion business course is designed for those who are passionate about both the creative and commercial aspects of the fashion industry.

Our Fashion Business and Management degree course combines theoretical insights and practical skills. You'll gain expertise in fashion management, buying, merchandising, branding, communication and sustainability, while exploring the historical, cultural, and strategic aspects of the global fashion market. You'll also develop essential digital skills that ensure you're prepared for the evolving landscape of the fashion business industry.

We are accredited by the Chartered Management Institute, meaning you'll work to earn a prestigious professional qualification alongside your degree when you graduate.

Whether you aspire to be an entrepreneur or a leader in an established fashion company, you will graduate with the skills needed to make a meaningful impact in the dynamic world of fashion business management.

Course entry options

• BA (Hons) Fashion Business & Management
• BA (Hons) Fashion Business & Management with Integrated Foundation Year
• BA (Hons) Fashion Business & Management with Professional Practice Year
• BA (Hons) Fashion Business & Management with Integrated Foundation Year and Professional Practice Year

What you'll study

Integrated foundation year (if undertaken)

UCA’s Integrated Foundation Year is designed to give you the skills you’ll need to start your degree in the best possible way – with confidence, solid knowledge of creative practice, study skills and more.

You’ll explore a range of creative techniques and develop your portfolio, with your chosen subject in mind. We’ll work with you throughout the year to ensure you’re on the right track and give you the tools to achieve your highest potential on your degree.

Year one

• Critical Perspectives on Fashion Business Fashion is a complex worldwide system of businesses that makes many trillions of pounds and employs billions of people, but it was not always this way. Critical Perspectives on Fashion Business introduces you to historical and cultural changes around the world that helped shape the development of current fashion businesses. The unit examines social, political, and cultural structures such as gender, race, and class, and encourages you to evaluate how these factors impact fashion businesses.
• Fashion Business: Digital Skills, Practices and Futures This unit explores the fundamental digital skills required within contemporary fashion businesses. You will demonstrate your knowledge of digital practices and evaluate approaches to solving problems, while also demonstrating your creative and business digital skills. This unit will be the basis of all future digital study and will be the beginning of your understanding of professional digital tools and software used in fashion businesses.
• Professional Business Communication and Networks You will explore the theoretical underpinnings and practical aspects of communicating and networking effectively across different professional settings, while also considering the ethical dimensions of these practices. You will develop a robust set of competencies, insights, and informed perspectives critical for thriving in professional contexts.
• Fashion Business Strategy: Buying and Merchandising This interdisciplinary unit explores the core concepts, methodologies, and principles that drive fashion enterprises. You will hone your foundational understanding of fashion business strategy and acquire practical skills in digital buying and merchandising, all while embracing principles of global sustainability and ethics.
• Fashion Forecasting and Consumer Trends This unit is designed to immerse you into the complexities of fashion forecasting and the analysis of consumer trends, aiming to equip you with a sophisticated understanding of the mechanisms driving consumer behaviour and the ability to anticipate future trends in the fashion industry.
• Sustainability and Ethics in Fashion Business Develop a nuanced understanding of how sustainability and ethical considerations shape business strategies, influence consumer behaviour, and impact global supply chains in this unit, through a blend of theoretical knowledge and practical insights.

Year two

• Fashion Business Strategy: Omnichannel Brand Marketing and Experiential Retail In fashion, brand marketing is crucial as it helps build emotional connections and memorable experiences with customers. As a future fashion business professional, you will need various strategies like omnichannel marketing (combining online and offline sales) and experiential retail (creating engaging shopping experiences) to create strong brand stories. The unit aims to develop applied understanding of how customer experiences should be created and managed to positively impact on an organisation's success, exploring brand marketing in fashion and differing marketing methods.
• Fashion Business: Marketing Analytics and Data Technology You will explore, in-depth, this area of fashion business, emphasising the evolution of marketing analytics, the importance of data analysis, and the integration of AI-driven reporting tools. It provides you with comprehensive skills in interpreting, managing, and leveraging data to foster innovation, competitive advantage, and alignment with customer trends and preferences.
• Narrative Economics and Storytelling in Business With an innovative approach to blending economic theory with the art of storytelling, this unit is designed to equip you with the understanding of how narrative economics influences market dynamics and decision-making within the realm of creative industries, such as film, fashion, music, publishing, and digital media.
• Sustainable Accounting and Finance for Fashion Business You will build on your financial management knowledge, emphasising real-world applications and sustainability, covering budgeting, financial planning, and innovative finance tools, all within the context of fashion.
• Consumer Insight and Behaviour in Fashion To thrive in the competitive fashion industry, businesses need a deep understanding of their consumers' behaviour, values, and attitudes. This unit explores consumer motivation and decision-making processes specific to the fashion sector, and how these can be influenced by both internal and environmental factors.
• Sustainable Fashion Startup This unit equips you with the knowledge and skills needed to innovate within the rapidly evolving landscape of sustainable fashion, preparing you to address pressing global challenges while creating successful and socially conscious businesses. This unit requires you to develop different elements of a sustainable fashion start-up each week. You will carry out relevant market research to help you identify opportunities in the fashion industry and your target market and develop a prototype of a new product or service using a range of tools. Finally, you will apply your knowledge and research to create a compelling business pitch for potential investors and funders.

Professional practice year (if undertaken)

If you opt to complete a professional practice year, this will take place in year three. You will undertake a placement within the creative industries to further develop your skills and CV.

While on the Professional Practice Year, you will be required to pay a reduced tuition fee for that year. This fee will be determined using government funding regulations. Based on current regulations, we expect this to be a maximum of 20% of the tuition fee rate that you are charged for your second year of study. You will also incur additional travel and accommodation costs during this year. The University will provide you with further advice and guidance about this as you approach your Professional Practice Year.

Year three

• Fashion Business Strategy: Sustainable Business Design You will explore the intersection of sustainable practices and innovative business design in the fashion industry, so that you can develop, implement, and manage business strategies that are not only economically viable but also centred on sustainability and customer desirability. You will work in a team with other students to plan and execute a project from start to finish, simulating real fashion business scenarios. This collaborative work is supplemented with structured peer feedback, encouraging reflective learning and critical thinking.
• Entrepreneurial Finance and Financial Modelling for Fashion Business You’ll be introduced to the critical aspects of entrepreneurial finance and financial modelling within the fashion industry. You will develop the ability to build and defend robust business models in the fashion sector, employing both traditional financial management principles and modern tools, including AI, for financial analysis.
• Fashion Business: Project Management The ability to manage projects efficiently is a high-value skill indispensable for all managers. This unit equips you with the essential knowledge and skills needed to manage fashion business projects successfully, addressing common problems and challenges. By the end, you will have an opportunity to achieve a formal Project Management qualification (Agile PM Certification).
• Fashion Business and Management Degree Project The culmination of your course is the final major project, designed to demonstrate your ability to apply theoretical knowledge to practical, real-world challenges in the fashion industry. You will plan and manage a significant project, either focusing on a professional workplace setting or on academic research; in both instances, you must address a real-world business need or challenge specific to the fashion industry.

Study abroad (optional)

This course is designed to offer you (if eligible) the opportunity to study part of your degree aboard at a UCA partner university, while still earning credits towards your UCA degree.

Fees & funding

Tuition fees - 2025/26

• UK: £9,535
• EU: £9,535
• International: £17,500

If you opt to study the Professional Practice Year, for 2025 you will be required to pay a reduced tuition fee of £1,900. You will also incur additional travel and accommodation costs during your Professional Practice year. The University will provide you with further advice and guidance about this.

Facilities & equipment

Our Creative Business facilities at our Epsom campus feature dedicated studios, study areas and digital media suites equipped with Macs and PCs which are programmed with specialist software including Adobe Creative Suite. On campus there's a modern library with a wealth of books and publications, photography studios and print studios.

Career opportunities

Our Fashion Business Management degree is designed to produce highly employable graduates with a sound understanding of the fashion industry.

You'll benefit from our extensive industry links and from events such as London Fashion Week. Our industry connections include:

• Hugo Boss
• Liberty of London
• Burberry
• ASOS Marketing
• Whistles
• Prada
• Paul’s Boutique
• Kering
• Margaret Howell
• Paul Smith

Our commitment to helping our students to secure employment before graduation means that our Fashion Business and Management graduates progress to careers at many leading companies, such as:

• Harvey Nichols
• Alexander McQueen
• Harrods
• River Island
• House of Fraser
• UGG Australia
• L’Oreal
• Jigsaw
• Topshop
• Ralph Lauren.

Recent graduate roles have included:

• Marketing assistant
• Allocator
• PR manager
• Content curator
• Visual merchandiser
• Optimiser
• Wholesale and marketing executive
• Online production assistant
• Trend forecaster
• Online editorial copywriter.

Your training on this course will prepare you for a wide range of postgraduate courses.

We offer postgraduate fashion business degrees and we will help you find the correct course for you and support you in your application should further study be for you.

Entry requirements

Standard requirements

The standard entry requirements* for these courses are one of the following:

• 112 UCAS tariff points, see accepted qualifications
• Pass at Foundation Diploma in Art & Design (Level 3 or 4)
• Distinction, Merit, Merit at BTEC Extended Diploma / BTEC National Extended Diploma
• Merit at UAL Extended Diploma
• 112 UCAS tariff points from an accredited Access to Higher Education Diploma in appropriate subject
• 27-30 total points in the International Baccalaureate Diploma with at least 15 IB points at Higher level, see more information about IB entry requirements.
• And four GCSE passes at grade 9-4/A*-C including English (or Functional Skills English/Key Skills Communication Level 2).

Other relevant and equivalent Level 3 UK and international qualifications are considered on an individual basis, and we encourage students from diverse educational backgrounds to apply.

Foundation year requirements

The standard entry requirements* for foundation year entry are one of the following:

• 32 UCAS tariff points, see accepted qualifications
• Pass at Foundation Diploma in Art & Design (Level 3 or 4)
• Pass, Pass, Pass at BTEC Extended Diploma / BTEC National Extended Diploma
• Pass at UAL Extended Diploma
• 32 UCAS tariff points from an accredited Access to Higher Education Diploma in appropriate subject
• 24 points from the International Baccalaureate, see more information about IB entry requirements.
• And four GCSE passes at grade 9-4/A*-C including English (or Functional Skills English/Key Skills Communication Level 2).

Other relevant and equivalent Level 3 UK and international qualifications are considered on an individual basis, and we encourage students from diverse educational backgrounds to apply.

International entry requirements

Please select your country to find the equivalent requirements.

Undergraduate requirements

For our Bachelor's courses, we usually require that you have one of the following:

• 112 UCAS tariff points, see accepted qualifications
• Pass at Foundation Diploma in Art & Design (Level 3 or 4)
• Distinction, Merit, Merit at BTEC Extended Diploma / BTEC National Extended Diploma
• Merit at UAL Extended Diploma
• 112 UCAS tariff points from an accredited Access to Higher Education Diploma in appropriate subject
• 27-30 total points in the International Baccalaureate Diploma with at least 15 IB points at Higher level, see more information about IB entry requirements.
• And four GCSE passes at grade 9-4/A*-C including English (or Functional Skills English/Key Skills Communication Level 2).

Other relevant and equivalent Level 3 UK and international qualifications are considered on an individual basis, and we encourage students from diverse educational backgrounds to apply.

Foundation year requirements

The standard entry requirements* for foundation year entry are one of the following:

• 32 UCAS tariff points, see accepted qualifications
• Pass at Foundation Diploma in Art & Design (Level 3 or 4)
• Pass, Pass, Pass at BTEC Extended Diploma / BTEC National Extended Diploma
• Pass at UAL Extended Diploma
• 32 UCAS tariff points from an accredited Access to Higher Education Diploma in appropriate subject
• 24 points from the International Baccalaureate, see more information about IB entry requirements.
• And four GCSE passes at grade 9-4/A*-C including English (or Functional Skills English/Key Skills Communication Level 2).

Other relevant and equivalent Level 3 UK and international qualifications are considered on an individual basis, and we encourage students from diverse educational backgrounds to apply.

English Language Requirements

If you take the IELTS test you will need to achieve the following scores (or an equivalent from other UCA-approved English tests):

• Undergraduate degree (BA/BSc/BMus): 6.0 overall with no less than 5.5 in any section
• Undergraduate degree with international foundation year: 5.5 overall with no less than 5.5 in any section

Please note that English language requirements may vary depending on the country of origin and the specific course requirements. It is essential to check the English language requirements for your specific course and country of origin.

Our Staff

• Janja Song - Programme Director of Fashion & Luxury Business & Management
• Chris Holt - Senior Lecturer in Fashion Management & Marketing
• Esther Oladokun - Lecturer in Creative Business Management
• Dr Nadya Ostroff - Senior Lecturer in Luxury Management
• Katso Otukile - Lecturer in Business and Marketing
• Dr Xinya You - Lecturer in Sustainable Business
• Dr Qifei Huan - Lecturer in Behavioural Economics
• Dr Yue Wang - Lecturer in Fashion Business & Management
• Celina Schlieckmann - Senior Lecturer in Fashion Trends & Sustainability
• Mary Carson - Senior Lecturer in Fashion Management & Marketing
• Dr Julie Blanchard-Emmerson - Senior Lecturer in Fashion History and Theory
• Nicola Truman - Lecturer in Fashion Business & Management
• Dr Ram Shergill - Senior Lecturer in Fashion & Luxury Business & Management
• Dr Katherine Appleford - Senior Lecturer in Consumer Behaviour

Apply now

Please use the following fields to help select the right application link for you:

• My location: UK - Apply via UCAS, UK - Apply directly, International / EU - Apply directly
• I am interested to start in: Select entry year
• I would like to study for: Select study option

Apply

Course statistics

• BA (Hons)
• BA (Hons) with Professional Practice Year
• BA (Hons) with Integrated Foundation Year
• BA (Hons) with Integrated Foundation Year and Professional Practice Year

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