Faculty of Science and Engineering

Department of Materials

MATS61421

International Fashion Marketing

Unit Handbook 2025-26

1. Unit Introduction

This unit will introduce you to the principles of international fashion marketing and how the fashion industry develops strategies in line with their target market in a global context.  The unit develops the knowledge and skills to enable a strategic approach to fashion marketing through application of relevant theory, frameworks and techniques used by international fashion businesses to achieve competitive advantage.

A clear strategy is seen as the driving force behind every business, and it is therefore critical that organisations carefully consider how they plan to capitalise on global market opportunities whilst minimising threats. Organisations can develop their core competencies and capabilities, use their strengths to capitalise on opportunities or minimise threats, and invest in available opportunities to overcome weaknesses to compete successfully against other players in the fashion and apparel industry.

Strategy will be examined from a corporate perspective that guides the whole organisation and at a functional level where strategic marketing decisions around the marketing mix are intrinsically linked to the organisation’s direction and growth. In today’s turbulent environment marketers must play new strategic roles in addition to their conventional roles. In most fashion organisations the marketing function is core and makes a significant contribution to competitive advantage. This unit examines marketing strategy in the context of the global fashion retailing industry, and considers how strategy is developed through analysis and critique of multiple internal and external factors.

This unit will help to develop the critical awareness that is needed when making strategic decisions within an organisation. By analysing the internal and external environments students will be able to formulate new and innovative marketing strategies to take the organisation forward. A progressive approach to understanding global consumer culture and global citizenship is adopted to develop your ability to anticipate consequential effects of international marketing strategies.

The ability to develop a clear and coherent marketing strategy is a key skill for marketers to develop. In summary this entails the approach to market segmentation, choosing key segments, clearly defining the firm’s value proposition and how this may contribute to organisational development and potential growth. This unit examines some of the key steps in the strategic planning process and captures this in a strategic marketing analysis and strategic development report. Students will critically analyse a pre-determined company and develop a new marketing strategy for the business following the analysis of the firm and its environment. In doing this, students will follow a strategic approach to the development process and demonstrate the skills required to carry out this type of audit.

2. Unit Aims

This handbook should be read in conjunction with the Department of Materials Undergraduate or Postgraduate Programme Handbook which can be found on the Undergraduate/Postgraduate Virtual Common Room on Blackboard

This unit aims to provide an in-depth critical insight into strategic marketing within the global fashion retailing industry, with a view to achieving competitive advantage through products and markets. It focuses on the significance of environmental auditing and introduces techniques which can be used by fashion organisations to capitalise on lucrative new opportunities. The identification and deployment of core competencies and capabilities through the implementation of marketing strategy, is pivotal to this unit. More specifically, this unit aims to:

1. Provide a critical appreciation of the scope and theoretical perspectives on strategic marketing

2. Examine contemporary strategic marketing in in the fashion and apparel industry

3. Relate the relevant theories of strategic marketing to current and future practice within the global fashion industry.

Brief Syllabus:

· Fundamental of marketing

· Marketing theory in action

· Contemporary marketing and emerging trends

Overall, the unit will build students’ skills in conducting strategic analysis and develop their understanding of the competitive challenges of a global market environment. In doing so it aims to provide a realistic experience in crafting business marketing strategy, reasoning carefully about strategic options, using critical analysis to make sound strategic decisions. Thus, it develops students’ powers of judgment, the ability to assess business risk, and improves the ability to create new and innovative marketing strategies for existing fashion companies.

3. Intended Learning Outcomes

D = Delivered, D&A = delivered and assessed

4. Teaching and Learning Process

This unit makes use of a variety of learning and teaching processes including: lectures, problem-based learning, practical sessions; case studies, and discussions. Blackboard will be used to present lecture notes and supporting materials for the unit. The lectures with develop the theoretical subject knowledge, whilst the case studies and discussions will evaluate the importance and application of techniques, with practical sessions visualising these findings. Blackboard will also be utilised for assessment using Turnitin.

5. Unit Delivery

6. Student Participation

• Students that attend the sessions will find the assessments reasonably straightforward: those who do not attend will find them a little more difficult!

• To pass the module, it is necessary to undertake an individual assignment.

• Each week there will be recorded content to view independently before lecture-based classes, this is supported by weekly seminar sessions, workshops and formative feedback to ensure that each student is fully prepared for the assignment.

• The unit is predominantly independent, self-directed learning based. Tutors will provide the lead initially in order to facilitate the process, with the emphasis then focusing on active and participative learning particularly in the seminars which students are obliged to attend.

• Seminars are very much student focussed and students are encouraged to engage with the learning materials for these and need to participate in any group work and presentation tasks.

• Interpersonal skills, research skills and writing skills will be utilised and developed in this unit.