Merchandising and Retail Analytics - BS
The Bachelor of Science in Merchandising & Retail Analytics prepares students for strategic, dynamic careers and leadership roles within the global fashion, soft goods, and lifestyle industries. The program combines consumer insight, trend intuition, and data-driven decision-making to teach students how products move seamlessly from initial concept to the customer.
The curriculum focuses on merchandising strategies across the entire multichannel retail spectrum, including physical storefronts, e-commerce (online shopping), and direct-to-consumer platforms. Students learn to navigate the business of fashion by analyzing what to buy, how much to produce, where products are sold, and when they launch, all while looking through a lens of environmental stewardship and social justice.
An Analytical and Tech-Forward Approach
To meet the demands of an evolving, tech-driven industry, the program emphasizes the mastery of data analytics and industry-standard tools. Students integrate tools such as Excel, AI, WGSN, and other market forecasting platforms into their coursework to predict trends and plan assortments.
The St. Kate’s Difference
- Interdisciplinary Customization: The major is structured to ensure breadth and depth. In consultation with the department, students complete a minor that aligns with their unique career trajectories, choosing from fields such as Business Analytics, Marketing, Social Media, Leadership, Communications, or Sustainability Studies. The flexibility of the curriculum also makes a dual degree with Fashion Design highly accessible.
- Ethics and Sustainability: Students study environmental impacts and human rights issues across the global supply chain, learning to apply sustainable sourcing and ethical inventory planning practices to minimize the retail lifecycle footprint.
- Global and National Study Frameworks: Through established partnerships, students can study off-campus for a semester or a full academic year. Destinations include the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York, the London College of Fashion, and the Accademia Italiana in Florence, as well as the department's faculty-led study tours in Europe and Asia.
Career Readiness and Professional Pathways
Through small classes, collaborative group work, and a required professional internship, graduates enter the market career-ready. The program provides a robust foundation for a variety of corporate and entrepreneurial pathways, preparing students for roles such as retail buyers, business analysts, digital merchandise planners, e-commerce managers, product developers, global sourcing specialists, and visual strategists.
See also: Creative & Technical Fashion Design - BS
This major is offered in the College for Women only.
Curriculum
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Prerequisite Course | ||
| FASH 1000 | Introduction to the Fashion Industry | 2 |
| Total Credits | 2 | |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| FASH 2050 | Textiles with Lab | 4 |
| FASH 2100 | Apparel Construction and Analysis | 4 |
| FASH 2150W | Sociocultural Aspects of Dress | 4 |
| FASH 3000 | History of Dress | 4 |
| FASH 3150 | Consumer Behavior & Trend Forecasting | 4 |
| FASH 4571 | Career Preparation for the Fashion Industry | 1 |
| FASH 4603 | Fashion Internship and Leadership | 3 |
| MRCH 3100 | Global Sourcing and Supply Chain Management | 4 |
| MRCH 3200 | Apparel Specifications for Product Development and Manufacturing | 4 |
| MRCH 3300 | Omnichannel Retail | 4 |
| MRCH 3450 | Visual Merchandising | 4 |
| MRCH 4850 | Retail Planning & Allocation | 4 |
| DSCI 1000 | Telling Stories with Data - Introduction to Data Visualization | 4 |
| or MRCH 4400 | Sustainable Product Development | |
| Total Credits | 48 | |
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Supporting Courses (minimum grade of C- required) | ||
| APPD 2500 | Fashion Illustration & Technical Design | 4 |
| or ART 2250 | Art and Technology | |
| COMM 1030 | Speaking to Lead and Influence | 4 |
| Total Credits | 8 | |
Required Minor
Students must complete one of the following minors. (The requirements for each minor are listed under the department offering the minor.)
- Business Administration
- Business Analytics
- Integrated Marketing Communications and Design
- Marketing
- Sustainability Studies
Fashion merchandising majors satisfy the Writing Requirement for Majors by completing FASH 2150W Sociocultural Aspects of Dress. They complete the Liberal Arts and Sciences Core Writing Requirement with three other writing-intensive courses (CORE 1000W The Reflective Woman, CORE 3990W Global Search for Justice, and one other writing-intensive course in this or another department).
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Fall Term | ||
| APPD 2500 | Fashion Illustration & Technical Design | 4 |
| or ART 2250 | Art and Technology | |
| FASH 1000 | Introduction to the Fashion Industry | 2 |
| Spring Term | ||
| COMM 1030 | Speaking to Lead and Influence | 4 |
| FASH 2150W | Sociocultural Aspects of Dress | 4 |
| Select one from: | 4 | |
| Statistical Analysis for Decision Making | ||
| Statistical Methods in Psychology | ||
| Statistical Analysis | ||
| Fall Term | ||
| ACCT 2110 | Financial Accounting | 4 |
| BUSI 2012 | Business Analytics | 2 |
| FASH 2050 | Textiles with Lab | 4 |
| FASH 3000 | History of Dress | 4 |
| LEAD 2202 | Leadership and Influence | 2 |
| MGMT 2402 | Principles of Management | 2 |
| Spring Term | ||
| FASH 2100 | Apparel Construction and Analysis | 4 |
| FASH 3150 | Consumer Behavior & Trend Forecasting | 4 |
| MKTG 2302 | Introduction to Marketing | 2 |
| or SALE 2332 | Introduction to Selling | |
| MRCH 4850 | Retail Planning & Allocation 1 | 4 |
| Fall Term | ||
| ACCT 2130 | Managerial Accounting | 4 |
| FASH 4571 | Career Preparation for the Fashion Industry | 1 |
| MRCH 3200 | Apparel Specifications for Product Development and Manufacturing | 4 |
| Take the first of two electives required for the minor | 4 | |
| Spring Term | ||
| MRCH 3450 | Visual Merchandising 1 | 4 |
| Take the second of two electives required for the minor | 4 | |
| Fall Term | ||
| MRCH 3100 | Global Sourcing and Supply Chain Management 1 | 4 |
| MRCH 3300 | Omnichannel Retail 1 | 4 |
| Spring Term | ||
| FASH 4603 | Fashion Internship and Leadership | 3 |
| MRCH 4400 | Sustainable Product Development 1 | 4 |
| or DSCI 1000 | Telling Stories with Data - Introduction to Data Visualization | |
| Total Credits | 86 | |
- 1
Offered every other year