CASE
STUDY
Empowering Fashion's Next Generation at Howard University
Overview
In September 2023 Steve Madden expanded our partnership with Howard University inviting twenty Howard
students to be part of a Retail Boot Camp and Pop-up Shop Program. The program hosted by Steve Madden
leadership and partnered with the Black Retail Action Group (BRAG) and the PNC Center for Entrepreneurship at
Howard. During each of the 4 Boot Camp sessions Steve Madden leaders presented on several different topics.
The students were also briefed on the Pop-up Shop project which was for two teams to create on-campus pop-up
shop concepts interpreting Steve Madden’s merchandise trends. The teams were given merchandise and material catalogs to create their shops that were revealed on campus in October.
The Boot Camp Sessions included
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Session 1: Key Factors for Successful Retail Entrepreneurship with Jason Seitz - VP Sales & Product.
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Pop-up shop assignment: Determine retail concept/establish team names.
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Session Il: Merchandising to Engage Customers and Move Products with Nevillo Semaj, VP of Business Development and Colleen Waters Sr. Director of E.Comm.
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Pop-up shop assignment: Determine merchandise mix, pop-up design tied to the retail concept, and determine the process for identifying the student entrepreneur to include.
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Session III: Marketing, Social Media, and Influencer Engagement with Angel Xu, Director of Social Media Influencer Marketing.
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Pop-up shop assignment: Create a marketing/promotional plan to drive students to pop-up shops.
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Session IV: Bulkling Strong Retail Teams with Steve Madden, Neville Semaj VP of Business Development, and April Dinwoodie, DEIB Lead.
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Pop-up shop assignment: Develop team staffing structure and finalize merchandising and design plans.
Outcomes
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The two teams “Silhouette” and “Mind Over Madden” hosted over 500 students in their pop-up concepts and both teams scored high marks from their fellow students
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Howard students earned valuable, practical knowledge and skills that they can take with in future endeavors.
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Steve Madden leaders were energized and inspired by the creative genius, skills, and spirit of the students.
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The 20 students were invited to Steve Madden’s headquarters in NYC where they participated in footwear market week and video/photo shoot to capture content for profiles they can use to promote themselves professionally.
Background
In 2021, we laid the groundwork for our ongoing relationship with Howard University, one of the top ranked Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the United States. Today, our partnership with Howard University, is the cornerstone in our efforts to empower the next generation of diverse professionals in fashion. Through our work with the university, we aim to enhance the educational experience of Howard students and connect them with career and internship opportunities at Steve Madden and beyond.
In August 2021, we kicked off the fall semester co-leading a “Retailing” class with the School of Business. Members of the Steve Madden leadership team presented lessons to students offering real-world insights into visual merchandising, production and buying, digital commerce, and social media marketing. The semester culminated in a capstone project with the students building and operating Steve Madden pop-up shops on campus. With the combination of academic and hands-on experience, students were able to get a practical sense of the rapidly evolving retail landscape as they connected principles of retailing and merchandising learned in the classroom to real-life scenarios.
As a result of the connections we made on campus, a number of students were invited to join our 2022 summer internship program. As our teams provided the students with invaluable opportunities to learn and grow, we were inspired by the students’ contributions and the new insights they brought to our company.
To learn more about this program please contact April Dinwoodie.
