MA Strategic Fashion Marketing

Dr Nina Van Volkinburg: Dr Nina Van Volkinburg is the course leader for MA Strategic Fashion Marketing. She is passionate about circular economy and fashion’s transformation towards sustainable strategies through emerging technologies. She is an ethnographer by training with her research focusing on value co-creation and service ecosystems and has written multiple published case studies. Additionally, Nina has consulted for various organisations focused on sustainable practice including The Sustainable Angle and Fashion4Development (amongst others). She regularly comments on the wider fashion industry for platforms including BBC World News, as well as fashion-focused press including Elle, Showstudio, Achtung, and Wardrobe Crisis. Her work within fashion sustainability has been featured in Vogue, Textilwirtschaft, Tank Magazine, and The Telegraph. Moreover, Nina is the co-founder of the world’s first B2C fashion upcycling platform, RETURE, which grew a global community of fashion designers to revive and transform customers’ garments from old to new. Within 1 year of launching, the company welcomed over 60 designers to the platform, collaborated with sustainable organisations including Fashion Revolution, and were invited to take part in in-person pop-ups including Selfridges & Co. and Westfield.  She holds a BA and PhD in Marketing from the University of Exeter, as well as a MA in Strategic Fashion Marketing from London College of Fashion.

Dr Shahpar Abdollahi holds a Ph.D. in Management Science from King’s College London. Her Doctoral research focused on innovation and the role of networks in the success of new product development. She holds a M.Sc. in International Business from the University of Groningen, with a specialisation in International Marketing. Before joining LCF, Shahpar held research, lecturing and supervisory positions at King’s College London, Cranfield Business School, University of Essex, London College of Fashion (LCF) and Instituto Marangoni. Given her professional background, Shahpar is particularly interested in Luxury Branding, Fashion Marketing and Fashion Management.

Dr Bethan Alexander is the course leader for MA Fashion Retail Management. Bethan is a passionate spokesperson, senior lecturer and researcher with an expert lens on fashion business strategy, omnichannel retailing, retail futures and fashion brand management. Having spent 18 years working internationally in senior management roles with fashion brands including Converse, Elle, Kangol and establishing her own consultancy business, Brand Baker, Bethan brings the same verve to her academic role. Within Higher Education, Bethan has held senior lecturing positions at London College of Fashion, University of East London and has guest lectured at more than 15 global HE institutions. Bethan is a published author, international conference presenter and active researcher. Her research spans Multi-Sensory Fashion Retailing, Customer Brand Experiences Online and Offline and Innovative Retail Formats. Bethan holds a first-class Bachelor of Science degree in Fashion Product Management, a Master of Science degree with distinction in Fashion Marketing & Distribution and a PG Certificate in Teaching & Learning for Higher Education. Bethan is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. She successfully achieved a UAL Teaching Scholars Award in 2018 and was recognised in 2015, 2016 and 2018 by students for a Teaching Excellence Award. Read Bethan Alexander's full profile here.

Dr Francesca Bonetti: Dr Francesca Bonetti is a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Marketing at the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, London, UK, and a Visiting Lecturer at universities across Europe, the USA and Asia. She is currently a Visiting Scholar at USC Marshall School of Business, conducting a research project on technological innovation in the fashion and creative industries across the USA West Coasts (Los Angeles area), UK (London area) and Europe. 
Her research interests focus on business technological innovation across cultures in the fashion and creative industries, and the digital transformation of retailing. Her PhD (University of Manchester, UK, 2020) explored the adoption of consumer-facing technologies in fashion retail settings from a managerial perspective. Her interests also include luxury fashion retailing in China and the consumption of fashion goods by Asian consumers. Her work is published in academic journals such as the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services and the International Journal of Technology Marketing, among others, and in a number of books. She has international industry experience in marketing communications and retail and business development in the fashion and apparel sector. She currently consult for fashion brands, retailers and startup companies on distribution strategies, communications strategies and the use of consumer-facing technology.

Ruth Jacob is a Lecturer in Fashion Marketing, Digital & International Marketing Strategy.  Her experience of teaching extends over 15 years and has covered work in Higher Education Institutions such as: the University of East London, London South Bank University and the University of Law, as well as teaching in FE institutions, including the Fashion Retail Academy and also in earlier years of education.  Alongside her work as an educator, Ruth is also a practitioner, having founded her BIGGER BOY menswear line in 2013.  Her industry experience involves working with UAL design alumni, with fashion editorials, communications, marketing and PR agencies and with brands such as: Celine, Givenchy, Valentino, Craig Green, David Koma, & Other Stories, Arket and LOVE Magazine; and with media organisations such as: Sky News, ITV, City AM and the Geneva-based UN Conference for Trade & Development.  She is also present in the area of research having produced work for the Fashion Marketing in Emerging Markets publication and also appearing as a panelist for LCF’s Fashion Business Research Centre and for fashion industry organisations in Rwanda.  Ruth holds qualifications in BA (Hons) in Journalism with Economics, MA Broadcast Journalism, MA Fashion, PGCE in Post Compulsory Education and is a Senior Fellow of the HEA.

Dr. Cigdem Gogus is an experienced academic, marketing practitioner and researcher, with a background in sales, business development and entrepreneurship. She has an MBA in e-business (City University Business School, London) and a PhD in ConsumerBehaviour - Marketing (Henley Business School). Her expertise lies in consumer behaviour, e-commerce, digital marketing, and start-up’s. Cigdem has taught across a wide range of marketing topics at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She has overseen countless Master’s dissertations. She has in-depth knowledge of marketing theory, research methods as well as broader theoretical knowledge of social sciences and business management. Her work experience includes; market research, merchandising, sales and business development, starting and running a successful e-commerce business. Cigdem regularly attends academic and business conferences run by: The Association for Consumer Research, Market Research Society,Association for Qualitative Research and ESOMAR.

Dr Shuyu Lin’s expertise lies in value creation and appropriation in the fashion ecosystem. Her research aims to extend the application of network-based strategic management and social capital theories to the discipline of aesthetic innovation. Exploring both structural and relational mechanism in open innovation has been at the centre of her research interest. Following a BA in Journalism, Shuyu pursued her career in the fashion industry as a PR consultant and fashion editor. She then received the degree of MSc in Management with Marketing and PhD in Management from the University of Bath.

Dr Paul Marsden: Paul is a consultant consumer psychologist. He helps brands understand what consumers want, using psychological techniques to surface consumers’ unspoken needs and hidden motivations. Paul is chartered by the British Psychological Society and has two decades experience working with the global communications group WPP and the innovation consultancy Brand Genetics. Notable clients include LVMH, TK Maxx, Fitbit, Edmiston, Google, and Porsche. He has authored several marketing books, including Connected Marketing, and The Social Commerce Handbook. Following his PhD, Paul co-founded System1 Group PLC, a tech company that uses Artificial Intelligence to mine psychological insight from online content. Paul appears on TV and radio discussing consumer trends and consumer psychology, and recently appeared as himself in the 2021 movie ‘I am Gen Z’ about teens and tech. Paul has a particular interest in virtual influencers, digital fashion, and the ethics of AI in marketing. Paul blogs at digitalwellbeing.org, sharing tips on how to have a healthier tech-life balance.

Julie Dennison is a senior lecturer and academic, having extensive experience of teaching and curriculum development at undergraduate and postgraduate level since joining UAL in 2007. Julie currently holds the role of Senior Lecturer in Fashion Business Research Methods, focusing on developing specialist research methodologies with students to enable them to complete diverse advanced level research outputs at postgraduate level. Prior to her teaching career, Julie worked for over a decade in product design and development as a Senior Fashion Buyer, specialising in CMT operations for major UK High Street brands such as River Island and Arcadia. Her published research focuses on consumer behaviour in digital environments. She holds a BA (Hons) in Textiles and Fashion, a Masters in Strategic Fashion Marketing, a PG Cert in Academic Practice and is a Fellow of the HEA.

Edward Stammers is the Programme Director for the Fashion Business Programme and and Creative Director for the Fashion Business School.  Edward has an MA in Fashion Merchandise Management and a PG Cert in Education. He is a fellow of the British Display Society and has worked in the visual merchandising industry for twenty-five years, managing global visual merchandising and marketing campaigns as design and project manager for Rootstein Display Mannequins. His research interests centre on the function and perception of the mannequin form and the challenges to the mannequin that are developing from the increased use of digital technology within the fashion retail environment.