MLux-Program Director, Dr. Sandrine Ricard, on Swiss TV - SF1 in June 2009.

 The Program

The Master of Science in Luxury Goods and Services (MScLGS) at the International University of Monaco (IUM) is a 10-month, 60-credit degree completed in three 12-week terms.

This specialist program is designed for recent graduates and professionals who wish to acquire knowledge and skills specific to the luxury industry. It introduces students to the particular operational, financial, marketing, and product issues that impact strategic and business decisions in the area, while providing a focused introduction to its wider qualitative elements.

The MScLGS seeks to produce innovative and imaginative managers who can fill senior positions in strategic planning, identity and brand management, product policy, new product development, and product portfolio management in the luxury goods market.

Emphasizing ways in which strategic thinking and creativity can be resourcefully deployed, the program combines quantitative learning (essential to generating relevant data) with intellectual perception (vital to understanding the field). It centers on (1) the environments - economic, cultural, psychological, and technological - with which the luxury industry interacts and in which it operates, (2) its critical commercial and business variables, (3) consumer and purchasing power in the industry, and (4) the sensory and pragmatic resonances generated by the concept of luxury as it is embodied in high-end goods and services.

The MScLGS is structured to ensure that students understand the vital role these related factors play in successfully managing the luxury enterprise. Course sequencing facilitates theoretical and practical competence, and develops students' creative abilities in brand cachet, product assessment, and market potential. This solidifies their capacity to successfully integrate the luxury enterprise across the range of its often-unique business activities.

In the Fall 2008-term,  I shall teach the course "LXRY 665: LUXURY INDUSTRY AND COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS".

Some basic remarks:

In order to understand any industry one has to have a clear understanding of competition. We focus on firm-level strategic entrepreneurial choices regarding where to engage in which activities. We are faced with the challenges of integrating the multiple perspectives, functions, and interests that constitute to the (multinational) firm. How do firms gain and sustain competitive advantage? If we do not understand how firms compete, how they gain competitive advantage and to be internationally competitive it is very hard to talk about the impact of location. Understanding how firms compete locally and internationally (that is, across borders) is a necessary condition to understand the relevance of the location and what creates competitiveness in a location. Therefore, what we need is a good grounding in firm-competition and strategy.

We provide students with the opportunity to critically review theories, conceptual frameworks and to conduct in-depth analysis within the Luxury Goods industry. All this culminates in the preparation of an Industry Analysis Report in which the students should demonstrate the knowledge acquired throughout this course.

For a detailled course description and syllabus see the information given in the "Sidebar"

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