TESTIMONIALS
Michael Martahus, ’08, Intern, AMR Research
This summer I was accepted for an internship in retail strategies with AMR Research, a leading enterprise advisory company in Boston. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the material studied at Babson was exactly what I was working with from the first day. The relevancy of Babson's Retail Supply Chain Management program to real world issues allowed me to make an immediate impact. My projects and assignments often had me recalling classroom lectures in a complimentary way. I was asked to stay on through the fall semester where my contributions to AMR's highly regarded retail industry report will give me my first co-authorship credit. I am very pleased with Babson's Retail Supply Chain Management program and the progress I've made. The potential now exists for a rewarding career in retail supply chain management.
Brittany Payn, '07, Asst. International Product Line Manager, PUMA International
Today's world of Fashion Product Management is fast paced and cut-throat, and in order to get ahead you have to be prepared to react to the market faster than your competitors. Babson has uniquely prepared me to face various business scenarios, yet I firmly believe Babson students would sincerely benefit from The Retail Intelligence and Supply Chain Management concentation. Having a business background is pretty unique at PUMA, as most of my colleagues have a background in the liberal arts, fashion and various other degress; and having a Babson education on my resume certainly helped me to secure this position. What would make our graduates even more competitive and unique in this marketplace is a direct concentration on retail intelligence and supply chain management coupled Babson's world reknown reputation; it would put graduates miles ahead of the pack.
Claudia Stein, ‘07, Allocation Analyst, TJX Companies, Inc.
Four years ago, as a prospective student, I had to choose between enrolling in a fashion design school or Babson College. Obviously I choose Babson because it would open the door to a lifetime of success for any undergraduate in any field of Business. It was not until Professor Levy’s Retail Management course that I realized that I can have best of both worlds. I finally found my niche at Babson! After Retail Management, I have directed all of my efforts to enter in the retail world as a merchandiser or buyer for major fashion forward companies. This proposed concentration, Retail Intelligence and Supply Chain Management, will give students just like me a competitive advantage in the retail work force. Babson College should recognize that I am not alone here at Babson College and this concentration would be well accepted here on campus. It would be in everyone’s best interest to offer heavy exposure to major relevant topics in the retail world in the format of Babson College’s rigorous curriculum so that each graduate will be sure to carry Babson College’s name with prestige in the “real retail world”.
Tracewski, '06, Allocation Analyst, TJX Companies, Inc
The retail management course I took at Babson was great preparation for my position as an Allocation Analyst for The TJX Companies, Inc. In this position, I have the responsibility to ship the right merchandise to the right stores at the right time to maximize sales and profits. Working in the retail industry, I am able to apply many of the skills I learned from the core foundation courses at Babson, including marketing, finance, accounting, and entrepreneurship. The Retailing Intelligence and Supply Chain Management concentration will further bring together these core competencies, allowing students to directly apply what they learn in a retail management career.
Isabelle Acra, M‘06, Consultant, Acra Department Stores
The Retail Management course at Babson College was very informative and provided me with various tools that I was able to apply to our retail businesses in the Caribbean. This course was excellent because it covered all aspects of retailing from merchandise planning, to pricing, to layout and design. We also had guest speakers who are leaders in this field. Even though I was at first skeptical about whether I would be able to transfer this knowledge to a developing economy, I found much of what I learned very applicable and know that many students with family businesses in Latin and South America would to. Unfortunately it was pretty much the only course at Babson concentrating on Retail which is a loss considering what a huge industry it is, and how much more in-depth we can go into each silo. The Retail Intelligence and Supply Chain Management concentration would be very useful to teach students how to deal with the demands of this increasingly competitive industry.
Georgia Howe, '05, Assistant Buyer, Talbots Inc.
I believe that a concentration in retailing supply chain management is an important educational option for Babson students. The business world is driven by supply and demand and the effect that this has on the world-wide consumer. I believe that a more in-depth look at this relationship between the consumer, the retailer and the supplier would be extremely beneficial for the Babson student’s overall business education. As an Assistant Buyer for a large, well-known retail firm and a former Babson undergraduate, I look back and think how advantageous it would have been to have this concentration offered to me, and how much it could have truly helped my growing career.
Tia Satullo, '05, Exec. VP, Value World, Inc/Value Village, Inc.
The reason behind my decision to attend Babson College was solely based on my career goal of working for my family business of 26 clothing stores nationwide. Therefore, my motivation at Babson was to learn the most I could in every aspect of retailing. The Retail management class opened my eyes to many academic aspects like consumer behavior, store design/layout and brand management. However, the course selection was limited beyond this one class. Therefore, I truly believe that Babson could benefit from a retail concentration not only because it is one of the largest industries in the world but it would also draw from many concentrations and produce a well rounded knowledge of the retail industry.
Alison Barnard, M'04, Owner, in-jean-ius
As a retail entrepreneur and Babson graduate, I can honestly say that this program is a much needed addition. Because this program did not exist while I was at Babson, I was forced to learn the inner workings of the business through trial and error. I would have most certainly enrolled to be a part of this concentration.
A-P de PEYRONNET, M'02, Founder, SHIRALY, Paris, France
The Retailing Management class helped me quickly grow a New York-based luxury hand-woven rugs designer: CariniLang, into a business, selling throughout the USA, to Europe and Asia, from one retail location, and employing 6 people. The insights from the class helped me analyse which client base to focus on, which core competencies to communicate on, and how to cater and communicate appropriately with clients. Because of the help from the class insights, CariniLang was able to achieve rapid sustainability. Clearly, the teachings are key to help focus and refine a business plan, for anybody involved with retailing, whether selling luxury goods or groceries, from bricks and mortar to electronic. Even cultural players, such as museums opening exhibitions to the public could benefit from this class.
Sean Carr, '97, M'04, National Sales Director (Canada), RC2 Brands, Inc.
As the National Sales Director for a major infant and toy products company, I use retail analytics on a daily basis for both tactical sales and promotional execution as well as strategic product and brand blocking. Calling on globally recognized retailers such as Wal*Mart, Toys R Us, Zellers, The Bay, Loblaws and Sears, to name a few, requires a high level of fluency in retail and supply chain analysis. The expansion of directly sourced programs from retailers also creates a demand for professionals who understand retail and supply chain management. From my Babson MBA days, the only text book I keep at my desk and use regularly remains "Retailing Management". At the time, I did not know the value that lone course would provide me as I began my tenure at RC2 and the potential for Babson undergrads to concentrate in this area would be a powerful and lucrative offering for new grads.
Bryan Gildenberg, M'96, Chief Knowledge Officer, Management Ventures, Inc. (MVI)
Retail is in a stage of transition – moving from an “old-economy”, operations driven business to a 21st century, consumer centric, information driven, multi-channel industry. At the same time, consumer product marketers desperately need help understanding the retail marketplace – as the industry consolidates leading retailers have significant control over how brands are marketed in their environment. As conventional media and one-way marketing continue to decrease in effectiveness environments like retail stores will be among the most important theaters for brand marketers to connect with consumers. For all of these reasons, the time is right for Babson (with its reputation for innovation) to take a leadership position in preparing its students interested in retailing, consumer product marketing, or market research and analysis for the increasingly sophisticated information and insight needs of this extremely dynamic marketplace.
Scott Friend, Bain Capital, Former President & Co-Founder, ProfitLogic
In an era where retail represents an increasingly large proportion of the world economy and yet continues to get more and more competitive, a concentration like Retailing Intelligence and Supply Chain Management becomes almost an imperative for anyone considering a career in business. Whether your ultimate objective is to build a product, provide a service, distribute a product or sell it at retail, your world will intersect in some fashion with retail and supply chain operations. A detailed understanding of these operations is a pre-requisite for success in any line of work. The comprehensive nature of the curriculum provides a great foundation for future successful managers.
