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Luxury Brand Management - MA

Currently viewing course to start in 2025/26 Entry.

This course will address the specific challenges and opportunities of the luxury sector and is the perfect choice for students that see their future careers with premium, high-end and luxury brands. We enable you to become a confident leader and an innovative thinker, learning how to approach brands and decide their place within the market....

  • Level Postgraduate Taught
  • Study mode Full Time

This course is:

Open to International Students

Overview

This course will address the specific challenges and opportunities of the luxury sector and is the perfect choice for students that see their future careers with premium, high-end and luxury brands.

We enable you to become a confident leader and an innovative thinker, learning how to approach brands and decide their place within the market. You’ll learn how luxury brands are managed in the international marketplace, as well as looking at branding from producer and consumer perspectives.

This course is open to International students.

What's covered in this course?

The course encourages you to develop the skills and competences of future managers in the Luxury Industry. To do this, you will be capable of making management decisions at both a strategic and at a tactical level, emphasising the complexity and dynamics of business and management and an awareness of the nature of the various factors which influence management decisions.

The School provides a unique setting for students to observe their peers, taking advantage of the proximity of fashion and textile design students at the Parkside Campus.

The course encompasses numerous field trip opportunities so that you can reflect on your developing knowledge in relation to professional practice and the luxury industry.

There is commonality with other courses such Fashion Management and you will benefit from shared lectures and practice where possible. Access to interactive digital technology will increase students’ ability to debate and share experiences in a global context and therefore integrate knowledge from different cultures.

The choice of MA Luxury Brand Management was my way of specifying my dream industry for which I want to work for. The course taught me the specifics of this market and, more importantly, pushed me to work on many practical projects that became a part of my portfolio. On multiple occasions, my path crossed with design students, which was an invaluable lesson and a foretaste of the experience I can expect entering the professional market.

Natalia Ciercierska

Why Choose Us?

  • Links to industry and regular contact with luxury brand professionals
  • International field trip opportunities to key industry and cultural events and locations
  • Supportive staff with many years of industry experience
  • Network and collaborate with other fashion students, our wider postgraduate community and beyond

OPEN DAY

Join us for a Virtual Open Event where you'll be able to learn about this course in detail, meet our subject academics and learn more about postgraduate finance, all from the comfort of your own home.

Next Event: 5 February 2025

Book your place

Entry Requirements

Essential requirements

You are required to meet one of the following options:

Essential Requirements
Essential

An honours degree from a UK University

A first degree from an overseas university (GPA 3.0 out of 4.0 or average 75 per cent or any other equivalence to the above UK qualification)

Successful passing a Pre-Master's course approved by Birmingham City University

Successful passing a Pre-Master's course at another UK university/institution with a minimum of 55 per cent average

A first degree from an overseas university (GPA 3.0 out of 4.0 or average 75 per cent or any other equivalence to the above UK qualification)

Other qualifications will be considered on a case by case basis.

 

Please note that even if your application fully meets the entry criteria, you may be required to further demonstrate your suitability via an interview or submission of a course proposal before being offered a place.

Interviews may be conducted in your country of residence, over the telephone or by Skype.

Extra information for EU/International students
English language requirements

IELTS 6.0 overall with 5.5 minimum in all bands or its equivalent.

No English certificate is required for applicants from countries that appear on our English exemption list. Please contact the International Office for this list.

If you have a qualification that is not listed, please contact us.

Fees & How to Apply

Please select your student status to view fees and apply
  • UK Student
  • International Student

UK students

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students.

Award: MA

Starting: Sep 2025

  • Mode
  • Duration
  • Fees
  • Full Time
  • 1 year
  • £12,440 in 2025/26
  • Full Time
  • 18 months (including Professional Placement - see below*)
  • £13,685 in 2025/26

International students

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students.

Award: MA

Starting: Sep 2025

  • Mode
  • Duration
  • Fees
  • Full Time
  • 1 year
  • £18,600 in 2025/26
  • Full Time
  • 18 months (including Professional Placement - see below*)
  • £20,460 in 2025/26

Access to computer equipment

You will require use of a laptop, and most students do prefer to have their own. However, you can borrow a laptop from the university or use one of our shared computer rooms.

Printing

You will receive £5 print credit in each year of your course, available after enrolment.

Field trips

All essential field trips and associated travel costs will be included in your course fees.

Access to Microsoft Office 365

Every student at the University can download a free copy of Microsoft Office 365 to use whilst at university and for 18 months after graduation.

Key software

You will be able to download SPSS and Nvivo to your home computer to support with your studies and research.

Key subscriptions

Subscriptions to key journals and websites are available through our library.

Free Adobe Creative Cloud licence

Students studying on this course can request a free licence to install the entire suite of applications on up to two personal devices.

Excess printing (optional)

Once you have spent your £5 credit, additional printing on campus costs from 5p per sheet.

Personal stationery and study materials (optional)

Based on the past experience of our students, you might find it helpful to set aside about £30 for each year of your studies for your personal stationery and study materials.

Accommodation and living costs (optional)

The cost of accommodation and other living costs are not included within your course fees. More information on the cost of accommodation can be found in our accommodation pages.

*Professional Placement option

The Professional Placement version of the course is optional and is offered as an alternative to the standard version of the course.

This will allow you to complete a credit bearing, 20 week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Master’s Degree. The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

You will be responsible for finding and securing your own placement. The University, however, will draw on its extensive network of local, regional and national employers to support you in finding a suitable placement to complement your chosen area of study. You will also benefit from support sessions delivered by Careers+ as well as advice and guidance from your School.

Placements will only be confirmed following a competitive, employer-led selection process, therefore the University will not be able to guarantee placements for students who have registered for the ‘with Professional Placement’ course. All students who do not find a suitable placement or do not pass the competitive selection process will be automatically transferred back to the standard, non-placement version of the course.

Personal statement

You’ll need to submit a personal statement as part of your application for this course. This will need to highlight your passion for postgraduate study – and your chosen course – as well as your personal skills and experience, academic success, and any other factors that will support your application for further study.

If you are applying for a stand alone module, please include the title of the module you want to study in your Personal Statement.

Not sure what to include? We’re here to help – take a look at our top tips for writing personal statements and download our free postgraduate personal statement guide for further advice and examples from real students.

Course in Depth

Modules

In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 180 credits):

Download course specification

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Course Structure

Your studies will be based at Parkside and Curzon at the City Centre Campus. You will begin your year with modules in Industry Practice & Context, Analysis and Planning for Management which will introduce you to a range of skills and experience that will form the foundation of your further studies. You will have regular opportunities to meet experts from the world of Luxury and guest speakers from the wider Creative Industries.

In the second term you will build on your knowledge of  Responsible, Ethical and Sustainable Developments module. This will also be supported with modules in Luxury Culture and Lifestyles and Research & Professional Skills, letting you practise making research proposals and designing pilot studies for industry related projects.

Your last term of studies will concentrate on a Major Project module that will examine a contemporary management issue that currently affects the Global Luxury Industry. This is a self-directed project that you can design to focus on aspects of the Fashion Industry that you are most interested in.

Employability

Enhancing Employability Skills

Employability and key transferable skills are embedded within the course ethos to maximise your capabilities and understanding of potential career opportunities.

Many modules require group projects in the field to build first-hand knowledge of the Luxury Industry. The importance of positive contribution to a team and close working relationships with colleagues is a key feature.

The course is structured to build on experiences and embrace real scenarios through live projects, simulated practice requiring actual problem solving. This aims to develop your confidence and ambitions to explore a breadth of careers opportunities within a global industry. 

Evaluating strategic and tactical business decisions will prepare you for working in Luxury Branding by enabling you to understand the changing environment of competitors and stakeholders and adapt your plans and working practice accordingly.

Your knowledge of management and marketing theories and how to apply them will be an advantage in many roles, and give you the flexibility to engage on many different levels with employers, clients and partners alike.

International

Birmingham City University is a vibrant and multicultural university in the heart of a modern and diverse city. We welcome many international students every year – there are currently students from more than 80 countries among our student community.

The University is conveniently placed, with Birmingham International Airport nearby and first-rate transport connections to London and the rest of the UK.

Our international pages contain a wealth of information for international students who are considering applying to study here, including:

Facilities & Staff

Parkside article photo

Our Facilities

Fashion and Textiles courses are based at our Parkside Building, which is part of our multi-million pound City Centre Campus development in the heart of Birmingham's Eastside development.

Our staff

Barry Batson

MA Fashion Management and MA Luxury Brand Management Course Director

With over 40 years’ experience in the industry, Barry Batson is the current Programme Director for MA Fashion Management and MA Luxury Brand Management at Birmingham City University. Barry’s previous academic role was with Southampton Solent University as Senior Lecturer for their Fashion Management with Marketing and Fashion Buying courses.

More about Barry