Fashion Business (Top-Up) BA (Hons)
Level 6 Entry | 1 Year, Full-Time

In this module, you will engage with the fast-paced world of contemporary fashion from a business and management perspective. You will learn how the fashion industry operates—from design and production to marketing and retail—while gaining critical insights into its key structures and functions.

Throughout the module you will explore key legal, financial, ethical, and sustainability challenges that are shaping the modern global fashion industry and understand the importance of inclusivity in modern fashion business practices and stakeholder engagement. You will also examine how technology is revolutionising fashion management and learn how different organisational cultures and structures influence industry success.

Through real-world case studies and practical fashion business scenarios, you will sharpen your problem-solving skills and develop strategic thinking for leading fashion businesses now and in the future.

In this dynamic module, you’ll immerse yourself into the world and practice of strategic marketing, discovering how brands craft, position, and maintain a powerful market presence through bold and innovative approaches. From building compelling brand identities to leveraging cutting-edge digital tools, you'll explore a wide range of marketing tactics—including brand storytelling, digital marketing, consumer engagement, ethical and sustainable practices, fashion promotion, trend forecasting, and marketing potentials (and pitfalls) of AI-driven client personalization campaigns.

Through real-world case studies spanning mass market, premium, luxury, streetwear, and sportswear sectors, you'll apply strategic frameworks to identify market opportunities and tackle fashion brand challenges. By the end of the module, you will not only understand what makes successful marketing strategies succeed, but you will also be equipped to design them yourself, assess competitive positioning, and anticipate the ever-evolving behaviours of fashion consumers.

In this module, you will navigate the fashion industry through a critical lens of responsibility, innovation, and transformation. As one of the most influential global industries, fashion is increasingly held accountable for its environmental, social, and governance impacts — and is being reshaped by demands for greater transparency, ethics, and inclusion. You will explore the complex dynamics of fashion commerce, examining how responsible production, marketing, management, and internal organisation are redefining business practices. Key themes in the module include ethical labour conditions, fair trade, circular fashion systems, sustainable sourcing and textile innovation, consumer psychology, and inclusive branding strategies. You'll also engage with the impact of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence in creating more sustainable and equitable fashion futures. Through case studies, debates, and critical reflection, you will assess how fashion businesses are navigating these challenges and opportunities — and so develop the knowledge to critically evaluate and envision responsible models of fashion commerce that align with principles of equity, diversity, and environmental stewardship. By the end of the module, you will be equipped with an understanding of both foundational and emergent strategies that drive responsible fashion, preparing you to ethically manage in the evolving fashion landscape.

In this module you will identify, investigate and plan a self-determined critical research project on a topic of your own choice in the subject field of fashion business. This is an opportunity for you to develop and focus on a topic of your choice and so develop a project that is based on the aspects of fashion business that interests you the most. Therefore, this is your opportunity to fully immerse yourself in your subject, gaining expert knowledge in the process.  
 
With weekly tutorial guidance from a dedicated supervisor, and discussion with your peers in class workshops, you will read, research and reflect on the information you gather from primary and secondary sources. You will take a rigorous and focused approach to your research, sourcing established and up-to-date literature and support material and potentially interviewing key players in your field. You will be supported by lectures and workshops that focus on research methods, interviewing, the importance of ethics and project structure, all of which will help you to develop your research and writing skills. This development will be evidenced formatively throughout, as you progress through plans and drafts supported by academic staff.
 
Your research will be written up as a 5000-word fashion business report demonstrating a rich understanding of your chosen subject, contemporary cultural awareness, critical analysis, emergent trends and industry developments, and demonstrating a sophisticated and professional ability to discuss and communicate your findings.

This module has twin aims, firstly supporting your transition into UK higher education by developing your academic skills in the context of your business, management and finance studies. The second aim is to equip you with the necessary knowledge and transferable skills to maximise your future employability and career development. As a student on level 6 top up programme you may have limited experience of higher education in the UK, hence this module begins by supporting you as a final year undergraduate student to understand, enhance and demonstrate advanced academic skills. The first part of the module will therefore help you strengthen and enhance your academic writing skills, progress your critical thinking ability and enable you to understand research and how to use academic journal articles. The second part of the module will focus upon your employability and leadership attributes, exploring key aspects of your knowledge, skills, personality, values and abilities to enable you to make well-informed career choices.

The topics covered on this module will include:
• Academic writing skills;
• Understanding learning styles;
• Working in teams;
• Enhancing critical thinking and writing skills;
• Understanding research and the effective use of journal articles;
• Developing a literature review;
• Understanding Employability and leadership attributes;
• Evaluate the global graduate labour market;
• Design career personal development plan.

This module aims to develop and empower you as a student to become a critical and reflective thinker with respect to both your academic development and to your future career planning.