Institut Français de la Mode (IFM) (French for "French Institute of Fashion") is a higher education institution offering postgraduate courses and applied research for the fashion, luxury goods, design and textile industries, and creative industries more generally. In 2017, IFM was ranked number 1 worldwide for Fashion Business Masters programs, and number 2 worldwide for Fashion Design Masters programs by The Business of Fashion.
History
In the early 1980s French authorities and representatives of the fashion industry suggested the creation of a fashion institute, aiming to train "the masterminds of couture and prêt-à-porter houses" as well as the textile industry. Jack Lang, Pierre Bergé, and heads of professional bodies and trade associations took up the issue.
Created in 1986 by the French Ministry of Industry and placed under its administrative supervision, IFM offers postgraduate education, executive education, research and expertise. Pierre Bergé, its founding Chairman, summarizes its mission in these words: "I have always believed there should be no barriers between the various joblines of our industry. I have always believed that you cannot do a good job if you don't understand those of others. In a nutshell, that people need to measure up, understand each other and work together".
In 1986, IFM created a Postgraduate Programme in Fashion, Design and Luxury Management in order to reinforce managerial skills within the industry. This programme aimed to promote the job of product manager for the fashion and luxuries industry, and leads to a variety of careers: supply management, marketing (of products and design in these industries), communications, sales, merchandising and distribution. Many senior managers and business leaders in the industry are alumni of this program. IFM's Postgraduate Programme in Fashion, Design and Luxury Management is recognised by the French Higher Education and Research Ministry for a period of six years. The degree is also registered by the French National Directory of Professional Certifications (level 1).
In 2000, the Fashion Design Postgraduate Program was created, as a way to strengthen links between management and design. This program, offered in English, offers three majors (Garment, Accessory, Image), and has attracted many talented people wishing to hone their creative skills in France. Selected designers are immersed in the business reality of partner companies, with whom they design prototypes (garments, shoes, leatherwork). Students hold an initial degree for fashion schools in France (école supérieure des arts appliqués Duperré, Studio Berçot, école de la chambre syndicale de la couture parisienne for haute couture, atelier Chardon Savard) and abroad such as Central Saint Martins College of art and design, Felicidad Duce, New York's Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), Ecole nationale supérieure des arts visuels de La Cambre, or Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts. IFM's Fashion Design Postgraduate Programme is registered by the French National Directory of Professional Certifications (level 1).
As of September 2013 IFM offers another programme in English: the Master of Science in International Luxury Management (MSc Luxury). This programme is open to international students wishing to pursue an international career with French and European luxury companies.
Since 2009 Summer School programmes have been offered to non-specialized high school and college students in order to provide them with a basic picture of the culture of fashion and luxury, and an overview of creative industries in all of their dimensions: culture, joblines, economy, products, creative processes, image and communications.
Since 1987 IFM has been developing a range of executive education courses, with open-enrolment and custom-designed programs for companies (over 2,000 executives trained every year).
In 2004 an Executive MBA programme was launched in Global Fashion Management, compatible with a professional career or an entrepreneurial project, and with an international curriculum through partnerships with New York's Fashion Institute of Technology and Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
Since 1994 a large-scale scholarship scheme has been funded by a circle of patron companies, allowing IFM to encourage social diversity of its students. In 2015 this Circle of Patrons was made up of 16 companies and business foundations.