On Thursday, Jan. 29, the Georgetown Retail and Luxury Association will team up with Georgetown Women in Leadership to cosponsor the first-ever Global Luxury Summit at the Time Warner Center in New York City.

The summit brings together CEOs and chairmen from top retail and luxury companies like Tom Ford International, Estee Lauder, Michael Kors, Kara Ross New York and the Ermenegildo Zegna Group.
The theme of the conference is “Building a Global Luxury Brand.” It will allow for these CEOs to share their experiences with Georgetown students and provide insight into their successes in the retail and luxury fields.

“Students will have the unique opportunity to interact with professionals and executives, during a reception, a panel (with an accompanying Q&A period) and a networking session. The Global Luxury Summit signifies a one of a kind opportunity to gain exposure and develop connections,” Director of Public Relations at GRLA, Anthony Fadil, said to The Hoya in an email.
This is not the first time that these top CEOs have been involved in university events, but this marks a new advancement in their campus relations as these influential figures come together in the first-ever summit of its kind to converse with students in New York.  GRLA is happy to see this continued involvement.

“We have established relationships with many of the panelists and have been honored to have them on campus in the past as guest speakers,” Fadil said.

“Given the theme of the Global Luxury Summit, we have identified our panelists as leaders in their field who have mastered their craft, risen to great heights and maintained successful brands through time. We are absolutely thrilled to host them in New York City and look forward to the insight and inspiration they will offer to those in attendance at the Global Luxury Summit.”

Only Georgetown students and alumni are permitted to attend the event, “as we want to offer our fellow Hoyas an unparalleled avenue through which they can explore a different facet of their professional interests,” Fadil said.
Admission to the event is free, and registration is available online – part of which requires an uploaded resume to be distributed at the event – as well as the opportunity to purchase a roundtrip bus ticket to the event in New York City.

Though this is just the first conference of its kind, GRLA hopes to continue the tradition for years to come.
“The hope is that professional opportunities in retail and luxury will be increasingly integrated into the Georgetown community in order to capitalize on the interest expressed by our peers and the tremendous talent present among our student body,” Fadil said.

The Georgetown Retail and Luxury Association works to connect students to networking opportunities all year through events such as the summit.

“Established in 2011 as a career-based outreach program for students interested in the retail and luxury industries, the GRLA serves as an outlet for international exposure to business and promotes Georgetown as a premier source of talent and leadership,” Fadil said.

“With the intention of presenting the Georgetown community with access to informational and networking opportunities, the GRLA organizes lectures and invites guest speakers to campus. These speakers share the insights gained through their unique corporate experiences, elaborate on the world of retail and luxury, and address their views on the future of the industries,” Fadil said.

The summit holds equal importance to its co-sponsor, Georgetown Women in Leadership, an organization focused on encouraging undergraduate women to become leaders in their careers.

“GUWIL’s general goals are to equip our undergraduate members with the resources they need to excel personally and professionally,” GUWIL President Alana Snyder ( ’16)  said to The Hoya in an email.

“We accomplish this with weekly roundtable discussions, workshops or speakers,” said Snyder. GUWIL is most known for its OWN IT Summit. Similar to this particular event, the summit featured prominent women in their fields to discuss their success and offered networking opportunities. The tickets for the event sold out within a day.

Last semester, GRLA asked GUWIL to help co-sponsor this particular event.

“We chose to sponsor the event because the retail industry is currently developing in a way that makes more job opportunities. Because of these blank spaces, we want to encourage women to get involved and find room to be leaders,” Snyder said.

Both organizations foresee the same benefits in sponsoring the Global Luxury Summit – providing Georgetown students with even more networking and learning opportunities to explore their future careers.

“We hope that students leave this event feeling like they have a better understanding for what potential there is for growth of the retail industry and that Georgetown is paving the way for women and men alike to find success in this area,” Snyder said.

GRLA wants the same.

“We hope that students will learn from the experiences and advice of our panelists in order to maximize their incredible potential and become more aware of the endless possibilities open to them,” Fadil said.

“Consequently, we hope that this remarkable event provides a launching pad for students to identify areas of interest and ultimately reach the goals that they set out to achieve.”

The combined effort of GRLA and GUWIL to host leading professionals in the industries of retail and luxury has culminated in a conference that is sure to become an annual tradition. While the location of the event may seem to be out of the way, the opportunities and experiences gathered during this summit will make it well worth the trip.