Executive Summary

A multi-dimensional approach to meet 21st century retailing education and industry challenges for India and the U.S.

The retail sector is India’s second largest employer and the largest private sector source of employment in the U.S. These retail sectors face a growing shortage of employees with needed managerial skills in areas such as merchandising, purchasing, logistics, and marketing. A partnership among faculty and students from Iowa State University, Oklahoma State University, the University of North Texas, and India’s National Institute of Fashion Technology, along with retail industry professionals, will address this issue by sharing and applying leading-edge knowledge. Activities include a jointly-developed graduate course, service-learning activities, public lectures, and open source educational materials that better prepare students to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing, global retail industry.

This project will broaden the cultural perspectives, retailing content knowledge, and/or teaching strategies of not only the funded project’s educational collaborators, but also those attending the graduate course, public lectures, and those using the open source educational materials. A long-term relationship among the institutions, including future faculty collaborations and exchanges, will be initiated.