FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Twenty-three University of Arkansas apparel studies students enrolled in the Advanced Apparel Merchandising capstone class recently competed in an international merchandising competition sponsored by Fashion Group International in Dallas.

Ashley Marie Taylor, a senior from Prairie Grove, was awarded third place in the competition and received a monetary award to apply toward school expenses. She will complete her internship this summer and graduate in August. A design by Alisa May, a senior from Fayetteville, was featured on the runway, one of 200 featured by runway models from among 550 entries.

“Ashley’s ability to listen carefully, execute assignments fully, and establish a high level of excellence for herself in her coursework has enabled her to be successful not only in this class, but throughout her academic career,” said assistant professor Kathy Smith. “She is graduating in August after completing an internship with a supplier in Northwest Arkansas this summer.

Alisa May, left, and the gown she designed, modeled by Brittany White.

“Alisa’s designs were featured on the 2013 Northwest Arkansas Fashion Week runway and then submitted to the Dallas Career Day Design Competition,” said Smith. “The design featured on the World Trade Center stage was innovative and well-developed, which is a testament to Alisa’s creativeness. Alisa will be graduating in August after an internship in California this summer and promises to have a successful career in design and innovation.”  

The students, who are enrolled in the School of Human Environmental Sciences in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, completed merchandising promotional packages for the Havaianas brand and submitted their entries to the 2013 DAVACO Excellence in Merchandising Retail Competition held at the World Trade Center in Dallas during the FGI Dallas Career Day. 

“This is the third year we have participated in the Merchandising Competition at Dallas Career Day with award winners each year,” said Smith. “This is an opportunity for undergraduates to showcase their work in front of their peers and industry, taking them into a real-world environment.

“The project is developed in the capstone merchandising class as a culmination of apparel studies merchandising courses which are completed throughout the students’ three years of academic study in apparel studies,” she said. “Students work in teams to create a retail concept store utilizing consumer brand and target market knowledge, retail buying and merchandising, including assortment planning and buying plans, visual and promotional merchandising coursework. Each student is responsible for creating an individual promotional campaign for the concept store, which is then submitted to the Dallas competition.”

Funds provided by the Agricultural Development Council of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture were used to reimburse students from the class for registration and travel expenses to Dallas for the event. Students were invited to take a tour of the JC Penney headquarters in Plano, Texas, and their flagship store at the StoneBriar Mall in Frisco, Texas, prior to the Dallas Career Day activities.

“This competition is a multi-faceted project that provides the student with the opportunity to act as a merchandise coordinator and brand ambassador for the Havaianas brand,” said Smith. “The competition is sponsored by DAVACO, the national leading provider of retail, restaurant and hospitality service solutions, specializing in the management and execution of high-volume programs for nationwide brands. This spring 2013 apparel merchandising class did a great job of planning and developing their promotional strategies for their concept stores then integrating those strategies into the competition.”

Speakers from the JC Penney corporate offices addressed the students, including Pamela Mortensen, a senior vice president of the company who received a Bumpers College Outstanding Alumni award in 2012.