Louis Vuitton in New York City. (Flickr/Ze Carlos Barretta)
Luxury retailers find a challenge in locating Chinese-speaking retail staff to serve the massive number of Chinese tourists entering their stores across the world. As a result, luxury conglomerate LVMH has teamed up with the Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC), Parsons The New School for Design, and the poverty-fighting Robin Hood Foundation to create a special retail training program for Chinese-Americans.
The 10-week program targets Mandarin-speaking recent immigrants to the United States who come from underprivileged families, says the press release. Featuring classroom education at Parsons and an internship program in one of LVMH’s retail stores, the program will cover fashion history, consumer trends, retail operations, communications, and teamwork skills. It specifically invites under- and unemployed as well as low-wage workers to apply.
“The program’s combined classroom and in-store training will develop talent with Mandarin-language skills, allowing the graduates to acquire the necessary basics as well as the confidence for a successful career within our demanding sector,” said Chantal Gaemperle, LVMH's group executive vice president of human resources. “This project also addresses a specific need among luxury retail stores to best serve their Chinese-speaking customers while boosting career advancement opportunities for the community in New York City.”