Fashion prof on GenZ, Substack and finding your writing voice
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By Marcy Medina | for The SKUpe
Author, brand consultant and host Melissa Magsaysay has worked to elevate brands like Thirteen Lune, Wellness East, and Illuminate AI, with previous experience at Farm Rio and P&G. Now, as an associate professor at Arizona State University's Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, she’s bringing that industry insight into the classroom—teaching Gen Z while staying sharp on what’s next in retail and communications.
What led you to teaching?
I have always been curious about teaching and decided to try it this semester, taking on an associate professor role at ASU/FIDM, teaching Brand Communications for Fashion and Contemporary Fashion courses. Each week, I am pleasantly surprised at how my years of writing, reporting and brand consulting combine to help me impart some knowledge and expertise to the next generation of (eager) fashion and communication professionals. It's been a lot of fun and also helped me evolve into new ways of thinking and adapting to current media and industry norms. My on-camera experience has also helped me get up in front of the class and deliver what I hope is a compelling lecture.
How can retailers stay current?
Keeping abreast of industry trends and the always-evolving media landscape is what I have found to be key when teaching or consulting. When advising brands, I often bring up the importance of exploring emerging communications channels like Substack. It's still a relatively untapped and unknown platform, but it's really moving the needle for a lot of media outlets, journalists, brands and content creators.
What's the best career advice you've received?
Something general is "stay curious." I think being curious leads to a great story and solid communication, but also compassion and empathy. Something more specific is "write like you talk." I didn't start out as a writer off the bat, and I had a lot of imposter syndrome around being a writer. One editor told me early on to write like I talk, and it completely changed my approach and confidence around writing. It’s how I've been able to take writing from the page over to brands, to speaking in person, to college students, on TV or hosting podcasts. It doesn't matter what the medium is, I approach it like I'm in conversation.
What's one thing you are excited to try in your class?
I am having them create and plan an event for a beauty or fashion brand of their choice. They are building a deck with a mood board, activations and KPIs. The goal is to see how well they know their brand's customer and that they can conceptualize an event with the right guests, press opportunities, social opportunities that speak to their target audience and yield the greatest ROI across all relevant channels. I think it's a fun mix of creative and business.
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The SKUpe is curated and written by Marcy Medina and edited by Bianca Prieto
