Francesca Carlesi, a first-year student at Columbia University's Business School and a former McKinsey consultant in Italy, is one of the many B-school students responding to the siren call of luxury-goods makers such as LVMH, Gucci, and Coach. Carlesi helped launch the luxury-goods club at Columbia this year, where 280 students -- almost half the graduating class -- signed up for the Retail Leadership class that brings in speakers from luxury-goods companies such as Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, and Ralph Lauren.

BusinessWeek Reporter Kate Hazelwood talkedwith Carlesi about luxury's appeal to her and her classmates. It goes far beyond simply liking to be surrounded by nice things -- it plays to MBAs who want to nurture their creative sides too. Following are edited excerpts of their conversation:

Q: Tell me a little about Columbia's luxury-goods club.
A: We thought we would be a really small group, but now we have 70 members. We also had a lot of prospective students come to talk to us when they visited campus, so I think it's a phenomenon that's really growing. We didn't think it would be a phenomenon -- we just thought the industry would be a chance to do work that's creative and practical.

For our first year we focused on two areas: outreach to companies and speakers on campus. We did a résumé book that we circulated to the companies, and we contacted the companies, not to bring them on campus to recruit but more to create awareness. And already we have students going to work at LVMH, Donna Karan, and Tiffany when they graduate next month.

Q: What's recruiting by luxury companies like these days?
A: Well, there isn't formal recruiting for MBAs. We know that in this industry they have mostly been recruiting creative people, without organized effort, so we would like to have a few assignments. The MBA can bring added value to their company.

We'd like recruiting to one day be similar to how it is for investment banking -- we know exactly when they are coming and what you have to do and what to expect. Right now we don't have this match. They're looking for MBAs, but it's a piecemeal fashion. And the opportunities come late in the season when a lot of students already have accepted other things.

Q: Why would someone want to work in luxury goods? Is it the element of glamour?
A: No! A glamorous aspect is part of it, but I think that work is work -- when you're doing a chart or a graph or analysis, you don't think "this is glamorous." You think "it's work." If you do it because you think it is glamorous, in two days you've had enough.

Q: So what is it, then?
A: A lot of us have worked in environments with a lot of structure, and perhaps we want a little less of it. Plus a lot of people want the chance to mix their creativity and their financial skills, and there are very few places where you can do that. This is one of them.

It's also that there's no set career path. I know some people might ask, "doesn't an MBA want a path?"' But I think they want challenges and creativity, too. [In luxury] the roles or people and the tasks are not so determined for you. So you are maybe able to do everything by yourself. You might not always know who your subordinate is, or who your boss is, and you use creativity to work together to meet your goals.

I do know some people who would not find that appealing. I try to be realistic, too, though. I have a friend who works in luxury goods and she says sometimes it isn't so appealing. She says it's great not to have someone looking over you all the time and never knowing what tomorrow will bring. But you also never know if you will get promoted in a year even if you do everything right. It's uncertain, and some people wouldn't like that very well.

Q: Anything else?
A: The other reason I think opportunities will increase is that the industry is moving, it's changing. You see consolidation, you see generational changes with designers, you see heads of design leaving. And whenever something is changing, it's good to be participating in the change. You have to manage change, and that's terribly exciting. It's also exciting to create and insert structure in the midst of change.

Edited by Thane Peterson


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