Regent’s is pleased to announce a new collaboration with Walpole, the official sector body for British luxury, to offer its students a chance to get closer than ever before to industry CEOs and MDs of global brands.
With a belief that the luxury leaders of today can inspire the leaders of tomorrow, Regent’s has developed the partnership with Walpole to connect students with influential, senior figures from some of the world’s best-known luxury brands - starting this year with Harrods, McLaren Automotive, The Peninsula London and dunhill.
The inaugural Walpole Professors will begin their role with a visiting lecture at Regent’s, and students can look forward to hearing from Michael Ward, Managing Director of Harrods and Chairman of Walpole; Mike Flewitt, CEO of McLaren Automotive; Sonja Vodusek, Managing Director of The Peninsula London; and Andrew Maag, CEO of dunhill.
Commenting on the partnership, Vice-Chancellor & CEO, Regent’s University London, Professor Geoff Smith said: ‘We’re delighted to be partnering with Walpole to launch the Visiting Professorships programme. Both organisations share a common interest in strengthening the luxury sector’s talent pipeline and together we have created a partnership that honours some of luxury’s finest CEOs and MDs and is bound to inspire our students.
By inviting the visiting professors to Regent’s to share their wealth of experience with our students, the leaders of tomorrow, we have created a prestigious initiative as part of the future-facing, well-connected and entrepreneurial education that we promise.’
Helen Brocklebank, Walpole CEO, said: ‘The future of British luxury is now in the hands of the next generation and this exciting partnership with Regent’s University London will certainly help our members get ahead of the curve. But the real value of this partnership will be its benefit for all involved and I am so looking forward to helping to inspire the global luxury leaders of tomorrow.’
Through the mutually beneficial partnership, some Regent’s students will be fortunate enough to gain behind-the-scenes access and live project opportunities in these sought-after companies. The Visiting Professors (and their teams) will also benefit from gaining access to a cohort of students who are cosmopolitan, entrepreneurial and NextGen luxury consumers. You can find more information here.
About Walpole
Walpole is the official sector body for UK luxury. Founded in 1992 as a not-for-profit organisation, it counts more than 250 British brands in its membership and is recognised in both Westminster and Brussels. As the voice of British luxury, Walpole’s purpose is to promote, protect and develop a sector worth £48 billion to the UK economy, and destined to become a world leader in sustainability.