Interview of Carla-Sophia Kops (class of 2011)

What was your procedure before coming to ISEM ? Did you always had in mind to work in fashion ?

Yes in deed, I always wanted to work in the textile – clothing domain, being passionate with the history of costumes, art and design…

As a German in France, I went through (since the age of 14) the French schooling in order to improve my language level and to be able to one day attend a Parisian textile school.

At the age of 17, I attended a international high school where I did my « Abitur » (a German baccalaureate) and also my French baccalaureate which was corrected and attested by the Kleber high school at Strasbourg. This biliangual journey got me to apply for the contests in France.

Let’s go back to the topic of your schooling at ISEM : What type of student were you ? What are your best (or worst) memories ?

I was a hard-working student. I had the chance to be part of a remarkable promo, which was very international with a great vibe and an open mindset for extraordinary.

According to you, what would be ISEM’s specialty ?

The experience of the sector, the seniority, the direction of the network, the interships and the professional profiles of certain teachers… It was like a small « family » I kept with me some great frienships and good professional contacts.

Tell us about your journey after ISEM, your tasks and responsibilities.

My journey is quite varied, during my schooling at ESMOD ISEM, I had the opportunities to do many interships in sales, commerce, communication and marketing within the wonderful companies like Hugo Boss, Christian Dior, Nina Ricci, and Boucheron. It was through these  experiences and contacts which helped me in my second part of my studies and for my work today.

After getting my diploma at ISEM/ESMOD in cooperation with the Art et Métiers, I did a master in French-German in the management and marketing in Sorbonne. It was a small group of 15 selected students, with academic and professional experiences  in both fields. This biliangual master allowed me to work for the German ELLE magazine at Munich during  my schooling.

After finishing school, I worked for almost 2 years for the house of Hermès in product marketing. I was part of the development of the scarfs in the ready-to-wear and the hats and gloves.

Today I am in marketing within the vente-privée.com I manage a big part of the textile-clothing operations for the France and Germany and also certain event sales of the luxuary brands.

What are the qualities required to perform your current duties ?

Organisation, strictness, self-confidence, creativity, knowledge  of the area and the prodcuts, analytical skills and a good understanding of numbers. You also have to be very social and know the capacity to convince while being aware of your surroundings. All this to say that you need a lot of daily energy !