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Alumni John Warbo, Bachelor Fashion Marketing & Management

Fortunately at IFA Paris, there is a great mixture of fashion and business which gave him a solid foundation for his internship at L’Oréal.

Get to know:

Name: John Warbo
Nationality: Sweden
IFA Campus: Paris
Program studied: Bachelor Fashion Marketing & Management

John Warbo

Favourite course: I think there was Strategic Marketing - I realized after a while I wasn’t so passionate about fashion, but rather the business side.
Current project: I’m finishing my two-year Masters in Business Management and working at L’Oreal Paris as an intern in Business Development for Western Europe.
Fashion inspiration: For me it’s cities and travel, it gives me a lot of inspiration. I have been to many countries (15 so far!) and my favourite is Costa Rica.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your background – who you are, where you come from and what got you interested in studying fashion.

When I first started at IFA Paris I was quite young and I kept an open mind into what I wanted to do as I wasn’t sure. I started with the fashion industry because it is interesting and one of the biggest industries, plus it is constantly evolving. As I continued my degree at IFA Paris, I realised I was into the consumer and business part of the programme, which is why I’m doing my business Masters today.

What is good at IFA Paris is that even if it is a fashion school, it has a broad programme which gives you a lot of opportunities to explore concepts outside of fashion. It is good that IFA Paris is a very business-oriented school as well as fashion focused.

What are you currently doing and what’s most exciting about it?

I’m currently at L’Oreal as an intern, helping to develop business strategies for 15 Western European countries for the L’Oreal and Garnier brands. It is based on the brands’ performance and taking a deep dive into each market to build a strategy.

John Warbo

It’s very exciting because even if it’s Western Europe, you can see the markets are very individual. Even for countries that may seem similar, they are actually very different when it comes to consumer preferences.

It’s fun to work at L’Oréal because it’s a big success case – very hard working people behind the company which allows you to learn a lot from their expertise and knowledge. It’s very cool.

What skills did you learn at IFA Paris that helps you in your current role?

I would say it’s learning to work with people from all over the world, different cultures and seeing different ways of taking things on. IFA Paris is a very international school, so it is very diverse and it’s good to have this experience.

In four words, describe your IFA Paris experience:

Very fun, stimulating, hardworking, enriching

What words of wisdom do you have for current and any future IFA Paris students?

Enjoy your time outside of school and enjoy that you are in Paris. Stay focused and open-minded.

If you could choose three things to include for an IFA Paris “survival toolkit”, what would they be?

• Apple laptop
• MS Excel
• Good attitude

John's top tips for: Paris

Cheap eats: Oh… honestly I wouldn’t say I really have one!
Place to hangout with friends: I go a lot to the 10th arrondissement, by the Canal Saint Martin
Getting around: Walking
Relaxing: Buttes-Chaumont park, which is next to the campus by the way!
Favourite word in local language: MDR (mort de rire). It’s like LOL (laugh out loud) in English when text messaging

Find more information on program pursued by John: Bachelor Fashion Marketing & Management

This program is also available online for distance learning.