MAFED ALUMNI SERIES | The story of Emanuela Nitti

For Emanuela Nitti, the decision was simple. Rather than staying in law departments, she decided to take the leap and build a career in the core of fashion as a merchandiser. That’s why she decided to enrol in MAFED. Her journey at SDA Bocconi taught her about diversity, decision-making – and about challenging yourself to be the best you can be.

Tell us about your job position and company before and after MAFED.

Before Mafed I worked three years for an international law firm as a law consultant in real estate. During my work experience I’ve worked for fashion companies but only from a legal perspective. After my year at Mafed I completely changed my career path: I’m now working as a Junior Merchandiser in Ready To Wear for Salvatore Ferragamo. In my current position I’m involved in collection development together with product and style department.

Why did you choose MAFED?

I decided to start MAFED in a very delicate moment of my career. After my law study and three years in an international law firm I realized something was missing: my everyday job didn’t match my real interests, passions and inclinations. I’ve always been passionate about fashion and it was the right moment for me to try to contribute actively to the core of a fashion company. I’ve chosen MAFED because of its consolidated track records after almost 20 edition, which seemed to me the right way to access and understand the fashion and luxury business.

How was MAFED experience?

The MAFED year has been amazing for me, even if it occurred during the pandemic. Thanks to MAFED’s a real full immersion into the business, I’ve gained a lot also in terms of soft skills, learning the real value of a good team work. I’ve changed a lot after this year at MAFED. The first thing I’m grateful for is the increased awareness I achieved in respect of other cultures thanks to the constant work groups with colleagues coming from all over the world. 80% of MAFED students are from outside of Italy and this for me is one of the true added value of the master. Along with this I gained a comprehensive view of the fashion and luxury world not only from an academic stand point but also thanks to learning directly from the main actors of the sector through lectures and several projects made in collaboration with luxury companies.

What advice will you give to someone who is deciding to take the MAFED?

My advice is to try to observe and enjoy anything proposed within the program even when feeling a bit overwhelmed because it’s really worth it. MAFED will give you new eyes and create your own critic sense over the complex business of fashion and luxury together with a solid base of hard skills. Secondly I suggest participating in each lesson, actively debating with colleagues and professor taking advantage of the richness of point of view in the class.

The three words that describe MAFED for me are: stimulating, eye-opening, challenging.

To my younger self, I would say to invest as much energy as possible into the program - something that I actually did - but worry less about the future!

SDA Bocconi School of Management

Emanuela Nitti is a Junior Merchandiser Women
and Men’s Ready To Wear at Salvatore Ferragamo