Fashion is entering a new phase. Technology, creativity, sustainability, production, governance and new business models are reshaping the way the industry creates value.
Fashion 5.0 – Specialized Executive DBA was created through the collaboration between École des Ponts Business School and Accademia Costume & Moda for senior executives, entrepreneurs and professionals who want to make a tangible contribution to the evolution of the fashion and luxury industries.
It is a doctoral-level executive programme that brings together applied research, leadership, creativity, responsible innovation and in-depth industry knowledge.
Industry experience becomes the starting point for developing research capable of generating new perspectives, models and tools with genuine application to the industry.
It is not simply about studying the future of fashion. It is about helping to shape it.
Turn experience into research. And research into impact.
Fashion 5.0 is designed to bring the rigour of doctoral research into dialogue with the real challenges facing the industry.
The programme spans design, production, innovation, sustainability, governance, technology and finance, approaching the fashion system as an interconnected ecosystem.
The programme combines specialist modules, research and academic writing, progressively supporting each participant in developing their own area of expertise.
The aim is to transform years of professional experience into structured, validated knowledge capable of generating value for the industry.
Founded in Paris in 1987 by Celia Russo, École des Ponts Business School is an international business school dedicated to executive education, leadership, innovation, and responsible transformation. From the beginning, École des Ponts Business School has challenged traditional models of business education, preparing leaders to think beyond borders, disciplines, and established conventions.
École des Ponts Business School carries the pioneering DNA of its parent institution, École nationale des ponts et chaussées, founded in Paris in 1747 under King Louis XV and recognized as the world’s oldest civil engineering school. For nearly 280 years, this legacy has been defined by scientific excellence, technological progress, and the ambition to build a better future.
Today, that same pioneering spirit drives École des Ponts Business School in a rapidly changing world. As artificial intelligence, environmental challenges, and new business models reshape societies and economies, École des Ponts Business School prepares executives, entrepreneurs, and organizations to lead transformation with courage, responsibility, and impact.
Combining academic excellence, international perspectives, emerging technologies, and human-centered leadership, École des Ponts Business School believes that education should go beyond transferring knowledge: it should challenge perspectives, inspire action, and equip leaders to shape desirable futures.
École des Ponts Business School is also home to the ReTech Center (Responsible Technology Center), its research and innovation center dedicated to responsible technology, exponential innovation, and the future of business and society.
Fashion 5.0 is designed for senior executives, entrepreneurs, founders, managers, consultants and professionals with significant experience across the fashion, luxury and creative industries.
It is intended for those who have already built a strong professional track record and want to take the next step: turning their experience into research, strengthening their authority within their field and contributing directly to the evolution of the industry.
This is not a programme for entering the industry. It is for those who already know the industry and want to help change it.
Admission to the Fashion 5.0 Specialized Executive DBA is subject to an assessment of the candidate’s professional and academic profile.
Particular attention is given to industry experience, professional seniority, research objectives and the alignment between the candidate’s background and the aims of the programme.
Main requirement: at least 10 years of full-time professional experience are required at the point of entry to the programme.
Applications are assessed by École des Ponts Business School in accordance with the admission criteria for the Specialized Executive DBA.
Discover what you will study on this course.
Human creativity
Technology is transforming forecasting, materials, production processes, logistics and decision-making. Fashion 5.0, however, is grounded in a fundamental principle: innovation does not replace fashion’s cultural and creative significance. Craftsmanship, design culture, material knowledge, heritage and the ability to develop new narratives become strategic assets for understanding and responding to change.
Responsible innovation
Sustainability, traceability and compliance are addressed as integral to strategy, design processes and governance. The programme examines how responsible innovation, circularity, supply chain transformation, policy and new technologies can contribute to the creation of economic, cultural and social value.
Research rigour
An Executive DBA is more than another qualification to add to your professional profile. It is an opportunity to turn your knowledge and experience into a distinct area of expertise, making an original contribution to research and industry through doctoral-level methodologies and standards.
Four years. From specialisation to the creation of new knowledge.
The four-year programme combines blocks of specialist study, research training, project development and dedicated writing periods.
It comprises 15 specialist courses, organised into three six-month streams, alongside an integrative project. Participants produce four doctoral papers and three research podcasts, culminating in a final viva voce examination.
The first phase introduces participants to the foundations of research and the first specialist stream. It continues with the development of an integrative literature review, followed by a period dedicated to researching and writing the first doctoral paper. The aim is to establish a robust methodological foundation and progressively define each participant’s field of research.
The second phase combines two further specialist streams with advanced research modules. Participants develop an embedded case study using qualitative and quantitative methods, followed by a teaching case. This phase leads to the production of two further doctoral papers.
The final phase focuses on collaborative research and the completion of the programme. Each participant develops a fourth paper in collaboration with another participant or a ReTech Fellow from a different area of specialisation. The programme concludes with a presentation of the complete body of research and the viva voce, the final oral examination.
Choose how you experience the programme.
Tuition fees refer to the full programme according to the selected format.
Merit- and profile-based scholarships are available, with reductions generally ranging from 10% to 25% of the tuition fee.
Early-bird reductions may also be available for applications submitted by specified deadlines.
Ask the ACM AI assistant anything you want to know about tuition fees, admissions, career paths and scholarships. It will reply in real time.
Fashion 5.0 is a doctoral-level executive programme developed by École des Ponts Business School in collaboration with Accademia Costume & Moda. It is designed for senior professionals in fashion, luxury and the creative industries who want to transform their professional experience into applied research and contribute to the evolution of the sector.
The programme is designed for senior executives, managers, entrepreneurs, founders, consultants and professionals with at least 10 years of full-time experience.
The programme has an overall duration of four years.
All teaching activities and work submitted during the programme are in English.
Yes. The programme is designed for senior professionals and offers different study formats – Online, Hybrid and Hybrid+ – allowing participants to combine it with their professional commitments.
The programme includes approximately five hours of synchronous activity per week: one three-hour core session and one two-hour specialist session, in addition to the time dedicated independently to research.
An MBA is primarily focused on developing management and leadership skills. An Executive DBA takes this further, using advanced research methodologies to transform professional experience and knowledge into an original contribution with practical relevance to industry.
The programme connects creativity, design, production, sustainability, supply chain, technology, governance, innovation and finance, interpreting fashion as a complex system in continuous transformation.
No. Fashion 5.0 is specifically designed for executives and senior professionals and can be undertaken alongside existing professional commitments.
The first cohort will begin in March 2027.
Yes. A range of merit- and profile-based scholarships are available, with reductions generally ranging from 10% to 25% of the tuition fee.
The programme forms part of École des Ponts Business School’s Specialized Executive DBA offering and is developed in collaboration with Accademia Costume & Moda.
