Fashion Design and Merchandising at UH Mānoa

🎉 Congratulations to our Fashion Design & Merchandising student, Luphia Landry, for receiving 2nd Place in CTAHR’s BS Oral Presentation Category at the 2026 CTAHR Student Showcase & Research Symposium!

Luphia completed an independent study with Professor Minako McCarthy this semester and showcased her research among undergraduate students across the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience.

We are proud of Luphia’s hard work, dedication, and accomplishment, and we’re excited to celebrate this achievement with the FDM community. Please join us in congratulating her! 👏🌺

Please view all of the students' Spring 2026 3D retail store design projects here.

Spring 2026 FDM 339 | 3D Retail Store Design Projects | Virtual Reality Spring 2026 FDM 339 | 3D Retail Store Design Projects | Virtual Rea...

Through the Lens of VR Headsets: Stepping Inside Student-Designed Retail Spaces

In the FDM 339 3D Retail Store Design course, taught by Dr. Ju-Young Kang, students learn visual merchandising principles and design exterior and interior retail environments using MockShop (visual merchandising software), Adobe Photoshop, and AI integration. Students create walls, ceilings, flooring, store layouts, fixtures, promotional posters, display windows, mannequins, and planograms, aligned with their brand, store, and merchandise concepts. Please view all of the students' Spring 2026 3D retail store design projects here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zxVGphMa0k

This Spring semester, Dr. Kang enhanced the curriculum by integrating virtual reality (VR) headsets. This immersive integration enabled students to export and navigate their 3D retail store models on VR hardware, refine VR system settings such as floor level and scale, etc., and view their store models so realistically that they felt as though they were stepping into an actual retail store. It created a uniquely experiential learning environment.

Aloha 🌺

Join us in celebrating Minako McCarthy on her incredible achievements!

She has received the Innovation Impact Showcase (IIS) Award (2024–2025) for her excellence in teaching, as well as Entering Research and Creative Work (ERC) funding (Fall 2026) for her mentorship supporting student research.

Her dedication to innovation, student success, and impactful work continues to inspire our FDM/FCS and CTAHR community. This recognition is truly well deserved!

Congratulations again, Minako 👏

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWXWq_CAUWB/

FDM 315, Draping Essential— project 1–Duplicate a popular maison look— has been completed. #fashion #uhmanoa #manoa #fdm #draping

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWUzHdEgb9H/

FDM major Edward and architecture major Tiger share their all black goth collection that is at an intersection with mourning attire and evening wear. Check out their collection at Miller Hall on the second floor! #fashion #fdm #uhmanoa #black #gothfashion

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWyT3ZblRng/

Stop by our first ever Fashion Museum Exhibition on May 4th from 1-4pm! Our newly formed museum class has put together FDM Alumni’s senior designs on display from the past 60 years. Come and support the FDM program! Admission is FREE!

https://www.instagram.com/p/DWyT2LsFd1-/

Guess who’s back 👀! The University of Hawaii fashion exhibition is back for its 60th event, Kaleidoscope, Fragmented Illusions. Join us on May 5th, 5pm at UHM’s Campus Center Ballroom. Buy your tickets ASAP as they are expected to sell out in a blink of an eye! Hope to see you there 🫶

https://www.instagram.com/p/DW0YlaTk5_u/

FDM majors Ruka and Kylee showcase their exhibit, featuring stunning evening and party wear gowns. Check out their exhibit in Miller Hall on the second floor! #fashion #eveninggowns #partywear #fdm #uhmanoa

✨ Inspiring the next generation of fashion innovators

Students from Maui recently visited University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa for hands-on fashion workshops led by the Fashion Design & Merchandising program. From Computer-Aided Design to e-textiles and sewing, students explored how traditional skills meet cutting-edge technology.

These workshops highlight the future of fashion education while opening doors to creative careers and opportunities in the industry.

📖 Read more:

Fashion workshops inspire Maui high school students | University of Hawaiʻi System News Students from Maui’s Lahainaluna and Baldwin High Schools traveled to UH Mānoa for a hands-on immersion into the future of fashion technology in February.