Instructor Spotlight: Mary Robertson

Mary Robertson is a veteran publicist who has promoted many companies, brands and products, including fashion and accessories collections, books, and more recently subscription boxes. She has planned and executed public relations strategy for several companies and brands, including influencer activations and red carpet outreach to stylists and celebrities.

 

Mary Robertson teaches:
HSX 131:
Public Relations for Fashion: The Industry in Action
Fall Semester     Spring Semester     Summer Semester

Teaching philosophy:
PR in the broadest sense is selling — promoting the acceptance of ideas, the awareness of products and companies, or the adoption of practices.  Pitching effectively is a life skill that is widely beneficial in many contexts. We’ll also delve into what it’s like working for a brand in-house versus working for a PR agency which might inform pre-college students curious about a potential career path.

Industry Experience:
Much of Mary’s career was focused on the promotion of shoe brands.  She began representing Roger Vivier for Delman in the 1990s, and subsequently worked on Delman, Miss Trish, and several Nina shoe brands, as Director of Publicity for Nina Footwear,  covering every price point from luxury to volume sales.

At Nina, she posted social media, and planned and placed paid and earned digital initiatives, including a great many influencer activations, gaining an informed perspective on what types of promotion deliver return on investment for brands.

Mary has mentored a great many FIT Advertising, Marketing and Communications students as interns over the past decade, several of whom were hired for full time positions at Nina.