Living childhood dreams in New York’s fashion scene

When Nicole Kleinbrecht was 6, she was sewing clothes for her dolls on an adult-sized sewing machine. At age 11, the senior business and fashion media major designed and sewed five costume changes for her fifth-grade talent show performance. By her senior year in high school, she sewed her prom dress.

“I grew up loving fashion,” says the San Francisco Bay area native. “But I didn’t want to become a fashion designer.”

Instead, Nicole selected SMU for its honors program, merit scholarship package, business school, welcoming spirit and warm climate.

She didn’t know until arriving at SMU that she could double major in business and fashion media. Recently her summer internship at the New York headquarters of fashion designer Lela Rose helped her see the value of the combination.

“I like the balance of creative and standard classes in the fashion media program, but little did I know that the world turns on my business classes like finance and accounting,” Nicole says. “Fashion is like any other business.”

Nicole Kleinbrecht, fashion media intern at Lela Rose

At Lela Rose, Nicole helped designers get ready for the fall 2026 launch, pulled samples for customer appointments and occasionally relied on her sewing skills to attach buttons. After living in SoHo for the summer and having a glimpse into the fashion business, she plans to pursue a full-time fashion position in New York after graduation in May 2027.

Nicole was one of the first students to receive a Zeff-Friedman fashion media internship fellowship, supported by a gift from Kendal Zeff and her daughters, Arianna and Alexis Friedman, who graduated in 2023 with fashion media majors, says Ethan Lascity, associate professor and chair of the fashion media program.

“I’m thrilled to have an opportunity to support professional growth in a place like New York where every option is available,” said Kendal Zeff. “We want the students to have the access and be able to actualize and gain knowledge for this new, growing and emerging field.”

The fellowship provides a stipend for living expenses for two New York fashion media interns and one Dallas fashion media intern, as well as expenses for an industry trip to New York for fashion media majors, Lascity says.

“Internships and real-world experience are vital career prep for post-graduate fashion media careers,” Lascity says.

Recent graduates have joined the events teams at Veronica Beard and the social media marketing teams at Clinque and Violet Grey. Another graduate is merchandising coordinator at Vuori. Earlier grads have gone on to be buyers at Saks and Frances Valentine, and a copywriter for Michael Kors, he says.

SMU is one of only two universities to offer a fashion media program, which began in 2011 as a minor in the journalism program. Now 180 SMU students are examining fashion as a cultural, design and economic force as fashion media majors.

Sophia Knobbe, fashion media intern at Savi Public Relations

For senior Sophia Knobbe, the opportunity to major in fashion media cinched her decision to attend SMU. A double major in fashion media and corporate communications and public relations, Knobbe interned at the Savi public relations agency in New York as one of the inaugural Zeff-Friedman fashion media intern fellows.

“My two majors really connect,” she says. “Fashion media allows me to explore the creative and cultural side of the industry, while public relations teaches me how to communicate those stories and help brands connect with their audiences.”

Sophia interviewed for the internship last spring from Croatia where she was studying abroad, despite Wi-Fi made spotty by the thick stone walls of her apartment. She accepted the offer, fulfilling her childhood dream to live and work in New York.

Every day was different at SAVI, Sophia says. She updated client reports, researched media contacts, helped with inventory management and as an internship project, created a mock client event from the initial concept through the final planning details.

“It helped me realize how much I enjoy the event side of public relations,” she said. “I love seeing all the planning and coordination come together to create an experience that represents a brand. It made me want to pursue a role where I can combine public relations, events, fashion and creative storytelling,” she says.