Carter Wilson

Textiles, Merchandising and Interiors

Wilson credits FACS family for shaping the trajectory of his life

Hometown

Cumming, Ga.

Major

Fashion Merchandising (emphasis in Brand Management). Minor: General Business

Activities/Honors

For the 2022 and 2023 calendar years, I held the role of UGA’s NRF (National Retail Federation) Foundation Student Ambassador. This role largely consisted of promoting various NRF Foundation scholarships, recruiter chats and speaker panels via social media and speaking with classes on my experience with the NRF Foundation. As part of my role, I also led a group of FACS students to the NRF Foundation’s Student Program (January 2023 and January 2024) in NYC. I came out of my first trip to the Student Program with three internship offers: Dick’s Sporting Goods, Target and PetSmart. After much deliberation, I accepted an offer from Dick’s Sporting Goods as a corporate merchandising intern.

In Fall 2022, I was lucky enough to study abroad in Cortona, Italy. I am forever grateful for all the hard work Kris Schramer, Sara Prosdocimo and Chris Robinson put in to make the trip possible. They each did an incredible job with the program and played a major role in my most unforgettable semester at UGA.

The summer following my junior year, I worked in Pittsburgh as a merchandising intern at DSG’s CSC (Customer Support Center). During my time, at DSG, I worked on the inventory planning team for women’s outerwear and outdoor apparel in which my primary responsibilities were allocating product across all DSG stores, participating in weekly team meetings and conducting a project where I proposed a plan for the company to improve inventory turnover for their ski pant brand Outdoor Gear.

For the past two semesters (Fall 2023 and Spring 2024), I have held the role of PLA (peer learning assistant) for TXMI 3240 (Retail Planning & Buying). In this role, I have had the pleasure of assisting my friends and peers both in and out of the classroom as they work their way through the basics of retail math, planning, and buying under Dr. Jewon Lyu’s instruction. It has been a truly rewarding experience that has allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of the materials through teaching and tutoring.

Last but not least, I have been working at Kempt since November 2021. Kempt is a men’s clothing boutique founded in August 2019 by FACS graduate Ryder Chosewood. I started in my first few months as a sales associate, then became an assistant store manager/keyholder and more recently became a store manager/buyer. Kempt has by far been my most rewarding and influential experience over the past four years. Having the ability to speak to and take ownership of nearly every part of the retail business has granted me immense career opportunities and provided many insights into the industry that I would otherwise not possess. Ryder has been a fantastic mentor and friend; if it were not for him, I would not be the man (personally or professionally) that I am today.

Why I chose my major

I have always enjoyed fashion and wanted to make sure I build a career around something I’m passionate about. I knew that the fashion merchandising program at UGA had opportunities for me to pursue either the creative or business side of the industry. This was a huge selling point for me as I knew it would allow me to shift my career based on where my interests took me in the first couple years of college.

What I like most about FACS

The people. Without a doubt, the people in FACS or that I’ve met as a result of my FACS connections are my favorite part of the school. There is an endless list of wonderful people in/around this program (Dr. Clair (McClure), Dr. Seock, Dr. Lyu, Ziyou, Kris Schramer, Sara Prosdocimo, Ryder Chosewood – just to name a few) who have forever shaped the trajectory of my life both personally and professionally. If it were not for FACS, there’s a good chance I would never have met any of them.

Post-graduation plans

Towards the end of November 2023, I received a full-time offer from Home Depot as a merchandise planner which I accepted after a couple weeks of considering various other offers. I will start in September. Between my graduation and my start date, I will continue working at Kempt and spend some time traveling with family and friends.