Nurturing Future Leaders

Founded in 2005, the Luxury Education Foundation is a dynamic community of established leaders and emerging talent. LEF nurtures future leaders through mentorship and continuous learning opportunities and provides leading luxury brands with access to expertise and actionable solutions.

Learn more about the Luxury Education Foundation for:

2024 Participating Brands

The Luxury Education Foundation

Established in 2005, LEF is a public not-for-profit organization that nurtures future leaders in the luxury industry and fosters meaningful exchanges between like-minded CEOs, leading executives, and high-potential, emerging talent.

Friends of LEF

Not a brand or an LEF alum? Become a Friend of LEF and get access to exclusive events where leaders in the luxury industry share their views on current trends and challenges facing the industry with an enthusiastic group of business and design students.

A special thank you to our media partner Sarah Gargano Communications for their support throughout the years.

What people are saying

  • “As Chairman of the Board of LEF, I was always amazed by the energy of our organization which allowed us to continuously reinvent ourselves in the ever-changing landscape of the luxury experience."

    - Robert Chavez

    Chairman, Hermès Americas

    LEF Director Emeritus

  • "LEF has built a wonderful community of students and alumni in the luxury space and is a wonderful partner to Columbia Business School. They always do more for our students than we can expect. LEF is always coming to us with new program ideas and opportunities for both MBA and PhD students, supporting industry opportunities as well as basic research. It’s always a pleasure to work with LEF."

    -Kinshuk Jerath

    Chair of the Marketing Division, Columbia Business School

  • “LEF has always been instrumental in the growth of my career. From the Alumni Council, to countless informative panels, LEF has allowed me to stay connected to peers across the industry for over 15 years.”

    - Maloni Goss

    Head of Insights, CHANEL

    LEF Alumna, CBS Class of ‘08

  • "If you are a key decision-maker at a small luxury brand, you would often find yourself wondering if you're operating the right way. You wish there were others who understood you and could chime in with trusted and qualified advice. You will find this community in the Emerging Luxury Council."

    - Gourav Soni

    LEF Alumus, CBS Class of ‘16

    Emerging Luxury Council Founding Member and Co-Chair

We are delighted to announce our upcoming LEF Fireside Chat with Matthieu Garnier, CEO of Loro Piana North America. The event will take place on Monday, December 2nd, 12:45 - 2pm, at Columbia Business School. 🎤 Registration is currently open for LE
We organized a Student Executive Breakfast with Nicolas Beckers, President & CEO of Rémy Cointreau, offering our students an incredible opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations and ask Nicolas all their burning questions. This uni
🌠 Alumni Spotlight Katy Ann Lyons is the Director of Customer Planning on the Customer Driven Insights and Activation team at @macys , where she oversees customer and competitive insights for all apparel categories. She started her career in luxury
We had the honor of welcoming John Maltbie, Director of Civil Enforcement, Intellectual Property at @louisvuitton , to speak to our students about an incredibly important profession! 🕵️‍♂️ He shared insights into his unique career and taught th
We had the pleasure of welcoming a highly anticipated guest for our very On-Campus Fireside Chat at Columbia Business School: Matteo Torre, President of Ferrari North America!✨ Matteo engaged in a thoughtful exchange with our students and alumni, s
Last week, our students celebrated the conclusion of the Luxury Approach Master Class at our annual Students’ Final Presentations. The students showcased their impressive recommendations for this year’s participating brands: @audemarspigu