RIYADH: Milan-based Istituto Marangoni, in collaboration with the Saudi Fashion Commission, will open a Higher Training Institute in Riyadh offering courses specialized in fashion and luxury, with plans to inaugurate the institute in 2025. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @arabnews.lifestyle According to a released statement, the institute’s mission in Saudi Arabia is to explore new avenues for local talent development and generate employment opportunities in the relevant industries. “We are very excited to do a partnership with Istituto Marangoni. It"s one of the leading global educational institutions focused on fashion and design. They have many campuses around the world, but for Saudi Arabia, it"s the first time they are opening their campus. And they are also the first educational institution to come into Saudi Arabia as a foreign direct investment, which shows their commitment to the potential in the Saudi market, especially for creatives and businesses, and through this partnership, we"ll be able to educate and provide employment to all the local creatives in the industry in Saudi Arabia,” Burak Çakmak, chief executive officer of the Fashion Commission under Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture, told Arab News. The new institute in Riyadh, to be accredited by the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation, will offer three-year advanced diplomas available in specific areas such as Fashion Design, Fashion Management, Fashion Product, Fashion Styling & Creative Direction, and also in the management of Fragrances & Cosmetics and Interior Design. Students will be able to choose whether to complete the advanced diploma in Riyadh, with the option of stepping into the fashion industry through a six-month internship during the last year of study, or complete studies for a bachelor’s degree at any international Istituto Marangoni campus. The institute has campuses in Milan, Florence, Dubai, Paris, London and Miami. In a released statement, Stefania Valenti, Global Managing Director of Istituto Marangoni, said: “We created this important partnership with the Saudi Fashion Commission because we believed that they are going to have a very strong agenda that is going to create a fashion (and) luxury system in Saudi (Arabia). “We want to provide our knowledge and skills to the new generation, because there is a strong appetite here for the young generation, for the women, that they want to start to study in Saudi, they don"t want to study abroad,” she added.