Ji Hye Kang

  • Associate Professor, Department Chair, Area Coordinator
  • Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design
  • Phone: 401.874.2881
  • Email: jhkang@uri.edu
  • Office Location: 303A, Quinn Hall

Biography

Ji Hye Kang is an Associate Professor and Department Chair in the Department of Textile, Fashion Merchandising and Design with substantial experience in both academia and the fashion industry. Prior to her doctoral program, she worked as a merchandiser and fashion marketing consultant in the Korean fashion industry for eight years, during which she conducted various client-based projects including fashion brand repositioning strategies, shopping mall development in Shanghai, China, and B2B e-commerce business modeling. After receiving her doctorate from Oklahoma State University with an emphasis on international fashion business, she continued her academic endeavors at Yonsei University, South Korea, as a post-doctoral researcher, and at Kansas State University as an Assistant Professor.

Ji Hye’s industry and academic experience has laid a strong foundation for her teaching and research in the fashion business. Her research interests are focused on contemporary fashion market-oriented topics within the fashion industry and consumer frames, with recent concentration on digital consumer behavior, global markets, and sustainability. To excel in research, she strives to update herself with the latest market issues and methods for data analysis, and actively collaborates with scholars and students across disciplines.

She teaches courses related to her research specialization, including TMD 332 Fashion Merchandise Buying, TMD 432 Fashion Retail Supply Chain Management, TMD 433 Textile Markets, TMD 452 Consumer Behavior in Fashion Retailing, BAI/TMD Fashion Retail Analytics, and TMD 532 Current Issues in Fashion Retailing.

Research

Fashion business and consumer
Digital consumer behavior
Global markets
Sustainability

Education

Ph.D., Design, Housing and Merchandising, Oklahoma State University, 2007
M.S., Clothing and Textiles, Yonsei University, Korea, 1995
B.S., Clothing and Textiles, Yonsei University, Korea, 1993

Selected Publications

Kang, J. H. (2022). College students’ attitudes toward the textile manufacturing industry and willingness to work in the industry. AATCC Review, 22(3), 31-36.

Son, J., Kang, J. H., & Jang, S. (2019). The effects of out-of-stock, return, and cancellation amounts on the order amounts of an online retailer. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 51, 421-427. 

Hong, H. & Kang, J. H. (2019). The impact of moral philosophy and moral intensity on the purchase behavior toward sustainable apparel and textile products. Fashion and Textiles. 6(1), 1-22. 

Jang, S., Liu, T., Kang, J. H., & Yang, H. (2018). Understanding important hotel attributes from the consumer perspective. Australasian Marketing Journal, 26, 23-30. 

Kang, J. H., Kim, S.Y., Jang, S., & Koh, A. (2018). Can college students’ global competence be enhanced in the classroom?: The impact of cross-and inter-cultural online projects. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 55(6), 638-69. 

Jang, S., Kang, J. H., & Son, J. (2017). Promotion effectiveness of coupons and reward points by fashion product categories at an online retailer. Journal of Channel and Retailing, 22(3), 1-17. 

Jin, B., Yu, H., & Kang, J. H. (2013). Challenges in Western-Chinese business relationships: The Chinese perspective. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 31(2), 179- 192. 

Jin, B., & Kang, J. H. (2013). Antecedents and outcomes of global sourcing and information technology in the US apparel supply chain. Journal of the Textile Institute, 104(1), 57-66. 

Jin, B., Gavin, M., & Kang, J. H. (2012). Similarities and differences in forming purchase intention toward a US apparel brand: A comparison of Chinese and Indian consumers. Journal of the Textile Institute, 103(10), 1042-1054.  

For more information on Ji Hye Kang’s scholarly work, please see her Google Scholar Profile. 

Areas of Expertise

Fashion Business and Consumer, Digital Consumer Behavior, Global Markets, Sustainability