At the intersection of culture and creativity is where Peri Warren ’22 likes to spend most of her time.
Earning a degree in American Studies with a focus on Black Studies from Occidental College in 2019, she appreciated the interdisciplinary and intellectual experience of getting to explore topics like U.S. civilization and cultural studies all within one program.
“I’ve always been intrigued by creative and cultural matters, along with critical perspectives and people who think critically,” she explains. Entrepreneurialism also runs deep for Warren. After graduating, she channeled her talent and passion into #PIVOT by Peri, a boutique consulting concierge that merges sports, business, and culture—a company she launched while still in college. Shortly after, she also launched The Meta House, a self-care brand dedicated to developing botanical-forward serums and fragrances.
To continue down the entrepreneurial path after receiving her bachelor’s degree, she planned on pursuing an MBA—until she discovered Northwestern’s MS in Leadership for Creative Enterprises (MSLCE) program. “If I were to pursue an MBA, I knew I would want to use it creatively,” she says, “so the MSLCE program resonated at my core. I consider myself to be a creative and cultural thinker.” From the program’s courses to the students who are enrolled, she says the MSLCE program provides a more specific, curated experience than an MBA program could. “I was very intentional about what I wanted to get from a graduate program,” she explains. “Your future is in your hands here. It’s a short program—it’s over before you can blink—and Northwestern provides lots of resources for you to take advantage of during that time.”
She says that much of what she learned was grounded in real life—such as in Entrepreneurship in the Creative Industries, led by a mix of adjunct and visiting professors who are successful entrepreneurs or venture capitalists. “As much as I love school, it can get very theoretical,” she explains. “But MSLCE, and this class specifically, was a perfect combination of institutional and real-world knowledge, making sure we know what it takes to start a business and activate brand and marketing strategies.”
Understanding the Creative Industries, taught by Professor Jacob Smith, and Organizational Processes in Creative Enterprises, taught by Professor Pablo Boczkowski, also helped her connect the dots on how business and creative can work together to create multi-dimensional strategies. Now that she’s earned her MS in Leadership for Creative Enterprises, Warren is attending Notre Dame Law School, adding just one more tool to her arsenal of diversified skills. “Law school takes what I learned at Northwestern even further about how business law and creativity can go hand in hand,” she explains.
“What I learned from Associate Professor Rick Morris in his Arts and Entertainment Law and Ethics class was a great foundation, and it piqued my interest in continuing to explore the intersection between law and creativity.” Between her law degree and her MS in Leadership for Creative Enterprises, Warren says she’s confident she’ll be able to help #PIVOT by Peri clients consider potential projects from all angles. “A lot of creatives lack business skills and strategy,” Warren explains. “For example, they look over influencer contracts only to pass them on to a lawyer. I’ll be better positioned to be that one-stop shop who can protect and promote creators, and I’ll be able to do it all through the lens of branding creativity.”
Four things Peri loved about the program:
1. Being around creative, intelligent thinkers who are also interested in business and strategy. “It’s a safe space for people who are equally right-brain and left-brain thinkers,” she says.
2. The opportunity to network, build relationships, and tell stories. “Above all, the program helped us refine our stories,” she says. “Once you have your story, you can go anywhere and stand confidently in any room.”
3. Curriculum that was readily applicable to where she was in her career—and where she wants to go in the future.
4. Working toward the ability to freely express all sides of herself—business, cultural, and creative—instead of feeling like they competed for space.
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