Dalal Foundation gift opens global doors for FIT home students

New York – A gift to the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) from the Dalal Family Foundation will support the newly established Dalal Family Global Field Study Scholarship Program.

Designed as an experiential learning initiative, the scholarship will fund annual faculty-led travel experiences that give students a chance to gain in-depth insights into the global home products industry – from concept and development to sourcing and manufacturing across both U.S. and international markets.

The opportunity will be available for as many as 10 students from FIT’s Jay and Patty Baker School of Business and Technology each year.

The Dalal Family Foundation was founded in 1997 by Nayan Dalal, who moved from Mumbai to the U.S. more than 35 years ago to pursue his MBA. In 1992, he established TLI Home, a home textile import company based in New Jersey. Today, TLI Home produces private label home textiles and home décor products through an operation with offices in New York, Mumbai and Shanghai.

“Education has always been one of the most important priorities for our family and our foundation,” Dalal said. “Experiences like these take learning beyond the classroom and into the real world, where students can see how ideas become products, how markets operate across cultures, and how innovation is shaped through global collaboration. We hope this program inspires students to think bigger, dream bolder and pursue their goals with confidence.”

The inaugural trip in January 2027 will take the students to Heimtextil, the international home textiles expo in Frankfurt, Germany. In addition to visiting trade shows, Dalal scholarship students will also experience guided, immersive trips to showrooms and manufacturing sites.

“FIT is incredibly grateful to the Dalal Family Foundation for this gift, which supports FIT in its ongoing commitment to career-focused education and engagement with global industry partners,” said Shannon Maher, dean of the Jay and Patty Baker School of Business and Technology at FIT – who introduced the idea for the program to Dalal.

FIT President Jason S. Schupbach praised the Dalal family as “true champions of the value of education.”

He added, “FIT prepares students to enter a competitive global economy, and I can think of no greater gift than the Dalal Family Foundation’s scholarship program, which supports them in deepening their understanding of the home products industry worldwide.”