Ever wonder what Giorgio Armani, Betsey Johnson, Donna Karan, and Ralph Lauren do all the time? Work! Few other professions depend so much on keeping on top of fickle popular opinion and watching what competitors produce.
The life of a designer is intimately linked to tastes and sensibilities that change at a moment’s notice, and she must be able to capitalize on, or-even better-influence those opinions. Designers reflect society’s sensibilities through clothing design. “You have to know just about everything that’s been done before, so that you can recognize it when it becomes popular again,” wrote one respondent.
Fashion designers are involved in every phase of designing, showing, and producing all types of clothing, from bathing suits to evening gowns. Those with talent, vision, determination, and ambition can succeed in this difficult, demanding, and highly competitive industry.
Fashion design can be more glamorous than a 1940s Hollywood musical or drearier than a bank statement, but it’s always taxing. A designer’s day includes reading current fashion magazines, newspapers, and other media that reflect current trends and tastes. She looks at materials, attends fashion shows, and works with other designers on projects. A designer should be able to communicate her philosophy, vision, and capabilities clearly and comprehensively through sketches, discussions, and, occasionally, samples.
No matter what her personal style is, a designer must produce a creative, exciting, and profitable product line. As in most professions that produce superstars, it is easy for a competent but otherwise unremarkable designer to wallow in obscurity, designing small pieces of collections, generic lines (the plain white boxer short, for example), or specialties (cuffs, ruffles, etc.). The personality that raises itself above this level must be as large as the vision of the designer; perhaps that’s why the word “crazy” showed up in over 75 percent of our surveys as a plus in fashion design.
Paying Your Dues
Those entering the field should have a good eye for color, style, and shape, an ability to sketch, and some formal preparation in design. An excellent portfolio is a must for the job search. A two- or four-year degree in fashion design is helpful, as is knowledge of textiles and a familiarity with the quirks of a variety of fabrics, but no formal certification is required.
Candidates should have a working knowledge of business and marketing. Hours are long for a fashion designer and the initial pay is very limited. This is one of those hit-or-miss occupations where beginners work as someone’s assistant until, when they can muster up enough confidence in their abilities and sell that confidence to their superiors, they design a few pieces themselves. The superstar rise is an unlikely event, but it happens. Based on the number of “international star designers” in the last ten years and the number of people who have entered the profession, the estimated odds of becoming an internationally famous designer is roughly 160,000:1.
Associated Careers
Fashion designers who become unhappy with the lifestyle (low pay, long hours, hard work, low chance of advancement) leave to do a variety of things. Some use their color and design skills to become interior designers, graphic designers, or fashion consultants. Over one quarter of those who leave remain in the clothing industry, either on the production end or on the institutional buying end. Another 10 percent enter the advertising or promotions industry.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
What is Fashion Marketing?
What makes someone spend $400 on a pair of shoes, or $150 on a simple t-shirt? What makes someone feel an uncontrollable urge to own uncomfortably baggy pants or killer 6-inch stiletto heels?
Well, if they're really good at what they do, it's fashion marketers.
After designers come up with the latest trends and send them strutting down the runway, it's up to fashion merchandisers and marketers to figure out how to get people to buy the stuff. Their goal is to move clothing out of designers' showrooms and into customers' closets.
Consumers have to be intrigued by the clothing designers create. It has to fulfill their fantasies, not just their basic needs. Consumers want fashion that will project an image--make them feel younger, or more sophisticated, or more glamorous.
Fashion marketers know this very well, and their job is to help create a fantasy to sell clothing to customers, either by savvy advertising and visual marketing campaigns, or by simply selecting clothing from designers that they think will be a hit with customers. Part of their job involves moving trendy items into stores at the time that they are actually a trend. Not moving fast enough can be a fatal error in this occupation. But good fashion marketers and merchandisers also have the power to make trends by heavily promoting certain looks at the right time. In order to be successful at creating trends year after year, these fashion professionals must also have a profound understanding of consumer psychology and social trends.
Fashion marketing and merchandising isn't just one job, but actually a number of jobs. (Fashion marketers generally work to get consumers interested in a fashion, while fashion merchandisers work on presenting clothing in stores.) People in this field can work in both retail and wholesale sales. Some work as buyers, merchandise managers and purchasing agents, selecting and purchasing apparel and accessories from designers, manufacturers or wholesalers for retail sale. Some work on the other side, as manufacturers' representatives, negotiating on behalf of manufacturers with retail stores. Others work as fashion coordinators with the mission of creating a unified look in a retail store, design house or fashion magazine. Still others work as visual merchandisers, designing splashy store displays that will attract customers and help convey a mood. (See the brief on merchandise display artists). Some people who get degrees in fashion marketing/merchandising become managers of retail stores, or opt to open up their own specialized boutique where they can serve a very specific clientele while promoting their own individual style. Others become fashion consultants and fashion forecasters.
Wherever people in this field work, they straddle a line between art and commerce. On the business side they analyze and implement sales strategies, do inventory control and cost analysis, while keeping a steady eye on profits and losses. But on the art side of things, they are creative, stylish, and innovative, recognizing good clothing when they see it with the ability to sell it to the masses.
Specific tasks in this field depend on the exact job. Some duties might include:
* Arranging for the receiving, storage and display of merchandise
* Attending fashion shows and visiting designer showrooms
* Placing orders for clothing and estimating the amount of inventory needed
* Pricing clothes
* Designing visual displays and ad campaigns and promotions
* Consulting with fashion designers and fashion consumers
* Keeping tabs on profits, losses and other financial details
* Maintaining the physical appearance of a store
* Hiring and training new employees
Well, if they're really good at what they do, it's fashion marketers.
After designers come up with the latest trends and send them strutting down the runway, it's up to fashion merchandisers and marketers to figure out how to get people to buy the stuff. Their goal is to move clothing out of designers' showrooms and into customers' closets.
Consumers have to be intrigued by the clothing designers create. It has to fulfill their fantasies, not just their basic needs. Consumers want fashion that will project an image--make them feel younger, or more sophisticated, or more glamorous.
Fashion marketers know this very well, and their job is to help create a fantasy to sell clothing to customers, either by savvy advertising and visual marketing campaigns, or by simply selecting clothing from designers that they think will be a hit with customers. Part of their job involves moving trendy items into stores at the time that they are actually a trend. Not moving fast enough can be a fatal error in this occupation. But good fashion marketers and merchandisers also have the power to make trends by heavily promoting certain looks at the right time. In order to be successful at creating trends year after year, these fashion professionals must also have a profound understanding of consumer psychology and social trends.
Fashion marketing and merchandising isn't just one job, but actually a number of jobs. (Fashion marketers generally work to get consumers interested in a fashion, while fashion merchandisers work on presenting clothing in stores.) People in this field can work in both retail and wholesale sales. Some work as buyers, merchandise managers and purchasing agents, selecting and purchasing apparel and accessories from designers, manufacturers or wholesalers for retail sale. Some work on the other side, as manufacturers' representatives, negotiating on behalf of manufacturers with retail stores. Others work as fashion coordinators with the mission of creating a unified look in a retail store, design house or fashion magazine. Still others work as visual merchandisers, designing splashy store displays that will attract customers and help convey a mood. (See the brief on merchandise display artists). Some people who get degrees in fashion marketing/merchandising become managers of retail stores, or opt to open up their own specialized boutique where they can serve a very specific clientele while promoting their own individual style. Others become fashion consultants and fashion forecasters.
Wherever people in this field work, they straddle a line between art and commerce. On the business side they analyze and implement sales strategies, do inventory control and cost analysis, while keeping a steady eye on profits and losses. But on the art side of things, they are creative, stylish, and innovative, recognizing good clothing when they see it with the ability to sell it to the masses.
Specific tasks in this field depend on the exact job. Some duties might include:
* Arranging for the receiving, storage and display of merchandise
* Attending fashion shows and visiting designer showrooms
* Placing orders for clothing and estimating the amount of inventory needed
* Pricing clothes
* Designing visual displays and ad campaigns and promotions
* Consulting with fashion designers and fashion consumers
* Keeping tabs on profits, losses and other financial details
* Maintaining the physical appearance of a store
* Hiring and training new employees
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