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5 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Fashion Career
By admins | January 25, 2010
flickr image via Flickr image via Noemi Manalang
As an insider fashion blog we have many readers either in school planning for a career in fashion or wanting to attend a fashion school. We get loads of emails asking advice usually: How do I get a job? What is fashion school like? How can I be a fashion designer? Do I need a degree? And we have answered many of these before. However, there are other questions that are often overlooked by newbies that should be asked of yourself before you enter this industry. Here are our top ten questions you should ask yourself before pursuing a career in the fashion industry.
- Do I REALLY want to WORK in fashion? Yes, it seems obvious, but many people don’t bother to really think about it. If you decide on this career path simply because you love fashion, you may be disappointed. Would you be happier working in a field that pays you very well so you can enjoy luxurious personal shopping trips instead? Fashion as a job means shopping, reading fashion magazines, and traveling all become work related and often the enjoyment you may find now in these things gets lost. When turning a hobby or a love into “work” and into a business the love affair can fade quickly. To succeed you must really have a “passion for fashion” but also a realistic awareness that this includes dealing with factories, haggling over price-points, following others direction, working at a computer for hours on ends, and in the early days perhaps “assisting” ie copying, cutting, steaming, and filing till the wee hours of the morning.
- Is being a Fashion Designer the actual title I want? Certainly fashion design gets the most attention, but is rarely understood and not the only option. As we’ve mentioned before there are many positions you can hold working in fashion besides design. For example if you prefer shopping to sewing, fashion merchandising or buying, may make more sense for you than design. Or if you love people, travel, and making money then corporate fashion sales may be a smarter career choice.
- How important is money to me? Of course we all want to make money, that’s why we work otherwise it’d be called volunteering. Better than a job is a career, and even better than a career is a career that employs you in doing something you love while paying you handsomely. Unfortunately in the fashion industry a large paycheck is a rarity. And coupled with the high cost of living in most fashion-centric cities, plus the expensive taste level you probably have, you may be in for a financial shock.
- Do I enjoy travel and more importantly do I care WHERE & WHEN I travel? Many people fantasize working in fashion will entail fabulous shop-trips to Europe and glamorous Fashion Week global events. While in design at the higher levels shop-trips will ensue, they will be far more exhausting and stressful than fabulous. The majority of travel for design and other positions will be 20+hr fights to China, Hong Kong, India, Bangladesh, Cambodia etc to visit and work in the factories sometimes for weeks at a time. There will also be the oh-so-fabulous trips throughout the South and Midwest of the US, to corporate offices of major retailers to attend sales meeting (yes even design & tech attend these on occasion). And keep in mind that the travel schedule revolves around the factory and retail calendar, so despite the fact that it’s your birthday or even Christmas if the company says go, you must go.
- How important is my personal life? Sure, right after you graduate fashion school and head to the city being a workaholic seems like a far trade off. You are young and working to midnight, then going out with friends, and still making it into the office the next morning is doable. But what about when you get older? What about when you have a husband that you’d like to see for dinner every now and again? Or having children, there is no paid maternity leave in fashion. Leaving early for a sick kid, or nanny issues is a sure way to get fired. Or have you really thought about how much you will miss spending holidays with your family or attending friends out of state weddings etc. Most fashion companies give 5 days off a year and since they are open the day before and after Christmas and Thanksgiving, you can forget going away for the holidays. Late nights, traveling abroad, no vacation time, those are all part of most apparel companies, so be prepared.
Well those are our suggested questions, what are yours? What would you tell a fashion newbie? We know there are a lot of fellow industry professionals reading, so let ’s here from you. What do you wished you had asked?
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Topics: about, fashion industry, jobs | 11 Comments » 
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January 25th, 2010 at 9:15 pm
Fantastic list ladies!
I would add “Can you handle living in a big city” Most fashion jobs, schools, shows etc require residence in a major city and while fabulous for me, I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.
January 26th, 2010 at 11:55 am
I wish I had had this list before I started working in fashion. It of course wouldn’t have changed my mind but I would have had more realistic expectations. Working in fashion has been the best thing I’ve ever done and the hardest (and I went to law school) it is really what I always wanted to do but it is much more of a challenge then I ever thought. I’d ask any newbie “Do you like business?” Because this is business and there is a lot more numbers, sales, marketing etc then I ever expected.
January 26th, 2010 at 10:36 pm
Reading this reminded me of exactly why I love the fashion industry.
Thanks so much for visiting my blog, I will definitely keep y’all linked.
January 27th, 2010 at 2:52 pm
I just have to commend you for this post – it is so well-written, and thought out; and really makes one think about the fashion industry in a different light. I think that another important question to ask yourself is…”Can I handle not having much me-time/privacy?”
You are often on-call 24/7 in the fashion industry, and sometimes have to put up with more than one roommate to afford living in a big city; therefore, it’s essential to weigh the thoughts of how much privacy you will have, and how important privacy actually is to you.
By the way, love the image at the top of this post – tres cute!! :)
January 27th, 2010 at 5:52 pm
Heart this post!
I would tell a newbie to keep an open mind when it comes to a career in fashion bc you may start of in one sector (say as a buyer), but decide another area of fashion is more suitable for you & your lifestyle…
Only real-world experience can help you decide which path works for you.
p.s. – This was SOO much more informative then people just saying “Fashion is not all glamour”.
XOXO
January 28th, 2010 at 12:11 am
Definitely a great list! I was always told that Fashion wouldn’t be very glamorous before I worked in the industry but didn’t know the specifics of it all until I had firsthand experience! I still love fashion but it’s definitely not an easy industry to work in.
January 28th, 2010 at 2:40 pm
Great post! It’s true, everyone thinks a life in Fashion is super exciting and glamorous, but they don’t take into account long hours backstage changing models, the days and days of fabric shopping to try to source materials, all the money you have to put forth to have a collection assembled, hours of pinning, re-pinning, sewing, seam-ripping… *sigh*
January 29th, 2010 at 10:18 pm
Thank you so much for this post! This is really great for those outside of the industry to see…
January 30th, 2010 at 6:09 pm
great post! is not a star-studded job afterall =)
February 1st, 2010 at 7:30 pm
You’ve raised up some great points about the fashion industry – definitely an eye opener, and so refreshing to read something that highlights what it really does entail. Great post!
February 5th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
I am going to give it to you straight. I work in a very high profile fashion company. All around me are complainers. Most of my co-workers like myself, are in their 20’s. They all sit around and bitch about how mean the designer is because he asks us to work past 7 on occasion. They complain that they have to do too much work, that they don’t get paid enough and on and on. I NEVER COMPLAIN and work and work and love what I do. Why should I complain? I have an enviable job as Jr. Assistant to the designer and am poised to have the assistant position soon. I have moved up from an intern and will continue to move up because I have passion for what I do and realize how many people are dying to get into this business. I don’t kiss ass, its not necessary. My boss has noticed my good work and seriousness about my career and rewarded me for it. My advice to all of you is to just do the work! The world is not always fair and you must pay your dues for years. If you want to get ahead faster and make yourself INDISPENSABLE to your employer than grow up and get a work ethic or else people like me will continue to take your jobs.