The world of fashion is often put inside this box that relegates it to models walking down the runway wearing clothing items put together by designers. This may be due to the way the industry is often represented in the media. Either way, to those that are not directly involved in the fashion industry, there is not that much depth. However, this could not be further from the truth. Logically, it would make sense that a multi-trillion dollar industry would retain a variety of positions that make up the entirety of the workforce. After all, an industry that size cannot be sustained on the backs of two positions. There is a whole cast and crew while turning the wheels of fashion. Details aside, designer and businesswoman Vivienne Westwood believes fashion is a valuable pursuit, “Fashion is very important. It is life-enhancing and, like everything that gives pleasure, it is worth doing well.”
If one is passionate about a career in fashion, there may be more options available to them than they realize. This is why we connected with a few experts to get a better idea of what fashion careers to explore beyond designing and modeling. Another great opportunity is a fashion internship career in Toronto.
Fabric technologist
Lori Price is the founder of PixieLane, a brand offering clothing items geared for children. She believes that one of the more interesting positions in the industry revolves around the science of fabrics.
“Technological innovation and human ideas cause new or different types of fabrics to appear at a fairly consistent rate. At the same time, changes are made to existing fabrics to improve upon them. There are people out there who do this for a full-time job. Fabric technologists test, select and change fabrics all day, every day. They’re making sure things are up to quality standards as well. In many ways, the industry is heavily reliant on these people as clothing would be nowhere without the fabrics that make them up.”
Public relations
Diamond Mansion specializes in affordable and high-quality diamond jewelry. Their CEO and founder, Omid Semino, suggests taking a look at a more traditional line of work that has a strong presence in the fashion world.
“Anyone who has spent any time in business has at least heard of public relations. It might be obscure but essentially, some companies rely heavily on not only getting their message out there but also getting it into the right channels. If a brand is able to make the right crowd aware of what they’re doing or offering, they stand a much better chance of finding success. Public relations people are also helpful when it comes to handling any media inquiries or making statements that require more tact than something more general.”
Buyer
Similarly to the way one would shop for clothes in a department store, fashion companies must make decisions about which items to buy. Western Rise is a business providing versatile and simple clothes for men. Their co-founder and creative director, Will Watters, considers the career of a buyer to be intriguing.
“One thing the fashion industry understands extremely well is what the customers want. There’s somewhat of a science around this but this person also has to have an eye for the appealing and desirable. These people are known as buyers. They are the people who decide what lines of clothing their company will be purchasing to turn it around and retail to the public. They really have a lot more power than you might expect as they can approve or decline any time from reaching public consumption.”
Stylist
Zach Goldstein is the CEO of Public Rec, a brand offering fashion with an emphasis on comfort. He advises others to pay attention to the role that stylists play when it comes to trendsetting.
“Whether you’ve only seen the random clips of a fashion runway on the news or you’re an avid follower of these shows, you can tell the immense detail and effort some of these outfits require to pull off. The models aren’t doing this themselves. Generally, there’s a team of people responsible for last second alterations, changing into the clothing items, hair design and makeup. They know what accessories pair well or which type of makeup to use. It’s a very creative career that does demand some level of ingenuity but the challenge there is what’s exciting.”
Illustrator
Andar specializes in handcrafted goods such as wallets or phone cases. Their co-founder, Eric Elggren, believes that drawing up fashion concepts is one of the more fascinating positions in fashion.
“Before clothing ideas can become a reality, they generally go through a few stages of design and production. Part of this is drawing up ideas for pieces so that decisions can be made based on visual elements rather than obscure descriptions. This industry has evolved recently due to the development of technology so there is a bit of a learning curve here. But, if you have a hand for art and a passion for helping produce unique items, this could be a great path for you. Just make sure you’re comfortable with more of a freelance approach to employment as that tends to be more of the norm.”
Inventory specialist
Seeing as the fashion industry is extremely large, there has to be an intricate level of organization behind it. La Blanca is a business providing a variety of women’s swimwear products. Their vice president of eCommerce, Karim Hachem, proposes the role of planning this organization for anyone who has a knack for it.
“Think of all the places in your area that sell clothes regardless of style. I guarantee that you missed more than one store which does so. My point here is that the fashion industry is far bigger than you would think at face value. For every clothing store, brand, or manufacturer, there is someone who is responsible for the numbers game and storage of these items. They must deduce how many items to order, when to order them, and where they’re going. All of these numbers are based on metrics uncovered through analytics so it’s definitely not a guessing game.”
Art director
Georgie Dorfman is the CEO of All My Love, a brand offering clothing with an element of individuality. She recommends the job of art director to anyone with a skillset that lends itself to building an attractive brand.
“Customers can behave a bit like birds sometimes. If they see that new, shiny thing, they’re quick to seek it out. This is where the art director comes into play for a fashion company. Their responsibility is to create a synchronous style of appearance across every platform and at every event the company makes itself present at. But it should be more than simply uniform. It should pop in a way that draws the outsider in or at least pulls their eyes. It’s kind of like interior design but for a fashion company.”
Trend forecaster
Kokolu specializes in sustainably sourced tote bags. Their head of brand and business development, Gigi Ji, considers the tasks of someone who is looking to the future of fashion to be one of the most critical roles.
“The fashion world is not some rudderless ship sailing across the seas without a map to be found. At all times, it knows where it’s headed and how it’ll get there. They can thank the trend forecasters for this. These people make it their mission to discover what’s coming down the pipeline. They generally know the trends before most and have a deep understanding of where a consumer base is at regarding a particular style. On top of this, they’re able to pair their knowledge of past fashion trends to understand their future. It’s very much an experience based position but it holds a ton of authority.”
As seen above, the fashion industry has more options available to those who are dedicated to making a career within the field. If designing or modeling have not worked for you, there’s enough demand for a variety of people that you can find your personal avenue if you continue to pursue it. Fashion designer Vera Wang spoke to this, “When you have a passion for something then you tend not only to be better at it, but you work harder at it too.”
