Do you want to be a fashion designer? A lot of people do. However, you need to ask yourself if this is something that suits you. There are people who want to become a designer but do not have the skills or the talent to be successful in it.
This career may seem like fun and interesting – at least compared to a typical office job. But it still has serious responsibilities and the workload may be overwhelming if you are not cut out for it.
How to start a career as a fashion designer
First of all, you need to know what you need to do in order to qualify for the job.
You need to be a degree holder to gain employment in the retail industry – specifically in designer houses. It is not necessary for you to have a degree that is specific to the field. However, it will work in your favour if you are a graduate of a related course.
Having a technical knowledge and skills will be helpful in landing you a job. Your creativity is a huge factor but you also need to know how to translate your ideas into actual fashionable pieces.
Basically, you can get into an entry-level position (e.g. junior fashion designer) if you have the degree and technical skills to be able to help a senior fashion designer.
Obviously, it is important to land a job first. Soon, your experience will speak for yourself. If it is hard for you to land a job with big designer labels, that is okay. You can start with a small company before you jump to another company. The important thing is to get the experience. Ultimately, that is how you will learn the important knowledge and skills that will give your career as a fashion designer a boost.
Important traits of a fashion designer
Becoming a great designer would require you to have the right skills to help you make fashionable pieces. Being obsessed with the fashion industry is not enough. You need to have both originality and creativity. It is important to have an eye for colour, texture, shape, and form. These are all important in creating great designs. Knowing what looks beautiful and stylish is also very important.
The technical skills that you need to have include creating patterns, tailoring, and sewing. These are skills that you can learn in a fashion school. But it is also something that you can learn on your own. While learning on your own is okay, it might be harder to prove to potential employers that you have the skills. At least, it is harder to do so compared to those who graduated from fashion schools.
Since this is a money-making business, you also have to be aware of the commercial side of things. While it is great that you will channel your creativity, you have to make sure that it will sell. That is how you will earn money in the fashion industry. This means you have to know the trends and
Among your responsibilities, apart from creating designs, is being able to come up with mood boards and computer-aided designs. A knowledge of fabrics, ability to estimate the cost of materials, and negotiating with suppliers are among the other things that you need to know how to do.
As you can see, being a fashion designer involves a lot of things. You have to be confident enough to present your designs too. You will be working with a lot of people so make sure your social skills are honed as well.