Did you know that the fashion industry is worth $406 billion worldwide? If you have a passion for fashion and are looking to get your foot through the door of this enormous market, you’re in luck. There are tons of different jobs available to you!
Still, you likely are wondering how to get into the fashion industry from wherever you are right now. Here, we’re going to talk about the steps that you need to take to study fashion and become an expert in the field. Read on to learn how you can build an apparel business from the ground up.
1. Have a Vision
You’ll need to decide precisely what you want to do before you can get into the fashion industry. About 79% of people working in this sector sell apparel for larger shops.
Having a retail job is a good way to make yourself known before you even decide what you want your future career to be. It also lets you meet others who are working and studying in the fashion industry so you can build professional connections.
Decide on Your Path
However, for most fashionistas, retail is far from the end goal. If you’re unsure of what your fashion dream is, consider some of the most common career goals in the field:
- Online shop owners (who select, sell, and market both their own handmade products and other wholesale items to consumers)
- Market researchers (who look for trends in the fashion industry and advise sellers and designers on what they should capitalize on)
- Fashion designers (who create new styles and designs based on current trends, demand, and their own individual styles/visions)
- Art directors (who visually style a product and showcase it in magazines, tabloids, and retailer product photos)
- Models (who are in the aforementioned images and showcase what products look like)
Research each of these jobs and find one that you’re passionate about.
2. Get a Degree
While getting a degree isn’t strictly necessary for getting a fashion-related career, it makes you more competitive in an exceedingly large market. Luckily, you have a lot of leeway when choosing a major. General fashion studies is a classic way to go and an extremely fun course for those who love fashion.
Specializing in Your Area
However, you can also take more specialized style courses if you’re 100% sure of the career that you want.
Fashion design degrees are all the rage with budding creators. You can get a fashion buying and merchandising degree if you want to be a seller. Fashion communications/promotion degrees are perfect for those who want to be art directors or market researchers.
Non-Fashion-Related Degrees
Some people who want to go into fashion choose to go down a completely different path. Those with English degrees are heavily in demand for a wide variety of fashion jobs. They know how to write, communicate, and generally get their message across to a large audience.
Whatever you choose to do, be sure to commit to your course of study. Take a job at a part-time fashion retailer to enhance your resume, but don’t let it impact your studies too much. Your end goal should be to appeal to higher-ups in your desired career, and everything you do should be in pursuit of that goal.
3. Research Your Career Path
While you’re studying for your college degree, you’ll come across a lot of inspirational people who made their mark on the fashion industry. For example, Courtney Sarofim is an exceedingly stylish career woman and an inspiration to all who have the chance to talk with her. Look into the awesome things she’s done and use her as a role model to emulate.
Of course, you’ll also want to read about the great Coco Chanel and her impacts on the fashion industry. Karl Lagerfeld, Ralph Lauren, and Vera Wang are also good people whose legacies you should look into.
However, you don’t want your research to stop with people who inspire you. You also need to inspire yourself.
Be Your Own Role Model
Look into the various job openings for your career and see where the path you want to take is a big deal. You may want to move to a specific part of the country when you finish school. Cali’s the place for aspiring models, but the Big Apple is perfect for budding designers and those in fashion marketing.
Get a Word Doc and write down the many findings that you come to in your research. You can keep adding to this document until you graduate. It will ultimately serve as a sort of idea blueprint about what you should do after college.
4. Set Up a Business Website
Once everything is in order, you need to set up an appealing website for your personal brand. If you want to sell wholesale apparel and jewelry, an eCommerce shop made with Shopify or WooCommerce may be the right choice. Being an entrepreneur is always awesome because you’re your own boss.
Building a Personal Brand
Branding is one of the most important aspects of setting up a website. You want to have a memorable brand name and catchy slogan that people remember. Using consistent colors (pink is usually ideal) and an overarching brand voice across your website will also ensure that visitors see you as a professional and as an authority.
A logo is one of the most important aspects of branding. Make sure that it appeals to other fashionistas. Create a minimalist logo that incorporates style-related imagery and your brand name.
Reaching Potential Employers
Even if you don’t want to set up an online shop, you’re going to need to brand, brand, and brand some more. Selling yourself is extremely important when you want to be a designer.
Your professional website will likely be targeted towards fashion-related hiring teams at other firms in these cases. You’ll need to include a personal portfolio, resume, and cover letter for the jobs you’re applying for. An ‘about me’ section discussing your passions will also go a long way because it shows potential employers that you’re a well-rounded and interesting human.
5. Market, Market, and Market Some More
Let’s not pretend otherwise: your professional website is first and foremost an attempt to market yourself. You’ll want to include a lot of information about who you are, what you do, and what types of unique goods and services you offer.
Including quality content on your website is a great marketing opportunity. When you include engaging videos and graphics, you get more people to stay on your website beyond the initial 15 seconds that you have to make an impression.
Search Engine Optimization
You also will need blog posts written with search engine optimization (SEO) strategies. These posts should be professionally written and incorporate high-volume keywords and outbound links to reputable sites. The end goal is to make your site appealing to search engine crawlers so these bots push it up in Google results pages.
This boosts your visibility and gets you more organic clicks. Consumers (if you have an eCommerce shop) and potential employers in the fashion industry will have a much higher chance of finding you online.
Using Social Media
Setting up social media pages is also essential for any fashionista. You’ll want to create a Facebook and Twitter page that’s well-maintained and frequently updated. LinkedIn is also a great place to form professional connections and get your name out there.
However, Instagram is by far the best site to market a fashion business on. The image-based platform allows you to upload a lot of product photos if you have an eCommerce shop. If you’re not selling items, you can use the platform to show off your personal style.
Make sure that you use appropriate hashtags to boost your visibility. Those who are in the fashion industry are likely looking through these tags and finding people who are passionate about styles that they like. Instagram is a great way to make yourself seen.
6. Be Flexible and Adaptable
No matter what your chosen fashion field is, make sure that you stay flexible and open to new opportunities. Just because your degree and experience are in one thing doesn’t mean that there won’t be other style-related job opportunities. Keep an open mind and take things that come your way.
You also will need to adapt to changing trends in the fashion industry. Styles are always changing and getting pigeon-holed into one thing could be detrimental in the future. Adapt your designs and sales to the changing tides to make sure that your brand is timeless.
More on How to Get Into the Fashion Industry
Now that you know how to get into the fashion industry in 2021, it’s time to get started. Check out the ‘outfits’ tab on our home page to look at some of the latest style trends that any fashionista should know.
If you want to specialize in gorgeous dresses, you can check out the ‘dresses’ tab for more information on what’s en vogue right now. Plus, our ‘accessories’ tab will showcase some of the best ways that your customers can spice up outfits (and give you an idea of what to sell). Start browsing today and get a head start on your new business!
