Layout 2 - The Fashion Designer Guide

Working for a company
Q. What type of mentality or work ethic does one need in order to
succeed in your type of job?
A. In high-fashion you will need to be prepared to sacrifice everything for a job you really want. The
people who succeed are those who put everything else second. You can get your life back later on
when you have reached a certain level and experience. But in the beginning you need luck, hard work
and the right attitude.
Magnus Gjoen, Designer/Product developer - Vivienne Westwood
Q. In your opinion, what would be the ideal type of company for a new
designer to work for and why?
A. There isn’t one, it depends what the new designer wants to do. So many different market sectors,
but I would say if you wish to freelance, don’t limit yourself, try working at as many different
businesses that service different types of consumer as you can. The variety will benefit you. It is easier
to get work if you don’t limit yourself.
Jessica Good, Designer, shoedesign.co.uk
A. I don’t believe there is a best career path as I think that some of the most successful and
interesting designers that are out there don’t come from ‘traditional’ backgrounds. I think that these
things can’t be planned and as long as you have a passion and make the time to hone the basic skills,
you may develop something genius that hasn’t even been entertained before because of strict
educational rule points.
However, if you have the creative spark, you need to also have the business head; there are some
fantastic books out there but in all honestly, if it all seems a bit much, I would highly recommend a
business partner. My partner James deals with the finances, etc as these such elements of a fashion
label are too important to risk getting wrong.
Jili Alen, Creative Designer - MJM Int./Owner of Jili Allen Ltd
A. In my career, I have worked for large and small companies and both have their advantages and
disadvantages. The advantage of working for large company is that they tend to invest more in
technology and into you, offer training, sending you on development and research trips. I’ve probably
gained most of my knowledge from companies such as these, however you tend to be a small fish in a
big pond with lots of corporate hoops to jump through and politics to deal with.