Fashion careers are perhaps some of the more glamorous professions on the face of the planet. What’s more glitzy than working in a world filled with bright lights, beautiful people, maximum press coverage including television and print, and an adoring public? When we say “fashion,” the word brings to mind images of color, luxury, exclusivity, street style, places like Paris, New York and Milan and names like Tyra Banks, Heidi Klum, Marc Jacobs or Giorgio Armani.
When we say fashion careers however, the industry isn’t just limited to the people who actually come up with the designs and those who wear them, although they get the most attention. If you’re interested in fashion careers, have had the proper education, as in earning a degree from an accredited fashion school or have taken classes, and have undergone some training, here are a few specific jobs you may want to explore in the wide, glittery world of haute couture.
Fashion Designers
Fashion designers are the people behind those prestigious fashion shows, the ones who are responsible for iconic red carpet looks, the names that make certain types of clothing popular. They come up with ideas, sketch them, transfer these sketches onto fabric then produce them for the market. Big labels usually have one or two main fashion designers who can delegate the tasks of drawing and designing to their staff. Fashion designers may choose to create their own clothing line or join forces with more established names.
Visual Merchandise Designers
If you have an eye for public fashion displays and for artistically arranging garments and accessories, this is the area in fashion careers you may consider. Visual merchandise designers take care of window displays, props and accents during shows and in retail shops, styling mannequins and the interior of clothing stores and are in charge or marketing and advertising campaigns.
Personal or Fashion Stylists
There are people who prefer working on a one-on-one basis compared to dealing with groups of people. If you think you’re one of them and have a high level of confidence in your fashion sense, you may consider becoming either a personal stylist or a fashion stylist. Personal stylists give people advice on what to wear, how to look during special occasions, which accessories and colors go best with their skin tone and body type, which hairdo and make-up they should wear and so on. They work closely with an individual, combining brand names and styles to suit the person.
Fashion stylists, on the other hand, are those who get to choose what clothes, accessories, hair and make-up are worn for magazine features, television and print-ad advertising, music videos and concerts and other public events that models, actors, actresses and other public figures like politicians are required to be a part of. Also called wardrobe stylists or celebrity stylists, these are people who work with a larger group in fashion careers composed of hair and make-up artists, fashion designers themselves, photographers, directors and editors.