By Konand
Many fashion graduates these days are struggling to get the foot into the door of the so projected glamorous image of the fashion industry. When there are many possible routes to become successful and eventually get a permanent full time job or become one's own fashion designer in this field, getting it right is often not the case that many young fashion students are aware of.
Most girls and boys think that to become a fashion designer, one only needs artistic skills, such as being able to draw and sketch pretty cloth designs or put up a well thought out and highly polished portfolio, like visual boards or collections of nice fabric swatches. The reality is far from that. Fashion as in general is a business, in fact it is a business with very high risk, low potential and low yield (very small ROI - return on investment of average 110%), in contrary to what many people assume.
Have a look around at the top fashion designer and labels in the world, like Roberto Cavali, Valentino, Louis Vuiton and many others and soon you will realize, that amongst these all infamous names, only Armani brand has come out as a billion dollar business. And in fact, that billion dollar won't be possible if Georgio Armani did not expand his business into other closely related areas such as interior design and furniture.
So if you ever planned on a fashion career in hope to make big bugs or become the next big billionaire, you might have to work really really hard all the way in your life.
But if you chose fashion industry because of love and passion for the aesthetic as well as joy dressing up people, then this apparel industry might just be the promise land in your journey towards success and happiness. Prepare to work hard, continuous long hours and perhaps working on weekends. This is true whether you decide to become a designer running your own business or part of a designing team, production line, or manufacturing and textiles processes.
All professions in the fashion industry from the sewing machinist, cloth pattern maker, apparel cutter, to production manager and warehouse distributor have to work long stressful hours. And unlike other more stable careers in areas such as finance or management, fashion is an up and down industry with huge reliance on seasons. That means you might have a very relaxed week just before Christmas, but straight after New year, the following week becomes the crazy run in order to meat tight deadlines.
