16 Skills You Need To Succeed In The Fashion Industry

The fashion industry is booming. Nowadays, its really easy to design, manufacture and sell your ideas. Here are 16 tips to help you succeed.

The fashion industry is booming. Nowadays, with the advent of online retail, drop-shipping, and private labels, its really easy to design, manufacture and sell your ideas.

But before you start, here are 16 tips, from 16 designers, to help you succeed.

Find something you do well and stick to it

Find something you do well and stick to it, you don’t have to be all things to all people. Be the expert at something instead of a generalist about everything. -Tyler Kirsch

Always network

Always network! In order to meet new possible collabs or even book potential campaigns, you have to network with new people frequently. You really just never know who you might meet. - Hikari Fleurr

Learn to say “no”

The ability to say “no” if you feel that a particular client or job may not be the right fit for you, is an important skill. It is better to politely pass then to be unable to do your best work for whatever reason. - Sharon Stone

Build in time to recharge your batteries

Keep the juices flowing— Build in time to recharge your batteries. Whether that means taking time to catch up on personal relationships or visiting a particular favorite spot. You have to continue to fuel your creativity before anything else can be done. - Lexie Broytman

Being good to people can get you much farther than treating people poorly

Kindness. Being good to people can get you much farther than treating people poorly. Be kind to those you work for, those who work for you, and the many people you interact with in running your company. When I made my first collection, I worked with an incredible tailor — Ludmila Tomashevskay of Ludmila Couture in Los Angeles. We got to know each other in the process. I helped her out by designing her website, and she helped me out with my collection. We formed a friendship and after I launched my first collection, she introduced me to some of the celebrity stylists she worked with, including Rob Zangardi and Mariel Haenn. And thanks to Rob and Mariel, Jennifer Lopez has worn several of my pieces. She was the first celebrity to publicly acknowledge my brand — which helped me launch into boutiques. Lesson: be kind to everyone. - Natalia Fedner

No one starting his own project can be fully prepared

To be honest, I am a strong believer that no one starting his own project can be fully prepared for what lies ahead. I believe that if someone made me aware of what to expect the project would lose its beauty. We act and learn from our mistakes. We turn negatives into positives and become stronger day by day. As your project grows you grow with it. - Danae Varangis

Take advantage of the fun moments

Have fun. The fashion industry is so fun and has so many incredible fun and exciting opportunities. Take advantage of those moments. And appreciate that you are there, so many people want to be in your shoes. - Anna Jensen

Follow the ‘soft’ trends

Follow the ‘soft’ trends— We all know that fashion comes and goes. Following trends such as designs that are big for the year are great for traditional fashion brands, but for young brands like CERIMANI trying to break the noise, following these trends may not have the desired effect. There will be those one-off sales, but customers are unlikely to remember you or return to you again when you have not stood out in their minds. Instead, follow ‘soft’ trends that appeal to their emotions. Some of these might be seasonal, like promoting unique designs that are appropriate for wedding season. - Proud Limpongpan

Open minded-ness

Open minded-ness: One needs to be open minded to different methods or ways of doing things. Working with a team means working with different team members who have different perspectives. Its important that everyone is aligned which requires people to be open minded to things. - David Menning

Do not copy others’ work

Do not copy others’ work or trends and forget about market reports and forecasts. - YiZhou, of Global Intuition

Get comfortable being in the spotlight

Get comfortable being in the spotlight. - Kaila Methven, of Madame Methven

Do things that scare you often

Do things that scare you often. ​ Fear is a powerful motivator. Taking risks like applying for a large art show or sending out PR leads to magazines that seem out of reach can seem scary while you are doing them, but turning the fear of rejection into a catapult of energy has helped my own skill set grow exponentially and taken my business from hobby to the point that both my husband and I work full time from home and gross six figures per year. - Jeana Rushton

If you don’t love what you do, it will be felt

Passion. If, you don’t love what you do, it will be felt and no-one is going to want to be around someone that doesn’t make them feel motivated. - Aimee Kestenberg

Always be on time

Always be on time. Time is important in every industry…, - Marie “Driven” Theodore

Study the lifestyles of your target customer

Study the lifestyles of your target customer and represent it with your brand. Lifestyle determines their expectations and their needs. Don’t forget that essentially your creation is a commodity and fashion is a business. Be your customer. - Javier Suarez

Know what you don’t know

Be honest with yourself as a designer and as a business owner. Know what you don’t know, and consult an expert when necessary. If you did not excel in your coursework in business law or accounting, don’t try to file your own taxes or set up an e‐commerce website without assistance. - Kathryn Brooks