Wednesday 26 September 2012

London, baby

So I mentioned the imminent trip to London to pick up fabrics for the SS13 range and after doing my homework I had a few places in mind as I stepped in to the big smoke.

After a short stop at our London office where I got a tour of the sales rooms (showrooms where we promote our ranges, with a real visual impact and brand identity - the Ben Sherman room was my favourite, naturally) I head off to Berwick Street.

The beautiful, bustling road tucked away behind its ostentatious neighbour, Oxford Street, took me back to my A-Levels where we'd make special trips to London to buy our fabric for our final pieces and I was once again filled with the giddy excitement of perusing thousands of gorgeous silks, cottons and lace.

I headed to Cloth House and the Misan stores for shirtings all of which were, heart-breakingly thin on the ground for suitable stuff, the quantities were tricky too- though we only produce a small range the commercial scale is still too great for most of these smaller stores; catering more for my 18 year old self crafting gregarious and flamboyant one-offs.

I called Jole and Sons, an amazing fabric warehouse a short tube ride away, who of course had ample amounts of beautiful searchings perfect for my lovingly picked Savile Row range, but alas, were more than double what we could afford to pay - you've gotta watch them margins after all!

Having exhausted all options we instead went on a comp shop, an integral part of fashion buying is to know what everyone else is doing- no matter how unique you want your range to be!

Stopping at Selfridges which was beautiful, luxurious and expertly visually merchandised - no less than expected, I saw exactly where our little but brilliant brand should lay, somewhere to aspire to in future! Harvey Nichols was disappointingly small and awkwardly laid out but nevertheless full of sumptuous, barely attainable stock, our brand isn't in the London branch, only in Bristol and Ireland but it was good to see our competitors here regardless. Finally, a stop at House of Fraser with a surprisingly beautiful formalwear department designed like a traditional gentlemen's club, I could practically hear the chink of ice on a whiskey glass and smell the cigar smoke!

London was a great experience as part of my placement and I was really lucky to go, when businesses are cutting down on every added cost it's uncommon to send a placement student on any sort of trip. I hope I made the most of it but time will tell soon as we complete the range choices next week!










Creativity Strikes Twice

After working in a design studio all Summer my creative juices got flowing, now I've started my placement it's less creative on a daily basis, i.e. I'm not doodling on illustrator all day or sat cross-legged on the floor glueing beads to bits of card and what-not whilst head bashing to the radio! To keep up my creative momentum and to stop me going insane I've set myself a challenge; do one creative thing a week.

Week One: Heroically rescue a beaten up, ready-for-the-skip TV chest with a lick of paint and smidge of inspiration;







 So I need to invest in a better camera and some swanky Photoshop software but here's how the magic happened;

I sanded down the cabinet and painted it entirely white with emulsion. After letting it dry for two days I masking taped the edges and painted the inside blue, again with regular ol' wall paint. Once that dried I added a few of my more beautiful books (a hard cut as I have a few!) and added the frame and Vivienne Westwood shoes for a bit of variety as I've heard it's the spice of life!

Wednesday 22 August 2012

Perseverance!

Some days are harder than others being a fashion intern, my greatest advice is perseverance; if you're lucky enough to get a placement then you've already got it in spades.

Being rejected over and over by the companies you apply to (I myself applied to around 100) stands you in good stead for working in the fashion industry- it's hard, it's not glamorous, it's often low paid and sometimes it feels like there's no reward. Just remember why you're there, this is your dream, you've coveted the pages of Vogue since you can remember, you've given up food so you can buy those beautiful clothes and one day, I hope, you'll land your dream job (I have many dream jobs; fashion editor at Vogue, buying at ASOS, marketing at Fred Perry or travelling the world researching future trends are but a few!)

Some days I have to keep this distant future in my head more than others.

Whilst my job is stressful and unpredictable these are often the things that make it so interesting, I learn something new every day whether it's learning to deal with difficult people or managing unforeseen and unexpected problems with a moments notice.

Being an intern you will have your own hefty job to do, mine consists of budgets and accounts as well as branding and labelling for several brands and being an assistant buyer for my own brand (which in itself has a multitude of roles- a more detailed blog to follow!). As well as these roles I'm expected to do other tasks the busier buyers can't cope with from swatch cards, research, product development and approvals and general admin. This means my workload is never-ending my advice here is to be organised, be constantly aware of deadlines, take thorough notes always (and don't throw them away when you think you're done!) and persevere, the reward is out there.

On this note I have selected a few inspirational images from Pinterest to get you (and me) through the harder times, enjoy!















Because it's why we're all here after all...

Wednesday 15 August 2012

The Fashion Journals

This blog is a creative outlet for myself and a way to record my early years in the fashion industry but it's also (hopefully!) a tool to help other young aspiring fashionistas.

I've just started my internship as a Fashion Buyer on a men's shirt brand as part of my Fashion Marketing degree and am so far loving the responsibility and diversity of the role but it's challenging and hard work. 

Here is my journal for you to read, your thoughts and inspirations are welcome and encouraged as I get to grips with the fashion ropes.

So for the past two months I've been finding my feet as I become an Assistant Buyer for the first time, the things I found hardest was the sheer volume of information to learn; past season's best and worst sellers, product codes, supplier's names, terminology and the general protocol of the business to name a few.

I love the brand that I'm working on; a very small, luxury Savile Row shirt company stocked in the Savile Row flagship and some Harvey Nichols. It's just myself and the buying director working on the brand and as she has around 9 other names to look after I feel like it's really my own.

Passionate about the role and eager to get it right I compiled some competitor analysis, looking at Paul Smith and Ozwald Boateng. I also looked at future trend research for SS13 (unlike fast fashion we work a year in advance however, amazingly, our deadlines still seem to be tight and deliveries in jeopardy). Trend prediction is one of my major passions and ideally I'd like to try it out as a future career option before I finish University, I love the depth of analysis and interpretation that goes in to it as well as the incredibly creative element and it's power to influence what we'll be wearing in a years' time.

Next week I'll use this information as my buying director and I go to London to pick out fabrics for the SS13 range.

Perhaps Orla Kiely isn't quite right but I love these beautiful furnishing fabrics nonetheless!

Monday 13 August 2012

Prada in Lisboa

On a recent trip to Lisbon I was inspired by the beautiful, if a little deteriorated, geometric printed tiles covering the buildings of the city. These tiles lead me to create a range of my own patterns but I suspect, after picking up the latest Vogue, I am not the only one to be inspired by these unexpected treasures, see Prada's AW 12 campaign.