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What is a fashion designer and how to become one
Have you always dreamed of seeing your clothes on the runway? If you have, then you might find that a career as a fashion designer is perfect for you. Fashion designers select styles and fabrics to create clothing and accessories, including dresses, suits, jewelry, and handbags. These designers can specialize in specific areas of fashion, such as haute couture, ready-to-wear, or costume design.
If you decide to become a fashion designer, your day may be filled with tasks such as drawing and developing new clothing and accessory samples, conducting market research to identify trends, managing the design process from conception to final styling, and collaborating with team members to select seasonal themes and make edits to fashion lines.
If you're looking to get into this industry, you may need to relocate to a major city since that is where most of the fashion industry is concentrated. You'll need to have excellent design and conceptual skills, along with a sense of style and color. To start in the field, you may first need to work with someone more experienced, such as a pattern maker or sketching assistant. A Bachelor's degree in design, fine arts, or fashion design is often preferred.
What general advice would you give to a fashion designer?
Abby Guido
Assistant Professor, Tyler School of Art and Architecture, Temple University
Every job I have ever received in my career has been through someone else I know. I share this with students to help them see the value in relationships. I always remember the students that took the time to write a handwritten thank-you note. And I think of them when I get an email asking if I know any students are looking for work.
Avg. Salary $54,265
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 3%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.51%
Asian 11.65%
Black or African American 7.34%
Hispanic or Latino 11.90%
Unknown 5.57%
White 63.04%
Genderfemale 82.67%
male 17.33%
Age - 34American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 34Stress level is manageable
7.1 - high
Complexity level is challenging
7 - challenging
Work life balance is fair
6.4 - fair
Fashion designer career paths
Key steps to become a fashion designer
Explore fashion designer education requirements
Start to develop specific fashion designer skills
Skills Percentages Fashion Design 14.17% Sketch 12.42% Apparel 5.91% Design Concepts 5.49% Adobe Illustrator 5.25% Complete relevant fashion designer training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New fashion designers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a fashion designer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real fashion designer resumes.Research fashion designer duties and responsibilities
- Customize technical packages with POM specifications, manage grading standards, assisting in costing the BOM, etc.
- Manage and facilitate fittings and quick changes, organizing wardrobe, transferring and directing costumes to desire locations.
- Develop marketing and brand awareness initiatives through social media outlets; create and manage company Facebook and Houzz profiles.
- Create packages containing new design ideas, swatches of fabrics and embroideries, pictures, cad and presentations.
Prepare your fashion designer resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your fashion designer resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a fashion designer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable fashion designer resume templates
Build a professional fashion designer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your fashion designer resume.
Apply for fashion designer jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a fashion designer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How did you land your first fashion designer job
Lyndzy Gordon
Fashion Designer
As
a fashion designer, my day-to-day activities involve a mix of creativity, business management, and collaboration. Here's a breakdown of what I typically do:
Designing: My primary focus is creating designs for new collections. This involves sketching ideas, developing concepts, and refining designs to ensure they align with my brand's aesthetic.
Collaboration: I collaborate with other small artists and manufacturers to help bring our designs to life and accessible to people of all body shapes and sizes.
Business Management: Running a fashion business also involves various administrative tasks such as managing finances, inventory, and customer inquiries. I oversee aspects like budgeting, pricing, marketing, and sales analysis. As a creative with inattentive ADHD, I do find I struggle with these tasks the most. I wish I could just design and talk to customers all day!
Production Oversight: I oversee the production process to ensure the quality and integrity of my designs. This includes approving samples, monitoring production timelines, and addressing any issues that may arise during manufacturing.
Promotion and Marketing: Social media management, email campaigns, networking with influencers, and participation in events and trade shows. While I love the in-person events and shows, I do struggle with promoting myself on social media. Much like with the administrative tasks, this work doesn't bring me as much joy, so I tend to put it on the back burner.
2. Why is Fashion Designing a good profession to enter now?
Fashion design is an exciting and rewarding profession that offers creativity, diversity, innovation, and the opportunity to make a difference in the world of style and self-expression. The fashion industry provides a wide range of career paths, including design, merchandising, marketing, styling, and production. It has helped me learn and nurture a multitude of skills that I also use in other aspects of my life, both personally and professionally.
3. What do people like and dislike about being a Fashion Designer?
Some of the positives of being a Fashion Designer:
Creativity: Fashion design allows us to express creativity and artistic vision through clothing and accessories. The process of conceptualizing ideas, sketching designs, and bringing them
Average fashion designer salary
The average fashion designer salary in the United States is $54,265 per year or $26 per hour. Fashion designer salaries range between $37,000 and $78,000 per year.
What am I worth?
How do fashion designers rate their job?
Fashion designer reviews
Making people look sweet and smart
Not satisfying the need of my client.... And not able delivering my work as discussed with the client
It is something I enjoy! Something I’m good at! Something I could do as hobby and get paid for
That I don’t get to do it more often
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Updated January 8, 2025
