Corporate Fashion

Sections:

New Careers in Corporate Fashion Private Branding Development

Private labeling is very important in today's specialty and department stores. By offering a private label or brand, stores create products that complement their image, offer different products only available at their store and increase their profit by eliminating the "middle" person — a sales representative and their commission. Also, by producing their own product,stores gain control over quality and pricing. Today's specialty stores often market close to 100 percent of their stock in private label products. Department stores are following this trend with a goal of 60 percent of private label stock. Younger design manufacturers are coping with this trend by downscaling their design offerings and working with retailers to create "what their customer really wants."

With the continued importance of private store and brand developments comes a new set of career opportunities in fashion design and merchandising. Buyers are becoming international resource experts in finding fabrics and manufacturing opportunities.They are learning to play the numbers game and distribute new products to where they sell best. Designers are part of a team that creates collections of clothes that entice their store's customers at a price they can afford.

You can become part of the team that creates sources and produces and markets today's private labels, at companies such as the Limited, Gap, Sears, Spiegel, Casual Corner, Ann Taylor and Dayton Hudson.

A professional in Corporate Fashion needs to:

Be computer literate
Communicate in a direct, clear and persuasive manner
Be organized; be able to prioritize work flow
Have management skills
Be proactive; seek new ideas, products and processes
Be able to work on a team
Have a specialized technical expertise
Have an entrepreneurial spirit
Understand your customer and their relationship to your brand

New Careers in Corporate Fashion

Trend Director
Product Manager
Print Manager and CAD
Technical Design
Quality Control Manager
Production Manager
Production Assistant
Quality Assurance Manager
Fabric Research and Development Director
Textile Technologist
Color Manager and Colorist

JOBS IN CORPORATE FASHION:
THE APPAREL PRODUCTION TEAM

TREND DIRECTOR:

Identifies, develops and presents the fashion direction for color, fabric and style.
Partners with product development, merchandising, marketing and stores to integrate fashion focus and brand strategy.
Competencies: Interprets fashion dynamics, understands company brand strategy, passionate for fashion and customers, able to gather source information and identify critical trends.

PRODUCT MANAGER:

Develops and executes the product in line with the initial fashion concept and merchandise strategy.
Develops assortment from concept to reality.
Researches fabrics, silhouettes and trims.
Teams with buyers and production manager for a fashionable and salable product.
Travels to fabric and trade shows.
Initiates PDM process and hands off to technical design team.
Creates style boards.
Works with technical designer on fits, providing an aesthetic point of view.
Maintains financial accountability for sales and profits.
Competencies: Ability to translate fashion direction into product, strong sense of design, color, composition, sketching ability and CAD.

PRINT MANAGER AND CAD:

Identifies and defines, prints, patterns and graphics for all products in support of a fashion concept
Design or buys artwork.
Approves strike - offs, knit downs, hand looms and production.
Competencies: Excellent color and design skills, ability to translate fashion direction into prints for customers expertise in CAD.

TECHNICAL DESIGN:

Executes the technical design process for selected categories of merchandise to achieve "best - fit" customer recognition.
Manages product from development to final fit
Prepares technical specification packages of garment construction details.
Anticipates production needs and issues.
Competencies: Working knowledge of patternmaking, fit, garment construction, manufacturing, and production machinery, grading and markers; knowledge of a variety of fabrics and trims; experience with software for technical design and create - problem solving.

QUALITY CONTROL MANAGER:

Works with quality assurance managers, technical designer, color manager, sourcing, vendors and design center to anticipate and resolve QC issues.
Plans QA manager schedules based on business priorities.
Determines severity of daily quality issues in design center.
Evaluates vendor performance.
Competencies: Knowledge of fabric, colors and garment construction in manufacturing or quality; ability to negotiate, make decisions and communicate with vendors, technical services, sourcing and QC/QA; proactive in identifying and prioritizing issues affecting production.

PRODUCTION MANAGER:

Executes the sourcing strategy for a category of merchandise.
Assesses vendors, factories, mill capabilities and capacities against line plans.
Plans for volume, quota, target prices and lead time.
Financially accountable for sales and profit margins.
Originates and executes calendar and production schedules.
Responsible for pre-cost estimate and final negotiations.
Places orders and communicates with vendor; maintains realistic expectations of sourcing.
Represents production on the team; represents manufacturing in fit process.

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT:

Executes all production steps from original sample development to bulk delivery.
Owns purchase order entry process.
Monitors and tracks styles from production to arrival in distribution center.
Communicates all import related information to import management.
Orders tickets, hang tags and other marketing needs.

QUALITY ASSURANCE MANAGER:

Works with vendors and factories to identify and resolve all manufacturing problems.
Develops and evaluates factory technical and production teams.
Sources factories and evaluates vendor compliance.
Travels.
Inspects work in progress at factories, resolves issues on site, final inspection.
Partners with technical services to ensure consistent standards.

FABRIC RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR:

Works with fashion office, product development, quality, technical design and sourcing to develop and deliver fabrics to meet assortment needs of a private label.
Maintains up-to-date industry information on fibers, yarns, fabrics and finishes.
Requires in-depth color knowledge.
Responsible for fabric and product testing.

TEXTILE TECHNOLOGIST:

Responsible for quality of colors, fabrics and components to assure final quality.
Authorized to reject fabric and hold shipments of fabric that fail quality standards.
Evaluates mills.
Assists in technical development and preproduction of fabrics.
Partners with design center and quality control on all issues regarding fabric quality.
Responsible for fabric testing.
Tracks development and approval of fabrics and colors.
Develops product specifications.

COLOR MANAGER AND COLORIST:

Develops color standards establishes color procedures and tolerances.
Oversees lab dip evaluations on spectrophotometer obtains production approval evaluates dyelot and shadeband production.
Travels to dye houses for production checks,follows developments in new color technology.
Maintains vendor communication.
Tracks approval and order information for related selling items.