Upcoming talent in the fashion industry.
Work hard, play hard. This is an attitude you can take when it comes to the fashion industry. A career in fashion can take you to several lively cities, all with a different character and vibe. Caity takes full advantage of this and frequently spends her nights in Paris visiting art gallery openings or watching bands play. A healthy balance to her daytime duties which include starting the day with a dose of coffee, responding to emails, preparing and writing articles before meeting with PR agents and organising interviews. These responsibilities all fit under her job role as a contributing editor for Indie Magazine.
Caity has known that she wants to work in fashion since the age of 12 years old, and it is inspiring to watch her dreams and ambitions become a reality. However, it required some research to find out exactly what it was that she wanted to do. Initially, it was the idea of fashion buying that appealed to her, but she reconsidered after learning the budgeting and spreadsheet aspect of thejob role. This shows that there are many different paths that you can take, and stresses the importance of understanding what skills are needed for each.
Caity soon found the job that felt right for her and went on to study journalism and fashion at university, and is a recent graduate (July 2016). During these studies, she wrote for different publications, in order to build up a portfolio, which would benefit her in her future.
The fashion industry can give you a lot of opportunities to travel, and this is no news to Caity, who completed an internship in Berlin in her final year. As well as this, her current job role lands her to live in beautiful Paris.
When it comes to the creative industries, people tend to find inspiration to help them create work that they are happy with. Caity’ finds inspiration through her friends. She surrounds herself with creative people who are constantly working towards their career goals. It is positive because she always has people a phone call away who are happy to help Caity with any upcoming projects. These people she surrounds herself with are also creative talents, in the form of graphic designers, musicians, and directors.
It can be difficult to pursue the fashion industry because employers are often keen to see education and work experience in a potential employee. Caity admits that it can sometimes be who you know rather than what you know that can lead to progression in your career. Of course, talent and hard work are essential, but your contacts can really help to get you more opportunities.
As much as there is nothing wrong with thinking about your future, it is important to accept that your ambitions can change. Caity herself began studying movie production alongside fashion, however, changed her mind after her blog started gaining recognition, and changed her mind, changing to journalism.
Fashion is an industry which allows you to develop and improve over time. Caity used
to experience writer’s block, but now this doesn’t happen so often. When it does, she has learned how to cope with it, by either taking a walk or a shower, before going back to carrying on with the work.
When it comes to advice, Caity keeps it short and sweet. Network and don’t have unrealistic expectations. She suggests going to every fashion week in your city, to make sure you’re comfortable selling your talents and to follow up any encounters with a coffee meeting the next week. Also. it is important to expect to work for free for quite a while. Caity was writing unpaid for over a year.
However, for the meantime, Caity, will continue to freelance and enjoy her time in Paris, all whilst waiting for her fashion career highlight to come.
Information sourced from primary interview with Caity.
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