How do you pursue a career in fashion marketing?

How do I pursue fashion designing as my career?

• I work in a Software MNC since  four years. I always wanted to be a fashion designer from childhood and I used to make pencil sketches of various designs. Even after I have grown up I still imagine designs and dresses. Somehow I want to persuade my career in fashion designing. Not sure how to start what to do Any insights and input will be helpful!!!

• Answer:

  I would recommend the following: 1) Internship - Most fashion internships are unpaid, but in the industry, one is expected to pay one's dues.  You'll likely be doing bitchwork like picking up coffee and counting buttons, but it'll give you insight into what it actually takes to be a designer.  It seems glamorous on the outside, but it's hard work and very competitive. 2) Education - Take classes at a fashion school.  You're going to have a hard time designing clothes if you don't know the fundamentals of garment construction.  You're also going to have a hard time getting hired if you don't know things like spec-ing garments or creating flat sketches.  Fashion design is a career that seems like lots of fun, and it can be, but it is also a very difficult and competitive career to break into.  More than ever, there are tons of talented students graduating from fashion schools that you will be competing against.  This is not to discourage you, but to let you know that you will need to work hard to catch up to them in terms of the skills and experience, not to mention the connections, they acquired through school.  Many designers don't get paid very much, work long hours, and end up working as designers of clothing that they find less than inspiring.  There isn't a lot of job security -- even some of the most famous designers have been pushed out of labels for not delivering designs that sell well.  Personally, I have taken a non-traditional path to becoming a designer -- my parents discouraged me from pursuing an artistic career because I excelled in school, and I ended up at Harvard, where I discovered that fashion was really what I wanted to be doing.  Unless you're a celebrity or independently wealthy, it's going to be difficult to pursue a career as a fashion designer without doing the two things I've listed above. I have a blog where I talk about my career path in the fashion industry (among other things) here: http://janetleekim.blogspot.com/search/label/becoming%20a%20designer