Manufacturing & Production

Fashion Coordinator

Related Jobs or Working with these Jobs

Fashion designers plan and develop new clothing and accessory styles by creating original designs or by adapting fashions to suit local conditions and trends. They fabricate sample garments based on these designs.

Fashion designers are responsible for creating the designs for clothing and lifestyle accessories. They develop new styles and products and adapt existing fashions to suit new trends or different conditions. They may design surf or sportswear for sale in retail stores, or may work for exclusive boutique designers whose clothes are sold at select locations around the States, nationally or internationally.

Although not typically responsible for actually creating the clothes or accessories that they design, fashion designers sketch their designs, either by hand or computer.

ANZSCO description: 232311: Plans, designs and develops clothing, accessories, footwear or other items of personal apparel considering the form and construction of clothing, historical styles and contexts, contemporary and cultural trends, colour, fabric, and decoration, and the techniques and processes available for manufacture.

Alternative names: Clothing Designer, Designer, Fashion

Specialisations: Costume Designer, Haute couture designer, Leisurewear Designer, Mass market designer

Knowledge, skills and attributes

Fashion designers need:

• an eye for detail

• creative flair

• good hand-eye coordination

• knowledge of fashion history and current fashion trends

• the ability to work to tight deadlines

• good communication skills.

Duties and Tasks:

Fashion designers may perform the following tasks:

• consult with clients and stakeholders to determine the objectives of the design brief and to negotiate design solutions

• illustrate concepts by producing storyboard and specification drawings

• use computers to manipulate and develop patterns and modify designs

• research and develop fabrics and accessories for production of garments
  

• make patterns or work closely with patternmakers to draft patterns from sketches or specification drawings

• select fabric, colour and trim, and undertake cutting and machining of sample garments

• fit samples and discuss them with management, sales and manufacturing staff

• contribute to costing estimates

• finalise specification sheets with detailed sketches and trim details

• approve final samples before they go into production
  liaise with production staff during mass production of garments and participate in quality control

• maintain an awareness of current global and local fashion trends

• control merchandising and retailing of garments.

Working conditions

Fashion designers may work in offices, workrooms, factories or clothing stores. They work at drawing boards, cutting tables and on sewing machines, and as a result may stand for significant portions of their work day. They may travel to factory sites or internationally to fashion shows

Tools and technologies

Fashion designers usually work at work benches using pencils, paper and other sketching tools, and they may also be required to use computer software to design items of clothing.

They may also work at cutting tables where they use scissors and other sewing tools to cut fabric. They are also required to be familiar with sewing machines in order to sew fabric and create mock-ups of their designs. Fashion designers also work with a wide range of different fabrics.

Education and training/entrance requirements

You can work as a fashion designer without any formal qualifications. However, you are more likely to improve your prospects in the industry if you have completed a formal qualification in design or a related area.

VET courses and university degrees in fashion and design are widely available from TAFE Colleges, registered training organisations and universities throughout Australia.

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A fashion coordinator arrange and supervise the marketing of fashion clothing for fashion manufacturing houses, textile companies and retail stores.

Though they may work in a variety of different environments, fashion coordinators are most notably found within retail stores, fashion magazines, or design houses directly. They work to create a unified look and feel that is in line with the latest fashion trends. They work to ensure that the looks portrayed are in line with the latest fashions, and that the advice that they give is current in nature.

A big part of the job of a fashion coordinator is to research and understand all of the latest fashion trends. This comes in the way of reading fashion magazines, keeping up with fashion websites, and building relationships within the fashion world. Having good solid relationships with designers and top labels can help to ensure that fashion coordinators stay ahead of the trends, and therefore offer up the advice and consultation to go along with that.

They work to make sure that the latest fashion trends are reflected in the clothes that are offered if they work within a department or retail store directly. Another important aspect of their job may be to educate retail salespeople on these trends and how customers can get the best use out of it. They offer tips, critiques, and often show examples so that retail salespeople and clients alike can learn from these cues. If they work for a publication or design house, they must ensure that the latest fashion trends are worn and put out there to show an understanding.

They often work in a liaison role between their primary place of employment and the design and fashion industry. They must stay on top of the latest trends, and work to obtain the textiles, fabrics, and supplies that go with it. They are considered to be a subject matter expert in their area, and therefore must be prepared to field questions and offer expertise at anytime.

ANZSCO ID: 232311

Alternative names: Fashion Director

Knowledge, skills and attributes

• enjoy artistic and creative activities

• creative flair and drawing ability

• good communication skills

• good colour and design sense

• good hand-eye coordination

• able to work independently or as part of a team

• good time management skills

• able to work under pressure.

Duties and Tasks

As a fashion director, you are expected to assume the following tasks and responsibilities:

• devise efficient fashion design plans and foster new fashion concepts

• properly coordinate advertising as well marketing activities

• attend runway or fashion shows to acquire new fashion ideas

• visit major manufacturers and merchandise markets to get new information on the latest fashion trends

• regularly monitor fashion publications and set meetings with designers to keep up with the changing trend

• evaluate the potential success of a certain clothing line

• create effective marketing plans and advertising strategies

• coordinate with salespeople, designers and manufacturers

• select garments and accessories that will be used for promotional marketing

• organize photo shoots, magazine events, and fashion shows

• share fashion insights and analysis with buyers to help them choose the appropriate inventory purchases

Keep in mind that the work of a professional fashion director would entail dedication, perseverance, determination, and good PR skills.

Working Conditions and Environment

The typical environment for a fashion coordinator may vary quite significantly. They may work within a fashion publication, for a designer specifically, for a design house, or for a department or retail store directly. They may have times where they can properly manage their workload, but these are mixed with a great deal of stress as well. As relationship building is an important part of the job, they may expect to travel or meet with clients or designers on a regular basis. They are often required to be quite competitive and this can bring some stress to the job at times, as others in similar roles are also working to stay ahead of the trends.

Education and training/entrance requirements

It is usually expected that a fashion coordinator has a bachelor’s degree, though in many instances an associate’s degree may be suitable. The fashion coordinator is not an entry level position, though it does involve a great deal of learning on the job. It is often of great help if the fashion coordinator has some sort of background within fashion, even if it is just a strong interest. Having any classes within fashion design, merchandising, or related disciplines may be of great help in preparing a fashion coordinator for their job.

They may expect to learn a great deal on the job, much of which can’t be taught in the classroom. Fashion coordinators generally learn a great deal from their relationships with designers or other industry experts. They get to learn and become quite confident with their skills as they advance within their career.

Did You Know? This photograph by Max Dupain (22 Apr 1911 – 27 Jul 1992), signed and dated 1936, is from the archive of Madame Louise Lamoureux, who ran a Sydney fashion house specialising in embroidery and hand-beading. The model is thought to be the photographer’s cousin, Lucille Dupain, who also appeared in contemporary local theatre productions. Fashion and photography were heavily influenced by Hollywood in the 1920s and 30s with the rise in popularity of films and their stylishly dressed stars. The dramatic top and side lighting used in this shot was known as ‘Hollywood’ lighting and the sequinned evening gown, of the type designed and sold by Madame Lamoureux, is similar to the Adrian creation worn by Joan Crawford in The Bride Wore Red, a film released in the same year. In the United States Hollywood style fashions were often the result of collaborations between designers, manufacturers and studios that ensured that garments would be available for retail sale in time for the release of a film. A Lamoureux gown, complete with a cape like the one in the film and embellished with more than 200,000 sequins was shown in a 1936 article published in the Australian Women’s Weekly. Madame Louise Emilienne Lamoureux worked with Callot Soeurs in Paris and other fashion houses in Europe before coming to Australia in 1927. She employed the Lunéville technique for the hand-sewing of sequins or beads onto fabric. In her city salon, she trained a small number of women in this and in Cornely machine embroidery, methods little known in Australia at the time. Using her original designs, Madame Lamoureux and her staff embellished garments and accessories for leading dressmakers and stores in Sydney and interstate. The enterprising embroiderer also advertised evening classes in Lunéville, offering members of the public the opportunity to train in an ‘artistic’ trade with the only expert in Australia. The technique originated in the French town of Lunéville in 1867 when a worker added a small crochet, or hook, to the traditional embroidery needle which had a large elongated eye and a blunted point. The traditional hand embroiderers of the time (mainteuses) worked on the outside of the fabric to sew on rhinestones, beads, sequins, braid or metallic thread. The Lunévilleuses worked on the reverse side of the fabric, a quicker method that consequently reduced costs. The numbers of beads or sequins used to make gowns like the one in the photograph and the high level of manual skill involved were often the focus of articles about Madame Lamoureux. Gowns that bore 125,000 sequins and 240,000 beads respectively appeared in advertisements for her salon. She imported garments from France, such as the evening dress that is now part of the MAAS collection, as resources for bead and sequins when these were unobtainable locally. (Source: Inside the Collection - MAAS)

 

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Clothing Patternmaker	Dressmaker	Milliner	Textile Designer
Theatrical Costume Maker	Visual Merchandiser

Materials sourced from
Jobs & Skills WA [Fashion Designer; ]
Careers Online;
State University
Your Career [Fashion Designer ; ]

 

 

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