Fashion and communication. Communication and fashion. Both disciplines have evolved and changed in recent years. If you would like to work in the fashion world and you’ve also got good communication skills, these could be the jobs for you.
HEAD OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
The fashion industry needs communication professionals who know how to build and enhance the value of brands and designers. Brand communication has always been a dynamic field, but the changes have grown in recent years. The move to a digital world, the rise in the influence of social networks and the emergence of new technology have had a huge impact both on the way we communicate and on our consumer habits.
What fashion brands need are public relations professionals who are at ease in this shifting environment. Also who can put forward strategies that connect with consumers and transmit the spirit of the brand to them. Organizing events and shows, establishing fluid relationships with the media, managing online communities on social networks, planning seductive and appealing advertising campaigns which can make a real impact, and building brand value are just some of the functions public relations officers have. Look no further for an example than Elena Giménez, Head of Marketing and Public Relations for the designer Juan Vidal: you can read an interview with Elena about her day-to-day work.
COOLHUNTER
Any company that wants to be at the forefront of the latest trends needs a coolhunter or trendspotter. These people observe and analyze society to predict what the next top trends and fashions will be in cities across the world.
They are trendsetters just as much as they are trendspotters, and the key part of their work is to predict what the changes around the corner will be. They have to spot and study emerging trends and find the best way to ride that wave. Their expertise is highly valued. They help brands track social changes and identify new business opportunities, possible threats, growing niche markets, etc.
INFLUENCER OR BLOGGER
The terms blogger and influencer are on everyone’s lips right now, but many people wonder they are real jobs. Of course, they certainly are real. But the challenge for bloggers and influencers is to provide real value to the brands they work with. They represent the democratization of fashion and firms increasingly seek them out in order to connect with their followers.
A brand’s image and that of the influencer in question have to match. There has to be chemistry and compatibility with the brand’s style and values for any cooperation to work. This search for coherence and connection with a niche has led to the emergence of the concept of “micro-influencers”. Brands no longer just think about the number of followers. Now are just as concerned about the relationship between the brand and the influencer in question being a credible one.
VISUAL MERCHANDISER
This is another role which is mysterious to those outside of the fashion world. Perhaps they are better known as window dressers. They know how to get inside the mind of the consumer and they understand what makes people stop and look at a shop window. Visual merchandising comprises the whole set of techniques used to arrange products in such a way in the store as to make consumers want to buy them.
There are two key ideas in the work of a visual merchandiser. First one is the fact that everything communicates something. Second is that shopping experience is an essential part of the product itself. What products are shown in the shop window, the layout of the store, who serves customers and how this happens, what effect the in-store aroma has, what music we hear while we shop – all this has to fit with the brand’s image and its objectives.
PRODUCT MANAGER
They are responsible for the product from beginning to end, including its launch, the creation of the marketing plan and right through to the sales analysis.
Project managers are often thought of as the voice of the consumer inside companies. They are the professionals responsible for identifying business opportunities and thinking up new products – or reinventing old ones – to satisfy the new needs consumers have. They also contribute to production, logistics and sales decision-making, meaning that they interact with staff across different company departments.
STORE MANAGER
Store managers play a key role in the fashion world. Away from the glitz of the catwalk, fashion firms need capable people to manage their stores and make them profitable. Store managers have to ensure the brand objectives are being met, supervise the store’s day-to-day operations and apply the visual merchandising strategy.
The store manager is in charge of the team of people working in the store. So, they need to be leaders and to have the skills required for team management. They also need to have a strong grasp of the brand strategy to ensure that it is applied across the store’s operations.
These are just some examples of the roles available for those skilled in fashion communication. It’s likely that many more roles are still to be invented. This is because a change in this and other areas continues to gather pace. This makes it even more important to combine specialist training and a can-do, enthusiastic attitude, in the face of such rapid change.
If you’d like to read more about fashion communication, here are a few more articles we think you might like.
