Fashion is a multi-million-dollar industry that defines time, place, and occasion accurately. This multi-faceted industry has evolved over the centuries. And now it is considered to be the fastest growing and ever-changing industry in the market. Here, let’s discuss the Fashion Retail Careers.
Various factors have inspired the new trends in fashion; cinema, celebrities, necessity, creative innovations, economic & social changes have influenced it majorly. At the same time, this industry has sectors in the manifold. These sectors comprise Textile designing, Production, Fashion designing, Retailing, Marketing, Manufacturing, Merchandising, Fashion Shows, and Media.
Fashion Retailing
To define Fashion Retailing in simpler terms, it would be “the process of buying clothes from the manufacturer and selling them to the customers.” This part of the Fashion industry needs to stay with the current trends and acts as a median between the manufacturers and the buyers (customers particularly). In fashion retail, they offer products and services ranging from budget to couture price lines.
There is a wide range of career options in fashion retails. This section of the business is for those who would love to explore the multi-layered fashion world. A job profile as a fashion retailer will enhance your skills as a buyer, seller, and stylist.
Key requirements of entering in the Fashion Retail Careers:
In the diverse culture of fashion, where everything changes in a blink of a second, one must be competent enough with qualifications, interpersonal skills and possess some sense of style. For sure, the experience of working in the industry is the best qualification one can ever get, but these are the keys steps to enter & succeed in the industry:
- Education Qualification:
With a bachelor’s degree in fashion retailing, fashion marketing, fashion merchandising, or a related field, one can easily enter the market. However, a master’s degree will increase the chances of employment with a better start.
MA course:
Various universities across the USA are offering a course of MA in Fashion, Retail, and Luxury Management. The candidates interested in pursuing a career as a Fashion Retailer; should enroll in this program. It helps you learn management concepts such as business strategy, operations, and project management. Leadership management, theoretical knowledge, and practical applications are also included in this program.
- Interpersonal skills:
- Communication skills: It is an essential skill for any career; along with communication, one must also possess good listening skills. In this field, one is expected to interact and take specifications from designers, manufacturers, wholesalers, and customers.
- Positive Approach: In the current scenario, we are bound to face challenges in every industry, but molding ourselves as per the existing industrial standards is necessary. This competitive fashion world demands time and patience to gain success, and one can achieve it only through a positive approach.
- Product Knowledge: In addition to the previous two skills, one must be well versed with the current trends of products and the business. Knowing the trending products, merchandising techniques & USP (Unique Selling Proposition) of your product can benefit your business.
- Selling Techniques: Apart from knowing your product and business, you must also ace the selling techniques in the fashion retail business. Understanding the buyer’s need and explaining the salient features of your product is the key to ace this technique.
- People Pleasing Skill: More than any other business, the fashion industry demands this skill the most. The capability of getting your work done and building a professional connection helps in growing the business. By being a team player, you play a significant role in the business.
- Internships: After obtaining good grades, receiving an internship at a reputed Retail outlet can be icing on the cake. In parallel to your degree, working with outlets or brands can make you understand real trade affairs. In all, internships are those workshops that can train you for the real deal.
- Age: You need to be a minimum of 18 years to be in this business, but there is no upper age limit.
Process of entering in the business:
In this fast-paced fashion world, you need to know the role and route you wish to choose. High street, Online, or Luxury, which of these would you prefer? And list down the fashion houses or high-end retailers. In this industry, there is something known as ‘seasonal hiring’- in which you can apply as a part-timer to get familiar with the industry. With the help of the right course, training, and action plan, you will get a perfect job in the fashion world.
Jobs Profiles in Fashion Retailing:
- Fashion Retail Buyer: A vast set of responsibilities lie on the shoulder of retail buyers. They have to study new trends, predict what shoppers will purchase in stores, introduce the product range and do thorough market research.
- Visual Merchandiser: They are responsible for designing and creating attractive visual displays for the outlets. They are accountable for boosting sales and creating appealing walkways & displays for the customers.
- Store Manager/Supervisor: The store manager oversees the daily functions in the store, such as: creating sale strategies, developing promotional material, supervising the staff, and ensuring a smooth shopping experience for the customers.
- Sales Assistant: They are expected to assist shoppers with any queries regarding the price, size, or stock availability. They will also deal with customer’s complaints and provide a hassle-free shipping experience.
Responsibilities of a Fashion Retailer:
Indeed, there are many job profiles for a Fashion Retailer, but its primary role includes the following responsibilities.
- Fashion Marketing
- Getting suitable suppliers for the business
- Preparing strategies for sale and product development
- Setting sales target and motivating to achieve them
- Attending trade fairs, runways, and conferences
- Selection of products as per the trends and customer’s needs
- Maintaining effective connections with designers and manufacturers
- Budgeting and promotion of products
Salary: Your salary may vary depending on the job profile you hold in the fashion retail business. According to PayScale, the average base salary of the fashion retailer is about $49,681 per annum. These figures again may vary as per the organization and fashion houses.
Online Fashion Retail:
What is online retailing? Something that is also known as ‘E-commerce.’ Transactions such as selecting, buying, and selling products take place on the internet. Over the years, we are witnessing a significant shift of traditional methods into advanced & speedy ways of business. The whole process of leaving your cozy homes and rushing in stores for shopping or waiting for those festive sales is no more in the picture.
The whole idea of online retailing is, how soon can the retailer reach its customer? This section of the business focuses more on displaying, purchasing, supplying, and delivering products at the earliest convenience to the customers. This fast-paced and innovative business model is not just competitive but challenging as well. Moreover, we have seen how online retailing has excelled during pandemic times.
Nonetheless, this challenging way of retail business has also opened many opportunities in the market. Looking at the growing demand and pattern of transacting online, upmarket designers, fancy labels, and high street stores are present for online business. This indicates that graduates from digital and retail backgrounds have an ocean full of opportunities.
Different openings in online retailing:
In order to run the online retail business effectively, there are four important factors to be taken care of,
- Creating a Webpage
- Finalizing the products to be featured on the website
- Ensuring smooth process of the site daily
- Supplying the products
Based on these four steps, there are prospects in the technical and the retail side. On the latter side of the business, one can work as a Retail buyer or Retail Merchandiser.
However, Job profiles on the Technological side are as follows:
- Web Developer
- Web Designer
- UX researcher
- UX designer
With the intention to increase more traffic on the website and to run the day-to-day business, they also need:
- Digital copywriters
- Editors
- Content writers
- Social Media managers
- SEO (search engine optimization) specialists
- Warehouse managers
- Logistics & distribution managers
Online purchasing means that several people are feeding their personal data into the system, which in turn also increases the chances of cybercrime. Hence openings for cybersecurity specialists are also in demand.
Qualifications & Skills for Online Retailing:
Qualifications for offline and online retailing are nearly similar, but graduates from the field of computer science, journalism, digital marketing, logistics, and supply chain management are preferred for online retail businesses. However, there are some specific skills and competencies that are essential for E-commerce jobs:
- basic knowledge or understanding of how online business works
- ability to adapt to new technologies
- understanding how to drive traffic towards our web page
- computer skills; knowledge of software development and web development
- knowing influencer’s market and brand promotion
- a creative spark for Content creation & web designing
- well versed with various social media platforms and trends
- having a knack for numerical and analytical skills for UX & SEO buying
- customer service skill
Benefits of being in the Fashion Retail Industry:
- Exploring the Company Culture: In this ambitious industry, one needs to start early by exploring the various career aspects. If you can survive in this highly competitive industry with constantly changing trends and styles, you have opted for the right career.
- Developing Social Skills: To learn business tactics, we all need some time to come out of our protected shells. Fashion retail is undoubtedly the industry where you can enhance all your interpersonal skills.
- Fashion Enthusiast: For a person who enjoys being surrounded with everything voguish – this is the industry. Here one can enjoy apparel, accessories, and footwear. And not to forget the employee discount on high-end brands – you enjoy this facility if you are an in-store employee.
- A shift in methods: The market has changed in terms of fashion and how we perceive or buy things. It is Gen Z who is challenging the traditional methods of buying and selling. We not just have runway models but also influencers to promote our brands or products. Social Media is playing a vital role in this part of the business as well; all the brands and fashion houses now have online retail stores.
Demand for luxury:
When we speak about designers, labels, and new collections every year, we forget that this industry also includes millions of small-scale industries and fine craftsmen. And there are many in-between high-end fashions to street fashion that does not get their deserved dues. From Paris runways to streets and designers to a commoner, designs are copied at lightning speed. Undoubtedly, fakes are recognized because of their cheap quality, and demand for luxury prevails in the market.
Hence fashion industry and other sectors connected with this industry will always rise. Yes, with natural disasters, political and economic changes, there might be fluctuations in the market. But this industry will always have openings for various prospects.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- Who is the biggest fashion retailer in the world?
Inditex-Spain is the topmost fashion apparel retailer in the world.
- What are the 5 Rs of retailing?
The five rights include providing the (a) right merchandise at(b) the right place, (c) at the right time, (d)in the right quantities, and (e) at the right price.
- How is the fashion retail career path?
It is a competitive field in the fashion industry, but with the right skills, ability to face challenges, and suitable connections, it is a rewarding career.
- What is the fashion retail strategy?
A retail strategy is to develop our product and services, using mass media & communications as tools, and selling our product to customers.
- How much does a fashion merchandiser earn?
The average salary for a fashion merchandiser can be upto$41,572 per annum in the USA.
- Who is the biggest online fashion retailer?
shein.com is the biggest online fashion retailer.
- Where do I apply for online fashion retailing?
There are various job sites on which you can apply and submit your resume for online fashion retailing jobs, Indeed.com, Glassdoor.co.in, & Linkedin.com.