How to become a Fashion Designer

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.

Personal requirements for a Fashion Designer

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

Education & Training for a Fashion Designer

To become a fashion designer you usually have to complete a VET qualification. Applicants may be required to attend an interview and/or submit a folio of their work. As subjects and prerequisites can vary between institutions, you should contact your chosen institution for further information.You can also become a fashion designer by completing a degree in fashion design or fashion and textiles. To get into these courses you usually need to gain your Senior Secondary Certificate of Education with English. Applicants may be required to attend an interview and/or submit a folio of their work. A number of institutions in Australia offer degrees in these areas. Institutions have different prerequisites and some have flexible entry requirements. Contact the institutions you are interested in for more information.

Duties & Tasks of a Fashion Designer

Fashion designers:

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.

Tasks

Selects, specifies and recommends functional and aesthetic materials, production methods and finishes for manufacture.
Prepares sketches, diagrams, illustrations, plans, samples and models to communicate design concepts.
Formulates design concepts for clothing.
Determines objectives and constraints of the design brief by consulting with clients and stakeholders.
Prepares and commissions prototypes and samples.
Negotiates design solutions with clients, management, sales and manufacturing staff.
Does product research and analyses functional, commercial, cultural and aesthetic requirements.
Details and documents selected designs for production.

Employment Opportunities for a Fashion Designer

Fashion designers work for manufacturing houses, small businesses or retailers. They may design ready-to-wear clothing or one-off garments to be sold to retailers or directly to the public. They tend to specialise in one area, such as menswear, children's wear, knitwear or lingerie.In addition, opportunities exist for specialist work in an established business as a designer, cutter, patternmaker/grader, sample machinist, general machinist or subcontractor. Fashion designers may also become trainers in the industry.The fashion industry is highly competitive and success depends on talent and determination. Vacancies are extremely limited for trainees wanting to work their way up to fashion designing. Some employers promote employees who have gained practical experience in the industry.A limited number of vacancies for qualified and experienced designers exist in both large fashion companies and smaller clothing manufacturing firms. Most vacancies occur in large capital cities, especially Sydney and Melbourne. Some opportunities exist for talented and experienced designers to establish their own businesses or work on a freelance basis.

Specializations

Fashion Coordinator

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

Fashion Designer

Average age
37
Future Growth
N/A
Gender Share
86% female
Average full-time
43 hours
Weekly Pay
N/A
Skill level rating
Very high skill
Unemployment
Lower unemployment
Full-Time Share
66%
Employment Size
3,700
Employment by state
ACT: 0.3%
NSW: 35.8%
NT: 0.2%
QLD: 11.4%
SA: 3.2%
TAS: 0.5%
VIC: 42.7%
WA: 6.0%
Age brackets
15-19: 0.4%
20-24: 8.7%
25-34: 38.7%
35-44: 25.8%
45-54: 17%
55-59: 5%
60-64: 2.4%
65 and Over: 1.9%
Education level
Advanced Diploma/Diploma: 29.4%
Bachelor degree: 38.9%
Certificate III/IV: 9.3%
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate: 5.4%
Year 10 and below: 2.6%
Year 11: 1.7%
Year 12: 12.7%