What Skills Do I Need to Become a Fashion Merchandiser?
A fashion designer is creative and artistic, with exceptional business acumen. First and foremost, an aspiring fashion designer understands the dedication needed to succeed. A fashion merchandiser must be wholly committed to his or her job, even when personal time has to be sacrificed to meet a deadline.
At the very least, a diploma in fashion merchandising design is necessary to obtain entry-level employment. A two or four year bachelor’s program in fashion merchandising is recommended. A four year program is ideal for students hoping to obtain a job with more advanced duties, whereas a two year program is more suited for entry-level positions. Many fashion designers continue their education with advanced studies on an ongoing basis to gain promotion.
Besides academic qualifications, the fashion designer has innate skills. A sophisticated artistic ability to draw and sketch is paramount. Part of the fashion merchandiser’s job may be assembly of product displays to entice buyers or customers. Accompanying this talent is an excellent sense of color, shapes, and forms. Contrast sensitivity with small details in relation to objects of different sizes with visual perception is also elemental.
Physical fitness and hand-eye co-ordination is a significant element in a fashion merchandiser’s daily tasks. Assembling displays may involve lifting heavy weights, working in confined or awkward spaces, understanding basic construction principles, and using hand and power tools.
On the business side of fashion merchandising, multiple skills are required. An analytical and inquiring mind is vital. Fashion merchandisers in the retail sector are responsible for determining which stock stores should purchase. The merchandiser researches fashion trends and examines prior consumer purchasing habits to ascertain which product will likely prove profitable.
The retail merchandiser monitors stock received and maintains current inventory tallies. He or she decides on the appropriate amount of each item to be displayed in the store and ensures storage is available for the remainder. Competitive pricing of items also falls within the fashion merchandiser’s realm. Tracking profit and losses may be assigned to the fashion merchandiser.
Fashion merchandisers working in apparel production require different aptitudes, but still utilize the same form of analytical skills. He or she must be capable of researching production costs. Manufacturers need to be located, quotes obtained, and final figures negotiated, while keeping in mind the ultimate level of quality required.
Production costs are just one component of the equation; the fashion merchandiser must investigate previous sales figures to determine how a product performed and make production cost decisions or recommendations based on his or her conclusions. The fashion merchandiser must be able to substantiate the evidence upon which their results were calculated.
The third crucial element is tracking market trends. Without this ingredient, an apparel production fashion merchandiser cannot perform their job. Designers base their creations on market trends. The fashion merchandiser must be exceptionally skilled at recognizing future fashion directions to be the “in vogue” leaders.
Whether the fashion merchandiser works in the retail or apparel production sector, organization and time management are crucial. The fashion merchandiser may be called upon to perform any number of tasks, often at the same time. Fashion designers may be responsible for multiple lines or divisions and need to have the capability to change focus quickly and effectively. Multi-tasking skills are imperative to accomplish all the different job duties intrinsic to fashion merchandising.
In-depth knowledge of marketing strategies is critical for launching promotional campaigns. Very often, the success of a product hangs solely on innovative selling techniques. The fashion world is fiercely competitive and the pacesetter may gain that slight leverage needed to edge out competitors.
Some employers employ hundreds or thousands of employees. The fashion merchandiser needs to master inter-personal relationships. A merchandiser works with designers, product development, production, marketing, and sales departments. He or she must build connections with various staff to obtain optimum outcomes, while understanding and respecting individual personalities.
