Interoperable Designers

If you are a good fashion designer, my view is that you should be able to design & develop product for pretty much any category. Yes, there are very specific categories such as Footwear, Sweaters and Bags (to a lesser degree) that need more hands-on experience. But, with a good brand aesthetic, clear design direction and a solid merchandising plan, any designer worth their salt should be able to swing from Women’s Knits to Men’s Shirts to Kid’s Jackets. Being a designer means you research trends, best-sellers in your brand as well as the competitive market, decide what works and what doesn’t for your collection both aesthetically and functionally, and then put pen to paper…or mouse to pad. If you have proven yourself to excel in your current position in Men’s Woven Bottoms, there is no reason to think you would fail at designing Women’s Outerwear.

This happens in other creative fields such as Advertising. How dare a copywriter who has been working on pharma for 5 years apply for a consumer copywriting position? How could they possibly do the job? Um, do they know how to put a cohesive, compelling sentence together that meets the well-written brief’s needs? Do they come up with new & unique ways to say the same old thing, day after day, on-time? Then hire that man/woman…NOW.

Hiring managers need to stop looking for the perfect person & hire the amazing one that will bring a unique and broad perspective to the brand.