Lessons Learned from Working in the Fashion Industry

There's a great deal of misconception among the general public and those who work outside of the fashion world that the fashion business is a superficial industry. The media and movies are partly to blame for these attitudes and beliefs. If you've watched the movie,The Devil Wears Prada, or the TV sitcom, Ugly Betty, you probably think that all fashion editors are catty and all fashion industry people care about are outward appearances. Although this may be true to some degree, for the most part, there are people in the industry who take their job seriously and can be just as down-to-earth as your average girl-next-door.

Here are just a couple of questions I've read or heard about the topic of fashion and the fashion industry:

Can people actually have intelligent conversations about fashion? The answer to that is a resounding "Yes!" There are many issues going in the industry outside of which celebrity wore what on the red carpet or who is on the cover of Vogue this month. There are fashion designers who are making history from with innovative designs.

Can people make a difference in this world by working in the fashion industry? There is always the opportunity to make a difference in people's lives no matter what you do. Coco Chanel gave women stylish and chic clothing to wear to work. Stella McCartney is using her power to fight for animal rights. Ralph Lauren has donated eco-friendly "denim" insulation to the Habitat for Humanity. People have to remember that fashion is a business just like any other business in this world and there's certainly money to be made in the fashion industry. We all wear clothes, right?

Is the fashion industry to blame for the skinny model debate? For those of you who don't know, the industry decided to ban skinny models from the runway in some countries. Here in the U.S. the Council of Fashion Designers of America set "guidelines" for models to follow, but they still have yet to enforce any rules like Spain or Brazil has. However, to answer the question posed, I think that the industry is partly to blame because there is a great deal of pressure from agents and fashion designers for models to look a certain way. The idea is that clothing looks better on tall and skinny models. However, on the other hand, models do not have to succumb to that pressure.

As the editor of a fashion blog, I've been in contact with fashion bloggers all over the world, public relations people in New York, as well as insiders in the fashion industry. I've learned so much about the business and like I said before, it's just like any industry. You have the good people and then you have those who give it a bad name. One thing is for sure, though. We'll always need fashion in our lives!