BIS Publishers
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The Netherlands
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www.bispublishers.nl
ISBN 978-90-6369-340-4
eISBN 978-90-6369-369-5
Copyright © 2012
Susie Breuer and BIS Publishers
Written by: Susie Breuer
www.co-lab54.com
Designed by: Lilian van Dongen Torman
www.lilianvandongentorman.nl
All rights reserved.
Foreword by Mariëtte Hoitink
“This book is an absolute must-read for everyone working in fashion or with ambitions to do so.”
This book is an absolute must-read for everyone working in fashion or with ambitions to do so. In my daily work as the managing director of htnk – the Amsterdam based premier fashion recruitment & consultancy agency – I get applications from people all over the world who want to make it big in fashion. Ever since the start of the ‘Next Designer’ or ‘Models’ television shows, a lot of people discovered their own inner designer star within themselves. In the eyes of the general public, fashion appears to be equivalent to glamour, but what a lot of people don’t know is that this may well be the most intensive, life-consuming, demanding business there is. As a result, the fashion business is filled with people with extreme persistence, vision and talent, and therefore, it is indeed a lot of fun to work in, but definitely not for the reasons most people may think.
This book presents a practical overview, basic but detailed, of the heart of every fashion company: development and production. These are in most cases the teams that work together most intensively with all other departments – from design to legal, sales and marketing. This obviously makes this book a Bible for everyone with ambitions for careers in the buying, product development, and of course, production area. But they are not the only ones for whom this is relevant; for all those fashion professionals who work in design, marketing, sales, csr, legal and financial departments, this book will provide some insight into why they occasionally find their production colleagues reaching their boiling points, running through corridors screaming and banging their heads against walls. Now they will know that the moment has come to hand over that chocolate bar, bring some good coffee and take that head massage thingy out of its drawer. Your colleagues need you now.
Considering all the ‘Green is the new black’ slogans people keep throwing around nowadays, this book can create an understanding, a deeper awareness of where clothing comes from. I would like to believe that if people knew more about where exactly garments come from and how much effort and work has been put into their creation, they will treat them differently. From that perspective, I would highly recommend the general reader curious about clothes to give this book a go as well.
So, why is this book this relevant for such a large group of people? Because it hasn’t existed before. Fashion is an industry that really lacks the documented methodology found in many other industries. This is so in spite of the fact that clothing is a basic need; people all over the world deal with clothing every day and the industry has a significant influence on several countries’ economies, environments and everyday life. I think, therefore, it is our job to invest in this industry’s innovations that will turn the negative aspects of this business into positive ones. Innovation can only exist when information and methods are shared and discussed. Therefore, I’m very honoured to have met this most dedicated and talented fashion professional, Susie Breuer, who found the courage and extreme persistence to document this whole process, the core of every fashion company, whilst continuing to carry on her demanding job as a consultant for one of the most high end – and demanding – designer labels in the world. Huge respect.
Congrats,
Mariëtte Hoitink,
HTNK Fashion recruitment & consultancy
www.htnk.nl
Preface
Like most girls, I became interested in fashion at a fairly early age, tearing pages out of glossy magazines and learning how to use a sewing machine, but unlike most girls who are content to remain on the outside of the industry as a consumer, I decided to venture inside to become part of the global business of bringing fashion to the people.
Starting in the business at the humblest level, I have, over the years, worked in various roles in a wide range of companies, always learning on the job, often making mistakes, though seldom the same one twice, whilst experiencing the highs and the lows involved in the process of turning a designer’s ideas into reality.
On countless occasions I wished that there was a book where I could look to find out what to do next, and how to do it, but there never was. As my experience grew and I became more and more senior in the business, watching assistants struggle with the same difficulties I had years ago, I realised that such a book was needed and that, perhaps, I had the breadth of experience to take on the task. Before doing so, I looked to see what was already in print, and found that whilst there are many books about fashion, there still isn’t a book available that gives the full, detailed picture of the whole process, that sets out in detail who does what, and in what order these have to be done for the process to work. I recognised the gap in the market and set about trying to fill it.
This book is written from my own personal experience of developing and producing fashion collections from high street brands to a catwalk line, and includes all the steps that are needed to turn the designer’s sketch into a garment. It sets out the roles of all the people involved, the terms people use and the different responsibilities that rest with the people in various positions; in short, it is a step by step guide to developing a collection. In writing the book I considered it awkward to use ‘they’ when talking about a single individual, so I have allocated male or female personal pronouns randomly to people performing various roles/functions, but I want to make it clear that any role/function can be performed by persons of either sex.
With every brand having its own method of working depending on its location in the world and their resources, it is hard to anticipate every different scenario that a developer or production coordinator may be faced with; however, what you will find in this book are the basic ideas that can help you understand the bigger picture of how a collection is made, and to help you find your way through the job and the industry as a whole. Development or production is not especially glamorous, but they are absolutely essential to the success of the process. It is no exaggeration to say that these departments are the linchpin of the creation of a fashion collection; without the tireless efforts of these people, invisible from outside the organisation, the collection simply would not be made.
The book has been written both as a guide to be read from cover to cover and as a reference book to be kept close to hand to be consulted as and when necessary. It might not tell the reader exactly how company x manages a certain procedure, but it provides the basic framework that makes the procedure at company x understandable. Although there is considerable variation between companies in job titles, management structures and chains of responsibility, what needs to be done to turn a design on paper into a garment on somebody’s back, is pretty much the same everywhere.
Developing and producing a collection is extremely hard. It takes patience, determination and flexibility, but it is also one of the most rewarding aspects of the industry with the mix of creativity and problem solving. I hope this book helps to demystify the procedures and terminology