In a country as great as India, the demand for fashion will stay high despite dips in trends. Fashion design is very versatile in India. It is illustrated by diverse cultures, traditions and sometimes by western trends too.
Scope of Fashion Designing
The industry in itself is so vast that there are endless opportunities for various skill sets. Fashion Designing is one of the most lucrative careers young aspirants can take up. It is a highly competitive field; however, you can improve your chances of success if you specialise in a niche area. Most people entering this field are highly passionate about style and pull inspiration from various personal influences and experiences.
The fashion industry offers a variety of duties and roles. For example, you could be involved in process-oriented design work like conceptualisation or hands-on work with contemporary and innovative materials, textiles and fabrics. One could also be a professional studying ongoing, future or past seasons and trends. Finally, one can also be in a more entrepreneurial position, like developing a design range and marketing and selling their brand and products to the end client. If attributes like persistence, creativity, patience, originality with a flair for textiles and colours are what define you, then the field of fashion designing could be your calling!
Who is a Fashion Designer?
Fashion designers are considered the heart & soul of the fashion world, and only the creative best can thrive in this challenging industry. A fashion designer visualises the garment and works through the entire process from concept to development, ensuring the final garment is as the designer envisioned. Fashion design gets its influence from social and cultural attributes. The scope of fashion designing is not confined to just clothing. It covers numerous other aspects like accessories, jewellery, footwear, etc. Irrespective of the path you opt for, some of the listed qualities below would undoubtedly help you succeed with a promising career in fashion design.
- Contextual understanding: exploring and analysing the creation as an ensemble, considering various aspects such as the client’s budget, culture appropriation, weather conditions, etc.
- Business acumen: understanding the rules of the trade can help designers make knowledgeable decisions.
- Sketching: this will aid in bridging the gap between the concept and development phase and facilitate more accessible communication with clients.
- Communication skills (verbal and written): this skill is vital to present your ideas/concepts to the prospective client and market your creations.
- Technical skills: this includes skills such as pattern making, sewing, draping and CAD applications( Photoshop, Illustrator, etc.) that a fashion designer can’t function without.
- Networking: talent is essential, but you must never forget to be in the right place with the right person at the right moment.
- Openness to experimenting: there is a constant demand for new designs, trends and styles that can be met only with intelligent experimentative projects.
Fashion Designing is a discipline that challenges one to reach within the depth of their vision and bring out their A-game in design. The field is competitive; however, by pursuing the proper education, one can definitely find one’s niche and succeed in the field. If you’re interested in joining the fashion industry, you must consider a specialised education in the field of fashion. IIAD, Delhi is an institute offering Fashion Design courses in collaboration with Kingston University. IIAD places enormous importance on collaborative projects, industry interactions, and practical experience, much needed in this domain. In addition, IIAD offers UG and PG programmes to shape you into competent design professionals with leadership qualities to take on the challenges of our fast-changing world!