不要被蕾丝和荷叶边愚弄了：时尚圈远比电影《时尚女魔头》的任何一个场景都要竞争激烈。因为很快另一个时装周就要接踵而至，内部人士会提建议给那些怀着T台梦想的人——或任何想在攀登时尚高峰时让自己看起来有型的人。
有时候，你能做的只有微笑：有些变化通常会超出你的控制范围。时尚秀都是现场直播，结束时你往往只能拍几张闭着眼睛的模特照片。
一边由有品位的设计师设计出漂亮的衣服；另一边则组织整场活动，从制作、销售、分销再到营销，唯一缺少的就是对产生这一切的所有人的管理。我建议那些想靠自己的人，最好选择一家时尚公司先积累经验，从经验中了解这个行业有多复杂。
光有创造力是不够的：要试着寻求，并小心保持创造力与商业之间的平衡：一个行业的成功往往取决于是否能很好地平衡。——Bibhu Mohapatra说道，他的作品最近刚在W Hotels’ Fashion Next活动中首度亮相。
我于2001年开创了Milly这个品牌，并且在此后的8年时间里，我从工作中发现了很多乐趣，每一天都过得很开心。直到出现2009年的经济危机……那是我第一次感到这个工作没有意思。为了保持品牌形象，我的一些大单子变得非常“具有挑战”。但是我从来没有想过放弃——因为那不是我的风格。我很欣慰现在一切已经走向正轨。——Milly的设计师Michelle Smith说道。
把团队工作变为理想工作：给自己建造一支由才能出众的人组成的团队。可能刚开始财务上会比较紧张，但是雇用正确的人是非常重要的。你周围能教你的人越多，你的产品就会越好，不要用一些想从工作中慢慢学习的人。另一个同等重要的建议是：既不要夸夸其谈，也不要过分谦虚。证明你产品的机会很难得，因此，耐心地打好基础也许更加明智。
竞争到底有多激烈呢？作为一个年轻的设计师，你的竞争对手是在该行业已经发展30年的、在行业和品牌上做得最好的人。我们的产品要卖给同样的零售商，因此，他们希望无论从品质、生产还是零售上都是一样的。然而，每一位设计师都是不同的，这才是人们喜欢时尚的原因。我不认为年轻的设计师能够严格达到品质标准，或在前两年就能适应这个行业，因为许多大品牌在很多年前也犯过错误。每一种品牌都需要经历一些东西来获得成长，但是，这种机会不会总留给年轻品牌。——Christian Siriano说道。
尽管这样……年轻毕竟有优势：我们太年轻了，现在放弃还太早……这就是在我字典里的一句话。——Rafael Cennamo
继续工作，即使在下班时间：抓住向你走来的每一次机会——如今进入这个行业的机会太多了，不管是实习还是Project Runway这样的电视节目，普通人有机会通过这些途径接触到这个行业的内部人士。同样，社会媒体给年轻人提供了接近这个行业最容易的路径，同时也创造了很多机会。——Rebecca Taylor
多为它付出一些时间：保持你的好奇心。不仅在时尚行业，而要多关注所有与文化有关的行业。你必须不断给自己充电才能保持时尚。把推动时尚行业向前发展当作你的责任吧。 —Cynthia Rowley
……但是不要忘了做家庭作业：我们要不断努力，争取呈现出一款真正独特的产品，还要保持同等奢侈品的价位。这意味着我们要对这些独一无二的材质和细节做大量研究，还要用全新的设计达到消费者争相寻找却难以企及的品质。——Amy Smilovic，TIBI的设计师。
刚进入这个行业时，我总是先倾听零售商的需求，做什么都参考很多他们的意见。最后，我发现自己的设计就是按照他们说的那样做的，我丢失了自己的观点。自从发现这一点之后，Tibi就朝着我一直希望的方向发展着，最终成为一款干净、轻松的女性休闲品牌。——Amy Smilovic
ALLIS说完并做完之后，又回到了第一广场：要保持灵敏的时尚嗅觉。这个行业每天都会有更多新人进来，因此这个行业很挤。——Niclle Miller认为这是时尚行业最大的挑战。
然而，最大的挑战是开一家公司，这在传统上被认为是“男人的工作”。但是，我喜欢这种挑战，并且在上周被人评价“你的思想像一个男人”时，我感到这是一种称赞。知道那不容易，但还要始终坚持。当你摔倒时，迅速并优雅地站起来，不要有任何抱怨。还有，这个行业逐渐变得社会化，因此，不要过河拆桥。——Norma Kamali
Don’t be fooled by lace and ruffles: fashion is far more competitive than any scene in “The Devil Wears Prada.” As yet another Fashion Week comes to a close, insiders offer advice for runway hopefuls – or anyone else who wants to look stylish while climbing to the top.
SOMETIMES, ALL YOU CAN DO IS SMILE: Some variables are simply beyond your control. Fashion shows are live events. You always end up with a photo or two where the model has her eyes closed.
It’s one thing to have a vision and make great clothes; it’s quite another to master the entire operation that goes into manufacturing, sales, distribution and marketing, let alone learning how to manage all of the people that are needed to make that happen! I would advise anyone looking to do their own line to get a lot of working experience at another fashion company to learn the intricacies of the business.
CREATIVITY IN AND OF ITSELF IS NOT ENOUGH: To find and carefully maintain the balance between creativity and commerce: It is a fine balance that defines and determines success of a business. – Bibhu Mohapatra, who recently staged his first runway show with support from W Hotels’ Fashion Next program
I launched Milly in 2001. It was pretty much fun and laughs every day for eight years, until the economic downturn of 2009… that was the first time the business was not fun for me. To put it politely, some of our larger accounts became “challenging” to deal with. But I never wanted to give up – it is not my style. I am pleased to say things are now back on track. – Michelle Smith, designer of Milly
TURN TEAMWORK INTO DREAM WORK:Surround yourself and build a team of quality competent people. It is hard to bite this financial bullet in the beginning but it’s also very important to hire well. The more you can surround yourself with people who can teach you, as opposed to having them learn on the job, the better off your product will be. The other equally important advice I would give is not to over-promise and under-deliver. There are very few chances to prove your product; therefore, it is much wiser to slowly build a foundation. – Lela Rose
HOW FIERCE IS THE COMPETITION? As a young designer, you are compared to the best in the business and brands that have been in the industry for 30 years. We all sell to the same retailers, so they expect the same quality, production and sell-throughs. Yet every designer is different, and that’s what people should love about fashion. I don’t think any young designer will be able to meet the exact quality expectations and fit their first 2 years in business, compared to the larger brand that has been able to make mistakes years before. Every brand needs to grow with experience but that chance isn’t always given to a young brand. – Christian Siriano
ALTHOUGH… YOUTH HAS ITS ADVANTAGES: I’m too young for giving up… this has yet to be found in my vocabulary. – Rafael Cennamo
WORK IT, EVEN DURING OFF HOURS: Take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way – nowadays there are so many ways to have access to the industry, whether it’s through internships or TV shows likeProject Runway where the public can have exposure to the inner-workings of the industry. Also, social media has played a huge part in providing young people easy access to industry contacts, which in turn creates opportunities. –Rebecca Taylor
PUT IN SOME EXTRA CREDIT: Stay curious. Not just in the fashion business, but in all culturally relevant industries. To stay current you have to evolve constantly. Make it your responsibility to push the industry forward. —Cynthia Rowley
…BUT DON’T FORGET TO DO THE HOMEWORK: We constantly strive to offer a truly special product while remaining at a luxury contemporary price point. That means a great deal of research on unique fabrics, detailing and developing new constructions to maintain the level of quality our customers are looking for that’s not out of reach. - Amy Smilovi c, Designer of TIBI
When I started out in the business, I listened to the needs of retailers, took into great account their opinions about the line and what would sell, then found myself designing accordingly. I lost sight of my vision. Since coming to that realization, Tibi has evolved into what I’ve always wanted it to be, a collection of clean, relaxed and feminine sportswear. – Amy Smilovic
AFTER ALL IS SAID AND DONE, IT’S BACK TO SQUARE ONE: Always try to stay relevant. There are more and more new players in the industry every day, and it is a very crowded room. – The biggest challenge of the fashion industry, according to Nicole Miller
The biggest challenge is running a company, a role that has traditionally been considered a ‘man’s job.’ However, I like the challenge and felt somewhat complimented when I was told last week, “You think like a man.” Know that it’s not easy, but keep persevering. When you fall down, get up quickly and elegantly and stop complaining. Also, this industry tends to be a social one, so don’t burn bridges. - Norma Kamali
