As fashion season is here, and we hit our third anniversary, in this article we discuss why fashion designers are bad at business and how we are trying to change that.
When I went on Dragons Den, I was in my mid 20s and deeply inexperienced with any kind of business, I went seeking business advice (which I got plentiful of, thanks Touker!), however fashion designers are not business people.
My issue is that I that I have dyspraxia and even basic numbers are challenging for me. Unfortunately I do add to the stereotype that fashion designers are bad businesspeople and this is something i want to change.
However where did this stereotype come from? If you want do your own research, you can look at some fashion designers accounts online which show that many are in substantial debt. However there are a few factors that make a fashion house harder to make profitable.
Big Dreams, Big Budget
Fashion designers are known to prioritise our vision.. We often dream of our jobs since we are children. Our visions are huge. And when we finally get to our goal of fashion week, which is full of obstacles, we don’t think of a spreadsheet or sales. We just think our vision is so wonderful, we assume would buy in it. For this reason we start out with quite a lot of debt and an attitude that only the most superior materials will do.
Design School does not prepare you for business.
Adding to this is despite design schools teaching you history and aesthetics of a product. We are taught sewing techniques, colour theory. However few programs teach the essential skills in business such as budgeting, managing supply chains and even scaling brands. . Most graduates leave school without the business acumen to run a long lasting fashion house that is financially sound.
Running a Fashion House is Expensive
Fashion houses are notoriously expensive to run. From production costs with the finest materials to runway shows and marketing, which is so expensive; everything we do significant capital. Most designers are visionaries and we do not have the training or experience to navigate the logistics of managing cash flow and handling the business side of production. As a result, designers often need a lot of help from experienced business managers or investors — a resource not all have access to.
Creating Imagery Over Practicality.
Designers are incredible at creating compelling worlds and visions for their collections. We excel at crafting narratives through our designs, campaigns, and runway presentations. However, this focus on creating captivating visual content quickly overshadows practical aspects of running a business when our 'creative vision' gets involved. We are creative directors not financial planners.
In the UK, I’ve observed many companies that operate heavily on debt and have yet to turn a profit, and grown up watching projects use economic strategies that promised so much, but were not sustainable in the long term. I want to be part of the generation who build from the ground up, not relying on financial wizardry or quick fixes. The goals we have at Moray Luke will take a long time but we want to grow organically and this will take time.
