Fashion Merchandising Job Description

The fashion world, to the untrained eye, is all bling, sparkle and gloss. What we see on TV or in magazines is only the tip of the iceberg. What goes on behind the scenes to get that perfect shot on the cover of a fashion magazine is something that everyone is not familiar with.

It is the fashion merchandiser that takes care of all the minute details to guarantee that an entire event is a major success. Let us see what exactly this job description includes.

Given here is a list of some of the jobs that you'll have to undertake as a one.

• First and foremost, you need to have a good eye for fashion and style if you want to get into the fashion merchandising field. Once you have that, as one, you must have the ability to spot and pick out emerging trends in the market.

• Picking out emerging trends requires a lot of legwork, a strong head, a sense of predicting comebacks from the past and other such abilities.
• Analyzing the current market trends to predict a future one is also an important duty.

• For fashion shows and other such vital occasions, it is his duty to conceive creative and desirable ideas and strategies for them to be a success.

Once you have a good sense of what's hot or what is likely to be hot, the next step is to acquire said hot products and keep them at the ready for showcasing at suitable occasions or for the market to identify that the trends have changed. To do this successfully, he will have to undertake the following duties and responsibilities.

• A strong business sense is an absolute essential if you want to foray into the world of fashion merchandising. The job description of a fashion merchandiser involves the purchasing, maintaining and appropriate sale of the purchased merchandise. For this, it is imperative that he have good knowledge of the financial trends in the fashion world as well.

• He needs to have the know how of the fundamentals of the buying and selling of fashion merchandise in order to appropriately execute the sales, which is the final motive.
• He must oversee the purchasing of material, the inventory and also the production of the various items as per the requirements.

• For this, he must have the appropriate contacts or develop them, and get the materials at reasonable rates from them.

• Apart from just identifying and readying up for the trend that is in vogue at the moment, he must also research and should be able to predict the trends that could be in vogue in the future. By doing this accurately, he can formulate appropriate strategies and use advantageous and cost-effective measures to produce in advance.

You've conducted your research and found out what are the hot fashion trends, you've also predicted a few of them. Now comes the task that you're actually hired for. Fashion looks good only if it's worn, not on the stands. So, the most critical job of all is to be able to actually make people buy the fashions that you've created.

• This involves formulating sustainable endeavors in order to sell the fashion.
• For this, organizing and arranging fashion shows is a major responsibility entrusted to fashion merchandisers.
• Meeting with all the concerned people like fashion directors, fashion buyers etc. is something that he must undertake.

• Maintaining amicable contacts with retailers, suppliers, textile merchandisers, production executives, designers, advertisers, catalog production executives, and others is another responsibility that he must take in his stride, because it will go a long way in building a strong relationship with the fashion house that he is working for.

• Developing favorable and feasible advertising campaigns is another important part of being a fashion merchandiser. The success of the product depends greatly upon the way it is portrayed in its advertisements. Hence, portraying the right image and to the right audience is a great responsibility entrusted to him.

It may all seem like a perfect fantasy for all you fashion geeks, but be warned that the work is not always as pretty and all glammed up as we see it in the media. So, if you're ready to give it your all and know that you'll do it complete justice, get yourself an appropriate diploma/degree. You never know, being a fashion merchandiser may be your calling!