Quick Q&A with Hilary Alexander & Fashion Designer Zandra Rhodes

As a fashion graduate who is fresh out of London College of fashion, sometimes it can be a bit daunting when you've spent nearly all of your life in education, and then you're free to do whatever you like. I've learnt a lot of the last few uni years which I feel has prepared me for industry work, but my dream is to eventually venture out on my own. 

Over the weekend at the 'Birmingham Clothes Show Live'  I had the pleasure of meeting famous Fashion Journalist Hilary Alexander and Fashion Designer Zandra Rhodes who gave me great advice for fashion graduates and emerging designers. 

Meeting renound fashion designer Dame Zandra Rhodes was the highlight of my day. Famous for her use of colour and print, Zandra Rhodes could be described as outrageous extrovert designer who loves to push boundaries.

                                            Zandra Rhodes Designs (Images sourced from google images)

I love her design aesthetic, so when I met her I completely fanned out and had a fashion moment lol. I told her that I was a graduate and I asked her

 Shara: what is your advice to fashion graduates and emerging designers?

Zanda Rhodes: 'Surround yourself with people that encourage you, don't surround yourself with people that say, don't do that. Always be around people that encourage you, because its easy for people to put you down and say don't do it, you can't do it, but if YOU say that you can - then you will'

                                                                                   Me with Zandra Rhodes 

I also met Hilary Alexander, you may have seen her on 'Britain's next top model' or at London Fashion week, so obviously I fanned out when I met her as well. I asked her,

Shara: What is your advice to fashion graduates and emerging designers ?

Hilary: 'It's always a good idea to have a partner who looks after the financial side, but at the same time you don't want to be a complete airhead and not really know about the business, you've got to get business experience. Don't always be in such a rush to start your own label straight away, take your time. Get work experience even if you're doing it at Primark, Sainburys or George in Asda, because you will learn so much. It is very important that what you're designing people will wear, and that it fits them, that you've got the sizing right, which department you're going to go for, what age group, what sizes.
                                                                               Me with Hilary Alexander

Shara: What would you say to the students / graduates, who are hesitant about being commercial because of fear of not being called 'innovative'?

Hilary: 'Everyone's got to be a bit commercial. I mean Christopher Kane who's fabulous, he says 'what are we here for? we're here to sell clothes'. There's no point in making clothes if they're just going to hang in a glass case. You've got to have the balance, have a partner that can look after the development of the business, leaving you free to concentrate on the creative side, and at the same time you've got to have an understanding of what fashion is all about, because it's not just making clothes.'

I left the Clothes Show that day feeling amazing! Even if I did nothing else for the whole day, just to meet these two inspirational women was worth it. I value and respect both of their opinions and feedback. I will definitely take what these women have said on board and apply it to my fashion journey. :)