I always thought it sounded fun to be a fashion buyer for some cool company. Getting to travel the globe in search for the latest trends and trying to predict whhat is going to be the next hot thing sounds great. An old acquaintance of mine worked at a swimwear manufacturer in Uruguay and I'd always be hearing about her trips to Italy and Asia looking for new fabrics and attending many runway shows. That was what got me interested in the position! As a fashion buyer, you will definetly be doing a lot of travel hopping from hotel to hotel and rubbing shoulders with the fashion elite. You'e days will be long but you probably won't even realize your working!
There are a few common ways to get a job as a fashion buyer but it always helps to know someone in the department you're looking to get hired in. One way is to start by working in retail. Spend time getting to know your area's district manager as well as the store merchandisers. Ask them questions and show them your interested in the field.
Read as much as you can about not only fashion, but about the business side of things. How are the good financed, how long does it take to have orders filled, what are the terms of the sale, are we going to manufacture the items in-house or outsource the production? These are just a few of the things a fashion buyer will have to know about so get reading! A good start to learning about the business of fashion is Womens Wear Daily (wwd.com). Read that every day for a month and you will be ahead of 97% of people applying for the job, and the interviewer will most likely be very impressed! Good luck!
