Good Design Pays Off!

It is so good to see design back on the agenda as a valued skill and being regarded by Government as an economic asset!

During the last decade when mass manufacturers dominated the public purse, design was regarded as an 'arty' subject with little relevance to the clothing industry mainly because it was easier to "copy" European designs and reproduce them . These large scale manufacturers were protected by tarrifs against overseas imports and were able to perpetuate these derivative work practices at the taxpayers expense. These companies were the first to predict doom and gloom with the free trade agreements and put out the general view that the clothing industry was a 'sunset' i.e. dying industry and that the Australian economy would be ruined by the flood of Chinese imports.

This perception was picked up parents and careers teachers who have been quick to inform young people there is no future in clothing design. (I still meet this ill informed view in the schools from Careers teachers and parents)

Of course Australia cannot compete with China as a manufacturing country (especially when you consider how little they pay their labour force ) and most young people have no desire to train as industrial factory cutters or machinists !

Moving offshore for manufacture has opened has opened up a vibrant new market for fashion design in Australia and means individual designers can be world best and compete on the world stage with good design skills.! The emerging fashion market is rather like a'beer barrel' shape with a small high end market of exclusive garments at one end and the mass market with cheap throwaway clothes at the other end.

What is burgeoning is the middle boutique market and the good news is that it is possible for a small business or individual designer to access the global production chain to achieve world best goals with their own resources and get short run productions very economically from overseas manufactuers.

Currently there are over 60 Australian labels exporting their designs to boutiques and Department stores in Asia, Europe and United Staes and the Mercedes Fashion Festival in Sydney and Melboure is a must for international buyers who are picking up designers every year IF they have a production infrastructure ready to reproduce. This means they also need to access the global chain to meet orders.

There also are hundreds of small business practitioners (who never get into the statistics )but continue to provide creative design services for bridal and evenings and earn a good income in AUstralia. They do not always attract the publicity of the high end market or the mass market but they are responding to a growing demand from today's smart customers who are demanding good fit and original design.

Even the mass chain clothing producers are finally waking up to the idea that it might be good to have original designers in their stable and are paying good money for the intellectual property of young designers instead of 'flogging off' their designs without permission.

Unfortunately this practice is still rife within the industry but established designers like Bettina Liano and Scanlan and Theodore and Kit Willow are taking legal action against the big players and setting precedents to stop the predators plundering innovative ideas ! Geoff Gallup, Premier of Western Australia, has defined the true value of the fashion design industry as follows:

"The fashion industry is an area in which our greatest asset is intellectual capital;the ability to create original designs; the marketing nous to sell them; and the business knowledge to see it can all be done again next season."

What a great statement! With this climate of support it is no wonder the West Australian designers are winning all the prizes at the 'Australian Masters of Fashion '(previously Gown of the Year). They have always developed custom made clothing rather than industrial practices and have created many names including Liz Davenport and Carla Zampatti!

Liz Davenport incidentally, has finally found a good quality factory in China to manufacture her designs and claims it will reduce her costs by half Which she plans to pass back to the consumer in the product price. What a great example of good business practice!

Yes, YOU can build a future as a designer and know that your intellectual property is being respected more and more. To convert this to an economic asset,however,requires sound knowledge and practical skills in creative and technical realisation.

The fact is,it doesn't matter where you manufacture your final garments as long as YOU, the designer, are skilled in the making process and can protect the integrity of your design.

There are still many good makers in AUstralia, or you can use India, Vietnam or China but the final product will only be as good as YOUR design, YOUR pattern and YOUR sample. Their job is to reproduce EXACTLY what you CREATE so You as the designer/ maker control the business chain and the final product

Click on the website below and you can read the report recently commissioned by the National Training Authority and conducted by LMTA and Create. It is available on the section on reports on the Light Manufacturing Australia website and gives a good background report on the career paths and skills needed for a fashion designer.

As a result of this report we will in Australia for the first time have soon-to-be endorsed National Qualifications in Fashion Design from Certifcate 11 through to Advanced Diploma. Very exciting !! This is a very promising time to begin your career in fashion design and get some practical skills in design. Click here to see the latest report on Fashion Design Design is a discipline which requires both knowledge and skills both in conceptual design and graphic communication but it is a learnable skill not just something you are born with!

THe universal language of the mind is in picture form and designers learn to visualise the image in the mind as a concept and then draw it as a form onto paper. This process clearly communicates the original idea which can then be developed into a technical drawing and then into a patterned shape on paper and then into a final garment.

This creative realisation process is a systematic skill and YOU can begin learning these universal skills in the security of your own home with your own computer using the TELESTIA AB INTERACTIVE TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT FASHION DESIGN CD ROM But you might say I am not 'creative" -then this program is especially for you as it introduces you to the process of sourcing inspiration and learning step -by -step the design principles and elements.You will also learn to draw fashion figures and garments in proportion using the SITAM AB figure drawing tool so you can clearly communicate your designs.

You will also learn to expand your imagination and learn to think in symbols with the unique ANDRAS program we have developed at the College of Fashion Design so you will NEVER have to copy.

When you have mastered these skills you will have a system of designing which will serve you a life time -even on a bad day as you will be able come up with great ideas over and over again. Sandy Lee one of our Distance Learning Students has learnt her skills for designing and patternmaking using the TELESTIA CD' at home. She began with the Certificate IV in Clothing Production and systematically completed all assigned projects and received her Certificate IV in Clothing Production qualification when she completed her final four garments based on the theme of "Camelot" and "Cars" Her racy overalls for women enthusiasts along with the jacket was very inspiring.Needless to say they all fitted her perfectly and demonstrated her competence in patternmaking and garment assembly as well as design as the graphics below show.

Sandy Lee says"I have found that through doing this Certificate IV course by correspondence I have grown as a person. I have found the teaching CD's excellent and easy to follow. You get every aspect of each technique with step-by-step instructions. It has been great to finally have clothes that actually fit. I've even been able to discipline myself easily and set my own pace. I regard the projects as fun and I don't consider it as 'hard work. This course has motivated me to follow my dream and that nothing is out of reach"

This year Sandy is completing her Diploma of Fashion Design by Distance Learning and was able to participate in the "Australian Masters of Fashion" at the Crown Casino in Melbourne this June with her own original design which she created from a thought in her head.

She also received a very good story in her local paper to promote her business and is now learning how to develop a ready wear range with the TELESTIA AB Grading CD and unique tool so she can produce original patterns in several different sizes most efficiently.

She already has the CD's for Fashion Design and Pattern COnstruction and is assisting others to learn in her role as assisant tutor for Regional workshops. So it doesn't matter how far you live from the city or College you can become a respected designer. Already Sandy has her designs on display in a local boutique in her community and she is taking orders for individual measurements. Sandy is not yet 20 -what a great start to her career.

Fashion Design and Production is a discipline and is a profession equal to doctors, lawyers etc. It can lead to high income and recognition so it is worth while investing in sound training and systematically developing skills both creative and technical to last you a lifetime! In Europe a designer is expected to train for at least seven years as an apprentice!.

Your investment of $4500 to begin the Certificate IV in Clothing Production is very economic especially when you consider you do not have to travel to classes and pay up to $17,000 per year to study with many other students often with a teacher who may have limited skills!

WIth the TELESTIA AB Fashion Design program you have a full time one-on-one tutor living in your own computer and wolrd best skills at your fingertips.

You receive a LIFETIME software licence for and a nationally recognised qualification on completion of all the projects.You can complete your Diploma within two years if you organise your study time efficiently.

Start ANY TIME, ANY WHERE with this internationally acclaimed e-learning program Check our website for details of the skills you will learn and email us for a free demo of the CD at fashion2@fashionskills4u.com

This is what you have always dreamed of. You CAN develop a career as an international designer or a local small business !. It is up to you!

The Fashion Market is available to you NOW!

YOurs sincerely, Ros Verity College of Fashion Design Tel 03 9417 5214