Three current and former CMU fashion merchandising majors walk us through their varied career paths.
There can be comfort in preparing for a career with a linear path to success. But if your aspirations happen to be in fashion, expect the road ahead to come with twists, turns and likely an unexpected detour (or five). Such has been the case for some of the most prominent figures in fashion; see: Miuccia Prada, who earned a PhD in political science before taking over her family business, or Andre Leon Talley, who studied French, not fashion, in college. The same can be said for most students, too, including the three fashion merchandising majors below from Central Michigan University.
The three individuals ahead have all completed (or are just about to) CMU’s comprehensive course of study — yet none of their next steps look quite the same. Today they hold positions at Nike as leaders for the brand’s product innovation, they’re young designers with costume-design aspirations and they’re former medical students who hope to launch their own label one day. Read on to learn more about how their paths lead them to, and through, a formal fashion education before they each branched out in myriad of ways.
Kathy Shepard
As a member of the class of 1987, Shepard is a former fashion merchandising major. She’s held positions at J.Crew, Isaac Mizrahi, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren and, most recently, Nike, where she’s been for the past 21 years. Her current role is senior development director.
What kind of vision did you have for your career when you entered CMU?
My dream was always to go to New York City and work for a fashion designer. And that’s about the extent — I didn’t know in what capacity I wanted to do that. I’m so pleased with how the fashion program at CMU has progressed because back in my day it was very general. There was a lot of home economics and sewing classes, and I left college still not sure what exactly I was going to do. Luckily I landed in a product development job, and my entire career now has been in product development.
What courses were you taking at CMU that prepared you for this field?
There were a lot of textile and sewing courses. There were general fashion business courses but there were not the focused courses that I think the program has today.
In layman’s terms, what does product development mean?
A product developer turns an idea of a drawing into an actual 3D garment. We work with the factories to turn a designer’s vision into a reality.
You’ve been at Nike for 21 years. That’s incredible! What do you do there?
I lead product development, wear testing, and several Innovation Centers globally.
I spend my time reviewing project progress, evolving strategy and developing employees. Our overseas Innovation Center brings multiple cultures together to increase creativity. That involves a lot of cross-cultural awareness to enable collective ideas and group genius. I spend a lot of time on understanding and appreciating differences for maximum effectiveness.
Nike stands out as such an innovative company. What are some of the proudest products you’ve helped create?
My most proud product launched in the summer of 2017, the FE/NOM bra. High-support sports bras are the most complicated and technical product I have ever worked on. Through the technology of knitting, we were able to take all those components of a very high support product for women with larger busts and do it all in two pieces only. That was one of the hardest projects I’ve worked on and I’m still so proud of that.
As you mentioned, the fashion merchandising program at CMU has evolved since your time there. What do you believe sets it apart?
Looking at the CMU magazine that comes out, following some of the projects that students are working on, the internships they’ve had a chance to do, the professional mentoring they have, the fashion show they put on every year, the research lab they have there on campus…I think it’s just come together to create a leading experience for students. It’s really preparing students for what the real-world fashion industry experience is.
What did you learn at CMU that’s been invaluable to your career?
I took a lot of sewing classes while I was in school and I suck at sewing. However, to work the fashion industry no matter what your role is, you need to understand garment construction. You need to understand what a factory is going to face trying to sew together the designs you’re suggesting. Even though I wasn’t very good in sewing classes, I learned it very well and I learned how to construct garments and that has served me so well throughout my entire career.
And finally, are there any interesting new paths you’re seeing open up for fashion students today?
Everything is going digital. Through the use of computational design, we’re really understanding the anatomy of the body and designing around the body structure. The other thing I’m seeing is, as we’re trying to project the future — what cities will be like, what athlete’s needs and experiences will be like — things are going to change very dramatically. It’s really important for people to be reading about the future and projections of the environment and urbanization, and really thinking about where consumer’s needs are going to go instead of just designing in the present.
Zachary Stoner
With a double concentration in fashion merchandising and design, Stoner graduated in December 2017 and immediately joined WRKSHOP, a designer services studio. He’s currently an associate designer.
You’ve been working at WRKSHOP since you graduated. What does your position look like right now and what projects do you work on?
My primary client is the Vince Camuto men’s sportswear and I spend most of my days working on that. However, I have stepped aside to do side projects with other companies that have gone through the WRKSHOP for design services. At the WRKSHOP, we’re the creative directors of Ryan Seacrest and we’ve worked on projects for Oscar de la Renta men’s sportswear. So I’ll take a break and work on those one-off projects, and then come back to my client.
What do you believe set your experience at CMU’s fashion program apart from other fashion programs?
The reason I chose CMU for fashion was not for the fashion. It was about being close enough to home, and financially, CMU had what I was looking for. In terms of what separated it was my ability to work with each of the professors to cater the program to my needs. My main focus was fashion and I was able to befriend my professors and work with them to figure out what I needed to be a professional and to go where I needed to go. They were all very willing to help me get there. Dr. Michael Mamp, the Director of Fashion Merchandising and Design, and I completely redid my portfolio at the end of my college career. It was something I may not have wanted to hear or I may not have wanted to do, but I had someone pushing me to do it because they knew ultimate it would help me in the end.
Were there any experiences you had a CMU that you can’t imagine we could have had elsewhere?
One of the opportunities I was given was I was able to be a TA/assistant designer for one of the professors, Su Kyoung An. Essentially, I was able to collaborate with her on her own professional academic research and she was able to pay me through the college to be able to work on this project. I was doing pattern making, sketching, sewing and mockups. This helped me get some assistantship work under my belt.
Having a couple years of professional experience under your belt, what opportunities do you see for yourself now as a fashion graduate? And what skills do you think it will take?
I am excited to move more into costume design for film and styling. In terms of creativity, that’s an opportunity to have more creative power. What I think has helped me for the opportunities is learning time management and ultimately, finding an opinion and a voice. You have to have some guts to be able to say “No, I don’t like that,” or “I can’t support this and here’s why…” Through design courses you learn how to back up that voice.
Do you have any advice to student who are looking to study fashion in college?
Lots of things! Be open to the opportunities that present themselves. I think too many people feel like if you don’t get a specific job right out of college, you’re failing, but I think you need to take time to learn and experience the industry. Going into your dream job immediately is actually a bad thing because you’re going to struggle, and it can darken this expectation that you had. You really have to dive into the industry and try to get to know it, because that’s something that comes with experience.
Janae Jones
A full-time, online student at CMU, Jones is a fashion merchandising and design major. She began her education on a pre-med track, but later switched to fashion design at Western Michigan University. She plans to graduate in December 2019, after completing her a year of coursework at CMU.
You were studying medicine before transitioning to fashion and eventually CMU. Tell us about making that switch.
It all started when I was in tenth grade. I was going to go into the fashion design field and my art teacher told me, “Well I don’t know if you should do that. You need a lot more work and the fashion industry is very hard.” I was just devastated and thought Well if she doesn’t think I should do it, I should just do something else. I decided to study medicine. I went to college and took biology and chemistry classes, trying to prepare for med school. My last semester of my associate’s degree, I was really unhappy and didn’t want to apply to any school. I just went back to where I was in tenth grade and asked, What do I really want to do? And I decided to go back to school for fashion design.
What courses are you taking now that you’re finding of great value?
Right now, I’m taking fashion illustration. It’s pushed me to come out of my comfort zone and learn so many techniques. I’m also taking CAD (Community Aided Design) for fashion design and merchandising.
Is the goal to eventually design for your own line, start your own brand?
My degree is just the beginning for me. I’m hoping I will continue into the masters program for apparel design. I dream of doing my own fashion line and creating custom clothing for everyday women — clothing that fits them and something they don’t have to buy off the rack that needs to be tailored. Other than that, I dream of opening a store or a place for people to come and work on their projects — a place to be able to go and learn about sewing and get help with projects, create a safe environment for people to get together and gather socially.
As an online student, what are some special experiences at CMU that you don’t think you could have had anywhere else?
When I first applied to the program and was accepted, I received an email from Dr. Mamp and was confused. I thought he was a part of the technology program and was going to tell me about the software I needed for my computer for my courses. But he was reaching out as my advisor. He really stood by me, and every so often, he’ll ask if I’m right on track for graduation. I think that’s why it’s taken me longer to graduate before: I was figuring out the courses I need, doing it by myself. But Dr. Mamp stepped in to say, “This is what we need to do, this is the plan.” Not being on campus, I thought I would feel a void, but I feel integrated. I feel like I’m still on track and I feel like I’m in the classroom. They really believe in the program and have the best professors doing the work and reaching out to you along the way.
Any advice for another student considering a change of career path?
Do what is best for you. It’s great to get advice from people but take it with a grain of salt. If I would have listened to another teacher who was trying to keep me from my purpose, I would still be in the medical field.
This post was created in partnership with CMU.
Source: Fashionista.com
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