Back to Career Guides

How to become a Fashion Designer

131

Fashion Designer jobs

1,775

Fashion Designer courses

Career progression and salary expectations for a Fashion Designer

Junior Fashion Designer

| Up to £24,000

Fashion Designer

| Up to £40,000

Senior Fashion Designer

| Up to £60,000

The role of a Fashion Designer

What does a Fashion Designer do?

Is your career ‘so last year’? You should become a Fashion Designer…

Fashion Designers create clothing and accessories, from individual items to fully-blown fashion ranges.

They could work anywhere from high fashion labels or boutique fashion houses through to high-street and retail brands, and design for a number of demographics or specialise in a particular type of clothing (e.g. men’s, women’s, footwear, accessories etc.).

Typical duties for a Fashion Designer could include:

Working to design briefs
Coming up with initial designs, either through sketching or computer-aided design (CAD)
Selecting appropriate fabrics, creating prototypes and producing mood boards
Estimating costs and presenting back to other areas around the business, such as sales, finance and marketing
Supervising the purchase of fabrics, and any other material needed
Overseeing production until the product is completed

Is a career as a Fashion Designer right for me?

To be a successful Fashion Designer, it almost goes without saying that an active interest in fashion (and/or an obsession) will be absolutely non-negotiable. Reading the occasional Vogue magazine and owning a pair of Ray-Bans will not quite cut-it. You need to live for the latest trends, and know what’s in, what’s out, what last season’s disaster was and what’s going to be the next big thing.

Other key skills for a Fashion Designer include:

Originality
Creativity
An eye for colour, form, texture and shape
An appreciation of aesthetics
Technical design skills, including pattern cutting, sewing and tailoring
Commercial awareness

What's it like to be a Fashion Designer?

"The best thing about being a Fashion Designer is that I get to challenge myself to be creative every single day. I’ve only been in the industry for around three years, but already I’ve learned so much about fashion that I never dreamed possible. I’ve certainly come a long way since smuggling copies of Look and Glamour magazine into school to read in class. Yes, it can be tough and incredibly demanding work, and it’s not all Parisian catwalks and liaising with models, but it’s what I’ve always wanted to do and I couldn’t be happier to be there."

Get qualified as a Fashion Designer

Many Fashion Designers will have a degree in their field. However, it is not necessarily a pre-requisite, and a qualification which covers the technical side of the industry may be enough to gain a lower-end entry-level position.

Recommended Fashion design courses

Sewing, Pattern Cutting, Embroidery Design for Fashion Design & Tailoring - CPD Certified

Academy for Health & Fitness

Level 5 Diploma(QLS Hard Copy Certificate Included)>255 CPD Points>Gift: 10 CPD Course + PDF Certificate>Lifetime Access
- Compare
- Online
- 390 hours · Self-paced
- Certificate(s) included
- 255 CPD points
- Tutor support
Great service

See more See less

Flash Sale! Don't Let Year-End Deals Slip Away – Enrol Now! Did you know sewing is not only a pragmatic skill but can also have therapeutic benefits, reducing stress and increasing focus and concentration? The UK sewing industry, valued at £3.9 billion in 2023 , is experien …
Save 4%

£100 £105
Sewing & Fashion Design Job Ready Programme with Career Guidance

Academy for Health & Fitness

Flash Sale! Job Ready Skills | Lifetime Access to 3000+ Courses | CV Support | Free Certificates | Expert Mentorship
- Compare
- Online
- 3 months · Self-paced
- Certificate(s) included
- 400 CPD points
- Tutor support
Great service

See more See less

"Start your career as a Fashion Designer and earn up to £60,000 per year!" In today's competitive job market, you need more than just knowledge—you need real-world abilities, industry insights, and readiness for your career. The Sewing & Fashion Design Job Ready Skills & …
£449