Advantages of Being Multilingual In The Fashion Industry
It is Fashion Week in Milan and to many, it may be surprised how important language skills are within the Fashion Industry! As new trends are unveiled and fashionistas attend catwalks and stylish parties, we would like to inspire you with 5 key aspects showing how languages can boost your career in Fashion. You may not be aware but this industry can provide rewarding career opportunities for multilingual!
- Public Relations (PR).
As revealed by Aldo Liguori, Head of PR at Fast Retailing (owner of the Japanese brand Uniqlo and French brand Comptoir des Cotonniers), speaking 5 languages gave him a head-start and an absolute advantage in landing his job and taking on increasingly important responsibilities at the retailing company. His fluency in Japanese has helped him relate both to media and senior management in the firm, making him the trusted spokesperson. PR is a vital part of branding and you need to keep communicating strategically and consistently to the world. Globalised markets and operations mean languages serve well in PR. Understanding the “heart of the company” you work for, and making sure your communication doesn’t get “lost in translation” (whether internally or externally) are daunting tasks more easily achievable when you see the world through the eyes of a multilingual. Make sure those press releases are flawless!
- Networking.
Making your way up in the fashion industry requires you to be somewhat of a socialite. The more languages you speak, the better you can communicate and the deeper the relationships you build with key people within the industry. In fashion, you never know who may help you out with introductions, business development, a new job or an invitation, and it is truly a global and diverse industry. Being an open minded and slightly extroverted individual can help, however being armed with different languages will certainly put you at a major advantage as connecting with others becomes a lot more genuine. Receiving and spotting career opportunities will become a lot easier!
- Travelling.
Many corporate roles in this sector involve travelling frequently. Whether you work in marketing giving presentations, or as a purchasing manager talking to store managers and fashion designers, you will be on the road quite frequently! Also other sectors of the industry present plenty of travel opportunities, such as working as a writer for a fashion magazine. You will meet colleagues, business partners and potential clients from all over the world constantly, and many of these may not be so comfortable speaking English (or may actually not speak it at all). Communicating in their native language will make this run a lot more smoothly!
- Modelling.
Also Fashion Models can boost their careers with languages. You may not be aware of this, but several famous top models are actually multilingual! Gisele Bundchen, Freja Beha, Andreea Diaconu, Eva Herzigova and Jon Kortajarena to name a few, have all learnt to speak different languages throughout their careers (in addition to English). When you work and collaborate with so many people from different backgrounds, being a multilingual will help you build profound connections in the industry around the world and deliver better execution!
- Creating Your Own Brand.
Starting out as an entrepreneur is already very challenging and you will have to deal with people from all over the world whether it be suppliers, buyers, agencies in media, marketing or modelling, and more. Again, the globetrotting nature of the industry implies you need to be able to communicate with people from different countries, and do business with them. English can get you far, but knowing more languages will get you a lot further. Multilinguals will see the opportunities in a different way, enabling a better understanding and communication as well as being more at ease with the business etiquette of different countries. If you want to start your own brand, learn a new language as well!
So, which languages should you learn?
When it comes to the fashion industry, the rule of “the more the merrier” is a truism. Based on both traditional aspects of the industry and recent growth trends, there are key languages that will probably deliver more value to someone trying to make it in the industry. Italian and French are definitely within the traditional space, as most fashion trade occurs in these two countries. In terms of communication with clients, Japanese, Chinese and Russian are definitely wise choices and would give you a major advantage. Arabic and Spanish could become increasingly useful over time as well.
FluentUp works with great Language Schools that have plenty of experience in this sector, providing you access to the highest relevant didactical quality.