The Business of Fashion-Lulu's thinking

Last Friday, my fabulous CIDA crew attended the evening event called the Business of Fashion: Inspiration, information and networking, held by Fashion Capital (one of the UK's leading fashion portal). Unlike CIDA, Fashion Capital (FC) aims to emphasise a one-stop online support resource for all sectors of the clothing and fashion industry. According to the shape of FC logo, the online company  hopes to hang all sorts of fashion contents all together included relevant news,trends, online learning, community, multimedia gallery and online Boutique. According to Jenny Holloway's positive speech during the evening event, she particularly pointed out that fashion is a fun and vibrant business. From my perspective, fashion designers always feel uncomfortable when the fashion industry becomes more and more commercial due to the high demands in the market. They really need a professional supporting agency which could fully understand their contradictory demands such how to put creativity into their fashion business without being commercial. Meanwhile, the professional supporting agency could offer them high quality and specific advices.

In terms of the event venue, City Business Library is one of the leading public libraries offering business information and professional events. No doubt, it is an ideal place for  fashion business networking. Overall, apart from CIDA, there are nine supporting organisations participated in the event (Business Launchpad, Companies House, Craft Central, and etc). Every exhibitor got plenty of chances to promote themselves to attendees, and meet up with other like-minded organisations. Apart from the exhibitors, the hundreds of attendees can seek for professional advices and mingle around with other interesting people. As a part of the CIDA crew, my main task is to describe how wonderful CIDA is and explain how it works such as the membership scheme and its massive benefits. Generally, I was bit excited about promoting CIDA to someone that is unfamiliar to me. At the beginning, I did not connect my tongue and my mind. My potential clients felt confused about my short briefing. After several tough rounds, I could described CIDA and its working procedure in a detailed way. In fact, I met a really "interesting" 35 year-old woman (paying attention to my ironical tongue). Basically, she wanted to set up an enterprise about vintage jewellery and asked our help. I told her CIDA was the good place that helps you to set up your own creative business. She believed it and asked me more details. During the conversation, she kept announcing her unique and sharp taste. She showed me all her vintage jewelleries and accessories. When I got back to my place, I start to think that to some extent, people may feel uncomfortable and impatient about her. To be honest, she is so good at promoting herself. At least, she is one of the few attendees I remembered. That could explains being passionate and unique are really essential in the context of the creative sectors. I need to figure out my own personal branding right now.

Finally, speaking of networking, in the UK, both men and women are welcome to participate in events and forums which specialised in networking. However, in China, 'Guanxi'(social networking) is normally attended by gentlemen. One of the chief reasons that female creative labours get lack of promotion is due to the informal social networking. They always feels like to be excluded by this gentlemen's club. Well, here you go, an other post- feminist thinking pop in my mind now.