We had a thrilling panel at the ‘Young Fashion Creatives Doing it for Themselves’ live talk, which took place in the GFW ASOS Talk Space.
Panelists included:
· Susie Lau, Blogger for Style Bubble
· Clio Peppiatt, Womenswear Designer
· Ione Gamble, Founding Editor in Chief of Polyesterzine
· Kate Bones, GIF Artist and Photographer
· Christine Mhando, Print Designer
These inspiring, successful speakers come from a variety of industry backgrounds, with some having attended university and gaining degrees in industry specific subjects, whilst others started up pages or businesses alongside having full time jobs, eventually transferring career paths.
When asked about financing their careers, most of the speakers described how they financially supported themselves, whilst following their chosen creative pathways in their own time.
As Clio Peppiatt explained, “it’s about balance”. She spoke about her journey from working as a designer, to starting up her own design label. Ione Gamble informed listeners of how she originally started up Polyesterzine because she wanted to be “writing a narrative that designers appreciated”.
The audience was encouraged to begin with voluntary work within the industry, to gain the experience and the knowledge that comes with partaking in placements. Kate Bones implied that sometimes voluntary work is more rewarding, as “it’s in the free work that you can push the boundaries”, and be more experimental in your work.
The panel was then asked about their social media pages, and the impact that an online presence now has on their occupations and businesses. Susie Lau, whose life revolves around her blog and media pages, she talked of how she “started blogging in the experimental era of digital fashion”, and explained that “through social media your skills are communicated worldwide”.
In terms of why all these women have chosen to stay and work in London, Kate Bones concluded, “regardless of what it goes through, people are still creative”.