Just like film and art, fashion is an industry that flourishes in the United States perhaps better than in any other country, or at the very least more than the vast majority of countries around the world.

Trying to get a job in fashion and be successful is difficult, thanks to the competitiveness of the fashion world in the United States, but it is not impossible to fulfill your dream of starting your career in the world of vogue and style.

Probably the coolest job when you think about fashion is working as a fashion designer.

It is a career that allows you to express maximum creativity and see your designs worn by people all over the world, or maybe even make expensive clothes for top of the line brands.

Coming out with the best new styles and trends is really important for clothing lines and retail bands around the country that need not only designers, but people who are talented and have a skill for business, marketing, or an eye for the next major trend.

Whatever job you find yourself working in, you are going to need to work on your skills and talents to be a huge success. If you find yourself in one job in fashion and still want to be a designer, then you should research the skills that designers need.

If you have these skills, work on them, and gain a lot of experience you can start to expect earn a lot more money. In fashion it can be difficult to get to the top but you will have potential to earn a big salary.

Let's have a look at what facts affect the amount of money you could make working as a fashion designer.

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How much designers make and what affects their salary

money growing
The more qualifications you have the better salary you will probably have. Source: Pixabay

You probably have imagined basically any fashion designer as someone with a really nice office, a lot of different extravagant apparel spread around their work area and driving an expensive foreign car like a BMW.

Unfortunately once you get out of college or fashion institute you may be studying at, you won't immediately be working with these conditions. In fact, it can be really difficult to find a job like this, where you are extremely highly paid, however it is possible!

There are a few factors that affect how much fashion designers make around the United States.

Fashion design salary

To answer what you have been wondering, how much do fashion designers actually make?

It is kind of a complicated answer. Fashion design is a really competitive job, and the more talent you have the better chance you have of making more money. Then there are other factors like where you work, what education you have, and what experience you have.

The more talent and creativity you have, as well as the other factors mentioned, are going to determine how much you make as a fashion designer in the United States.

The salary you can expect to make if you work in fashion design will be somewhere between $32,000 and $130,000 a year, which means the average salary is around 74 thousand dollars a year. The more you can do to

Location

You can find some type of job in fashion around the United States, but it's obvious that the two best locations for fashion designers to work and have potential for career growth is in New York or California.

New York is considered to be one of fashion's world capitals along with locations like Paris and Milan.

Many clothing brands and publications, including some world famous brands have placed their headquarters in New York City, such as:

  • Louis Vuitton
  • Nike
  • Vogue
  • GQ
  • Glossier

Working in New York City will help you to find a job in fashion design as well as give you an opportunity to work your way up the ladder at a famous clothing brand and you could potentially earn some big bucks.

Experience

Once you finish studying, it's normal that you'll be picturing yourself in a large office, maybe on one of the top floors of a skyscraper in New York City designing new and interesting apparel.

It won't be that easy straight away.

Experience is one of the most important factors that will help you to find a very cool job in fashion design as well as earn a nice salary as a fashion designer.

Unless you are incredibly talented or have someone that can plug you in straight away, you are going to need a lot of experience before you hope to find your dream job.

Like any job, it can be often hard to start out, which is why experience will be important, and that is why the best clothing brands want to find people who can hit the ground running.

So how can you begin to add up your experience so that you can find a great job in the fashion industry?

  • Internships
  • Willingness to relocate
  • Stay humble

If you are still studying make sure you try and find the best internship possible. Studying in a city like New or Los Angeles will help you find an internship in fashion design much easier. Maybe you can even get an internship at a top brand.

Once you finish studying, a willingness to relocate yourself can help you find a good job. The highest paying and premier jobs are likely to be in NYC or LA, however if you can find a decent job to start to gain some experience it would be the right call to head to another city or state if possible.

With that it will be important to stay humble, you're not going to find the greatest position straight away.

At the very beginning of your job hunt you will naturally want to try and go for the most appealing jobs. However, you should expect plenty of emails that say "Thank you for applying, unfortunately your skills don't match our requirements."

While those emails are never nice to read, do not become to discouraged.

Industry

someone designing fashion
Different industries need fashion designers, and some pay more than other. Source: Pexels

There are several industries where skills in fashion design can be used. The industry you happen to work in can affect the salary you could possibly earn.

You may be surprised to learn that those who work in fashion design in the video industry, on average make the most amount of money.

Fashion designers who are employed by the motion picture industry earn nearly 100,000 dollars a year on average which is around 20 to 25 thousand dollars more than those who are fashion designers who create apparel for clothing brands.

For the performing arts, fashion designers usually make around 50 thousand dollars a year, which compared to video isn't nearly as much, however you can still expect a good salary.

Best universities to learn fashion design

An amazing resource for you to have is the knowledge you can learn while studying at one of these schools and the better school you can study in, the faster you'll find the job you want.

Perhaps most importantly, you can sharpen the talents that you need to become a great and valuable fashion designer for whoever you design for in the future.

Not all of the best schools offer fashion design, however, working in the fashion industry means you'll need to adapt a bit, and these schools offer programs and sewing classes that will help you learn what it takes to become a great expert in fashion design.

  • Parsons, The New School for Design
  • Fashion Institute of Technology
  • Pratt
  • Kent State University
  • Academy of Art University

There are many other institutes and universities around the United States that will also help you learn what the fashion world is all about, while increasing your creative and artistic talents, so you have many options.

Studying with a private tutor

Going to a top school for fashion will require a lot of work. It definitely won't be easy to pass, but if you can do it the rewards are definitely work all of the hours of studying or time working in an internship.

Even if you are a straight A student things can get overwhelming pretty quick.

Studying with a private tutor that can help you set a schedule and give you excellent advice is a fantastic resource while you are learning new things at your college or institute.

Superprof is one of the best platforms on the internet to find a tutor. Using Superprof you can find a tutor that can help you study while you are taking your intensive fashion design courses.

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Chris

Experienced writer with a thriving presence in the literary domain for over five years. My objective is to actively captivate students and craft literary works that not only inspire but also kindle a profound enthusiasm for lifelong learning in others.