About me
First class BA (Hons) Fashion Marketing and Communications graduate with experience in fashion retail buying, visual merchandising, writing and PR. Founder of *, creative director, co-designer, writer and copywriter. Possesses an excellent commercial awareness and always keen to develop my skills further. Forward-thinking, creative, adept to work in the fast-paced fashion industry. Results driven & passionate about product.
Skills
Commercial Awareness, Experience in the buying field and live projects at university have encouraged me to analyse the current and future market trends as a daily routine and to understand the necessity of reflecting upon previous sales to produce informed decisions., Acutely aware of external market factors that impact sales - from celebrity influence to the economy., Consistently using previous sales knowledge, current trend analysis and trend prediction to produce informed decisions within buying and visual merchandising role., Creative Flair, Sourcing new shapes/looks for the Keungzai collection is a necessity to keep ahead of the competition and stimulated creativity within the team., Maintaining my own blog requires resourcefulness., Co-designed Keungzai collections which have sold in independent retailers and across 4 online platforms. , Verbal Skills, Previous buying role involved reporting and discussing sales on a daily basis, as well as presenting competitive shops to managers - all of which exercised effective verbal skills., Live team projects within my degree & the daily role of a BAA involved negotiation, effective communication, organisation and innovative thinking. Evidence of successful team work and creative thinking displayed in my achievements., Time Management, Juggling numerous priorities on a daily basis as a director in a fast-paced retail environment requires organisation and an ability to keep calm under pressure while still meeting tight deadlines., Fulfilling ad-hoc requests, merchandising and maintaining areas within a large store during peak shopping times requires an ability to prioritise and act efficiently to meet deadlines., IT Skills, Proficient in Microsoft Office Word, Excel and Powerpoint., Experience in Adobe Photoshop CS3., RSA Clait I & II, Languages, Good understanding of verbal and written French.
Sector Experience
OCTOBER 2011 - PRESENT, Director, Keungzai Ltd., Launched Keungzai, an affordable contemporary luxury label for style-savvy women, mothers and moms-to-be. Styling bump and beyond., Developed concept through to launch. Manages creative direction, online and offline marketing, PR, co-designer, buying, copywriter., Writes for the Keungzai blog. Contributes and guest blogs to relevant affiliate company blogs., NOVEMBER 2010 - DECEMBER 2011, Forever 21, Visual Merchandiser, Supported the visual and store management team for first European store opening in Birmingham., Worked accordingly to Forever 21 visual guidelines in order to generate sales, provide shopping ease & visual impact for customers., Managed and maintained concept areas to present merchandise according to directive, including tables, fixtures, walls and mannequins., Fulfilled ad-hoc requests to ensure the presentation of the store was to standard., DECEMBER 2010 - APRIL 2011, Ligature Magazine, Press Co-Ordinator / Fashion Assistant, Generated various press coverage including fashion copious and cover junkie for the première issue & subsequent issues. Engage and develop relationships with potential contributors. Manage attendance at LFW., AUGUST 2008 - NOVEMBER 2010, ASOS.com, Buyer’s Administrative Assistant, Responsible for maintaining the critical path on the denim and casual bottoms department within womenswear including chasing suppliers for buying samples, fit samples and production samples. Responsible for ensuring all product was correct for fit, trimmings, quality, colour, labelling etc., Completed competitor analysis and reported to managers., Negotiated cost prices with suppliers to ensure margin target was achieved., Worked closely with buying and merchandising team to analyse sales and took action to react accordingly., Liaised with PR, magazine team and shoot team to ensure all product was available as required., Directed the styling team and visual merchandising team in visualising brand message for Womenswear and designer collaborations., AUGUST 2007 - FEBRUARY 2008, Hint Fashion Magazine, Work Intern, Liaison with editor-in-chief on an online basis to carry out duties required to enhance the online magazine for example: I launched the Hint myspace and kept this up-to-date with the magazine., JANUARY 2008 - JUNE 2008, Renoir Shoes/Evans, Sales Advisor, Customer service driving sales to achieve sales targets. Assist with visual merchandising of the department and ensure the stock room is organised for efficient results. Process administrative work as necessary., JANUARY 2007 - SEPTEMEBER 2007, New Look, Sales Advisor, Provided excellent, tentative customer service driven by sales targets. Ensured store remained tidy and to company standards.
Awards
Education & Qualifications, 2005 - 2008 BA (Hons) Fashion Marketing and Communications - 1st Class, Nottingham Trent University, Modules: Design and Visual Culture, The Fashion Environment, Marketing Systems, Brand Identity, Fashion Communication, Visual Communication., Dissertation “The blurring of gender boundaries and the shift in gender ideology in post-modern popular culture”, Live Project “L’Oreal Brandstorm”, 1998 - 2005 KING EDWARD VI SCHOOL, A2 Level: English Language [A], French [A], Art & Design [A], General Studies [C]. AS Level: Religious Studies [A]. 10 GCSEs including Maths, Double Science and English [A*-B], Achievements, 2012: Shortlisted as a Finalist for the “Best Start-Up” Mumpreneur 2012 award., 2012: Awarded Gold Website Award by Mumpreneur UK., 2009: Signed off level 1 BAA competencies at asos.com, 2009: Organised a ‘fit day’ which sourced volunteers nationwide for feedback on Women’s ASOS Denim., 2008: L’Oreal Brandstorm People’s Choice Award Winner; achieved 2nd place in the national finals., 2007: Trend spotting photographs contributed and published in street style magazine ‘fam15’., 1 of 4 selected groups to present to Trend Bible marketing director proposing a marketing strategy to initiate expansion and create a solid global presence., Participation in various fashion market research trips to New York, Antwerp, Brussels and Paris including visits to Momu Fashion museum and The Museum at Fashion Institute of Technology., 2006: Selected as 1 of 30 students whose work was submitted toward the nationwide River Island promotion competition.
Clients
All blog content, All lookbook copy, All website copy, Amoralia, Guest contributor, Keungzai, The Baby Planners