Explore the job duties of a fashion sales representative, and review the education and training required for the position. Get info on the typical earnings of fashion sales representatives and the employment outlook for this field.
Career Overview
If you work as a fashion sales representative, your main goal is to sell the fashion products of a particular company. This can involve working with consumer clients, showing them clothing, and providing advice as to what looks might fit their needs best. Some fashion sales representatives interact with other stores' employees, creating a relationship with buyers and facilitating larger-quantity sales to smaller locations that will carry their store's wares. Specific duties include managing client orders, organizing meetings, showing samples, handling client inquiries, investigating any issues with products, and organizing events that showcase new products. You'll be the main person who communicates between your company and your clients.
<h3 id="section---ImportantFactsAboutFashionSalesRepresentatives"> Important Facts About Fashion Sales Representatives</h3><p></p><table border="1"><tr><td> Required Education </td><td> No formal education parameters set; employers prefer at least a high school diploma or equivalent</td></tr>
<tr><td> Key Skills </td><td> Customer focused, attention to detail, problem-solving, critical thinking, reading comprehension, close listening, proficient mathematically ability, negotiation, persuasion</td></tr>
<tr><td> Work Environment </td><td> Primarily during evenings and weekends, especially during the holiday season</td></tr>
<tr><td> Similar Occupations </td><td> Cashiers; customer service representatives; information clerks; sales engineers; wholesale and manufacturing sales representatives</td></tr>
</table><h3 id="section---Education">Education</h3><p>Many colleges offer associate's and bachelor's degree programs in fashion design and merchandising, which can prepare you for a job as a fashion sales representative. Programs usually offer first-hand experience exploring the business side of the fashion industry by allowing you to attend a study abroad programs and participate in internships. Programs also typically include instruction on the latest technologies used to manage your products as a fashion sales representative. Other topics that you might explore during a fashion merchandising and design program include personnel management, buying, visual merchandising, and retail management.
</p><h3 id="section---JobOutlookAndSalaryInfo">Job Outlook and Salary Info</h3><p>According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), clothing stores are the largest employers in the U.S. and take workers with a variety of skill levels (<i>www.bls.gov</i>). The BLS predicts that the employment of all types of retail sales workers, including fashion sales representatives, is expected to have little to no change between 2019 and 2029.
</p><p>According to the BLS, retail salespersons working in clothing stores earned an average salary of $28,680 a year in May 2020. The BLS published the average salary earned by a salesperson employed by a general merchandise store as $27,050 annually the same year. <i>PayScale.com</i> indicates, as recently as January 2021 that the majority of sales representatives working in the fashion, clothing, and apparel industries earned a median salary of $39,000 per year.</p>
