2015 Kate Spade Black Friday Haul! // annwynn
This story originally appeared on Glossy, Digidays sister site devoted to fashion, luxury and tech.
Ever since shewas agirlgrowing up in Rye, New York, Kristen Naiman had athing for clothes. Yet shenever thought about a career in fashionuntil a friend suggested she become a stylist.
I was just like Whats styling? That sounds cool, sure! I really had no idea at all. But I did it, and I loved it, Naiman said.
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Naiman, who is now svp of brand creative at Kate Spade & Company, started at Cond Nasts now-defunct Cond Nast Sports for Women.There, she realized how clothing could bea vehiclefor storytelling, building on her writing studies at The New School and ultimately leading her to the position of creativedirector for Isaac Mizrahi.
As the fashion industry adapts tothe rise ofdigital and social media, Naiman is establishingwhat it means to be a storyteller in a technological age. Her ability to identify content that clickswith consumers and industry players alike has led to campaigns like the #missadventure holiday campaign featuring Anna Kendrick.
We spoke with Naiman about her relationship with style and how it inspires her work. The interview was edited lightly for clarity.
Why do you love fashion?Ive been obsessed with clothes since I was a teeny, tiny kid. I loved style and the ways people use clothes to express themselves and their individuality. Its really the one creative act that someone has to do every single day, and I think that act is always really incredible to me.
Before you were at Kate Spade, you worked for Isaac Mizrahi. How did your experience there shape your current role?I got hired to make a bookwith Isaac on style, and we instantly connected in this amazing way over our love of culture, stories and clothing. He brought me in very shortly after to be an in-house fashion director. My job there was to really connect all of the creative aesthetic dots from conception of the collection to its final visual execution, making sure that all of those dots were connecting and that the story stayed on track.
How hastechnology impacted the fashion industry? Its empowered the customer. Consumers viewdigital media as an expression of themselves and a way to identifytrends among the networks that they inhabit. As such, they become extensions of the brands they purchase, because as soon as they buy something and take a picture and put it on their channel, theyre advocating for the brand.
How has technology democratized fashion?The democratization of fashion happened before digital really took full hold. It really happened much more through the deep industrialization of process over the last decade. This rise of fast fashion was the final democratizer of fashion in the truest possible sense.
Whats an unpopular opinion you hold about the fashion industry?We have a large oversupply of clothing and product in general. Digital has really done a lot to weed through some of that, but theres going to be a backlash both to the proliferation of information digitally and proliferation of products. But it scares people because nobody knows where its going after that.
What about the rise of Instagram and Snapchat?At Kate Spade, we use all of those channels. Its a form of taking the temperature of culture at any given moment.
What would you advisesomeone trying to break into the fashion world right now?You absolutely have to know what your voice is. Theres no way in the world that youre not going to get knocked down, rejected, have doors closed, and the only thing to do is to keep going. That kind of perseverance and optimism is critical to be successful, but definitely in something like fashion, where its competitive and fast-moving.
Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&ct2=us&usg=AFQjCNEER5sohH0FvFn2-IQ3sFCUbCotqw&clid=c3a7d30bb8a4878e06b80cf16b898331&cid=52779117190632&ei=AQdGV9DtNJW13gH637OgCA&url=https://digiday.com/brands/kate-spades-kristen-naiman-backlash-coming/
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