How to become a fashion editor

Live and breathe fashion? Looking to join the sorority of stylists and fashion editors? Pat Steele gives you an insider's view of what to expect.
Invitations to the best fashion shows and parties, discounted designer clothing, champagne on tap... A fashion editor's life may sound heavenly, but the journey to front-row Nirvana is no easy 8-Path Guide to Entitlement.
Unfortunately for tear-sheet-deprived aspirants, the journey is fast-tracked for those with a very different portfolio: a good number of the cliquish coven of Blahnik-wearing fashion editors owe their jobs to the old-girls' network. In Manhattan fashion publishing at least, the right private school and a debutante's pedigree are never out of style. However, don't be discouraged if your blood doesn't run to various shades of blue and your ambitions are larger than your bank account: sheer determination, originality, a steely stomach and drop-dead style are also required to make it as a fashion editor. Though no meritocracy, in fashion as in life, talent always wins.

I love your work – What do you do again?
There are two distinct jobs in the fashion editing game. In-house fashion editors and stylists, like Harper's Bazaar's Melanie Ward, are usually the inspiration for the theme or narrative – "couture denim," "vive le rock star!" etc. – which runs through every fashion story. Like many of her styling sisters, Ward is also a hired gun for designers and photographers. In addition to conceiving shoots for Bazaar, Ward moonlights as a freelance stylist and as Helmut Lang's muse, helping the designer edit his collection and advertising images.
Meanwhile, market editors' responsibilities include having an expert knowledge of their beat. This entails traveling to designated cities, cultivating relationships with showrooms, choosing the right clothes for the story and making arrangements for the delivery and return of garments. Both positions are highly sought after and come with glorious perks, but in most cases the stylist's job is more creative and prestigious. It's no surprise then that a lot of market editors would like to be stylists. In any case, everyone starts out as an assistant, or at a less-than-divine publication. Even Anna Wintour cut her teeth at House & Garden.
Next >>

The importance of interning

Dressing for your interview

What to expect on the job