I recently sat down with a relatively new fashion designer in NYC who is quickly making a name for herself. She is Mexican born and Paris educated, Andrea Fascinetto, and with the release of her first collection, Minuit Bleu, in February, she has already gained the attention of fashion score keepers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Vanity Fair Magazine. How does a twenty-something fashion designer from Mexico enter the New York fashion scene and immediately gain traction? You are about to find out. It certainly hasn't been easy, but Andrea is successful by design. Here are her five simple secrets for achieving big dreams in the highly competitive business of fashion.
Absolute Confidence: Andrea studied fine art and photography before finding her passion for fashion. She went on to apply for a seat at one of the most prestigious fashion schools in the world, Parsons Paris. Her chances of being admitted into their program were slim because competition is always heavy and Andrea, at that time, didn't yet even know how to sew. How did she win her seat? Andrea says that it was all about confidence. She showed up at her interview 100% confident that she would get accepted. The confidence came out when she described what she was going to do in the fashion world. She had been making beautiful art her entire life, she explained to the school, and the only thing that was different about fashion was that the canvas was a human being. Andrea was admitted into the program. She was one of about 40 students. She immediately bought a sewing machine and learned to sew. Despite having not been trained in fashion up until that point, Andrea was one of roughly 6 students who completed the arduous program. Her confidence would soon come into play again. In November of 2014, Andrea was offered a dream job with a massive, publicly traded, fashion house. Absolutely confident that she could break into the fashion scene on her own, Andrea turned down the job and launched Andrea Fascinetto, her own fashion line.
Tell A Story: The way Andrea Fascinetto sees it, success in business and life comes down to your ability to tell a great story. She says that you have to give people something to believe in. You have to paint a picture for them. It's much easier for people to buy into your dream when they understand the story. Andrea launched her first clothing line, Minuit Bleu, in February of 2015 and she designed the entire line around a story. The story had many components. First, her line incorporated the Nike of Samothrace, which is a 2nd century BC marble sculpture of the Greek goddess Nike. The sculpture is one of the most celebrated in the world, and has been displayed at the Louvre since 1884. The work is notable for its rendering of a pose where violent motion and sudden stillness meet, creating balance. You can see Fascinetto's interpretation of this in her line which features contrasting hues from silvers to pure black, representing the idea of perspectives and looking at things from every angle. Secondly, Minuit Bleu, is the story of ending romances. The line represents the contrast of falling in love and then falling apart. Fascinetto's fashion show where she released this line featured sultry jazz musician, Katrina Cunningham, whose music was the perfect backdrop for a show that featured such contrasting artistic concepts. Fascinetto's fashion line was well received by the industry, which furthers her belief that when people believe in the story, they believe in you.
My Dream or Yours?: One of the best parts of Andrea's story is that she turned down a dream job with a massively successful fashion house. I wondered why she wouldn't have at least tried that position before going after her big dream of launching her own fashion line. Andrea explained that working at the larger, established firm would have been amazing, admittedly a dream come true. She said that it was when she was talking to the head of menswear that she knew she couldn't take the job. He was explaining to Andrea how well the company takes care of their people. He said that working there was like working with family and that many have been with the company for decades. Andrea said that it all sounded amazing, but she knew then and there that if she accepted that job, she would never want to leave it. To her, choosing that position would mean sacrificing her dream. Admittedly, launching her own fashion line right out of the gate would be hard, but she knew in her heart that she needed to go after her own dream, not someone else's.
Surround Yourself With Undying Advocates: Andrea says that the real secret to her early success in the fashion industry is that she has surrounded herself with people who are her undying advocates. They believe in her 100%. For example, Andrea, an only child, says that she is blessed to have parents who have never once doubted her ability to make a name for herself as an artist. They have supported her creative license ever since she was a little girl. Whether it be painting, photography, or fashion, Andrea's parents have her back in whatever she's doing. As well, her business partner, Eric Geiger, dropped what he was doing and moved to NYC from Paris to help her launch the business. Even her publicist, Felicia Quaning, started promoting Andrea and the new line even when all she had to show for her idea was a sketch. Andrea says that when you are launching anything that is new, you need people who trust you so much that they will take a leap of faith and believe in you. Andrea's entire network is made up of such people. They trusted her vision, and in true Andrea Fascinetto fashion, she pulled it off with her first clothing line, Minuit Bleu.
Compare Yourself to Nobody: I asked Andrea which fashion designer she compares herself to. "Really, nobody," she explained. Andrea says that she doesn't spend a lot of time studying other designers because the little time she does have is spent on her own designs. She said that she has gained inspiration from people like her uncle, an architect, who taught Andrea long ago that it was ok to be very bold in art. He would tell her to never second guess her strokes when painting, to be bold, and to worry little about mistakes. Andrea says that all of those little insights from her uncle growing up have come through in her fashion work, but as for comparing herself to other designers, she's not even interested in trying. Andrea says, "I am bold. I am not afraid to make mistakes. I am one of kind when it comes to my designs."
Smart, confident, bold, driven, and ambitious beyond words, Andrea Fascinetto is making a name for herself in the world of fashion, and it hasn't even been a year since she walked away from that dream job job! This designer is going places because she is successful by design.
More information about Andrea may be found at www.andreafascinetto.com.
Photo Credit Image One: The Fabulist
Photo Credit Image Two: BFA Photography
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