From Fashion Design to Strategic Design

My Introduction to design strategy explains a lot about the field

Wayfinding

As a young entrepreneur with a degree in fashion design, and some momentum around an outerwear business that I founded in 2011, I realized somewhere along the way that I had gotten it wrong.

It was a harsh transition, from being one of the few friends who was “so lucky to know what she wanted to do with her life,” to being very confused, and heavily invested in a future that did not fit. I couldn’t figure out how to keep the parts that I loved, while moving away from the parts that were dragging me down, mentally and emotionally.

To try and make sense of the situation, I started talking about it with my peers and learned I wasn’t alone. Some questions that came up through these conversations: what was the meaning behind fashion––luxury fashion in particular? Can fashion be sustainable, or is sustainability fundamentally against its nature? How can sustainability be expressed in both environmental responsibility and longevity?

The biggest learning from these question was not in finding an answer, but in accepting their complexity. And the challenge of diving into that complexity was irresistible. This was my first clue.