I recently conducted a “Networking 101″ seminar here at FBI. The idea of the seminar was to teach people why networking is so important and to give them the basic tools to start networking on their own. Networking is a skill and an art form. It’s relatively easy to explain the skill of networking – the tools you need, the types of questions to ask, how to introduce yourself and more. Explaining how networking is an art form is much more difficult. You really need to see good networkers in action in order to understand.

Technology is a great way to stay in touch with your personal and professional networks. On-line professional networks such as LinkedIn or social networks like Facebook or Twitter are a great way to connect with people from your past, present and possible future. I’m a big proponent of networking in person, too. For me, I like making a personal connection to someone else. I like being able to interact with someone in a professional or social setting. I get a sense of the other person’s personality, likes, dislikes, maybe even their favorite sports team. I make sure to follow up our conversation with an email or phone call and a reminder of where or how we met and what we might have discussed. If the situation is appropriate, I may add them to my LinkedIn network.

Networking in person or online is crucial to almost everyone. You never know who you’ll meet. You never know who you may be able to help and you never know who may be able to help you. By establishing connections throughout your personal and professional life, you build an organic network of people. Through those people, you continue to grow your network. Perhaps you’ve seen a job posting at a specific company. You’ve emailed your resume, but haven’t heard back. Using LinkedIn you search for people who work at that company. Just your luck, someone in your network worked there recently. You contact them directly and ask them to put you in touch with the HR person in charge of hiring for this position. The rest is up to you, but the fact that you have a network of people to connect you to that HR person gives you an advantage few other people may have.

So let’s get back to why networking is so important and what tools do you need to be successful at it. On-line networking is a very important component to building your network. I check my LinkedIn account every day. I participate in a number of discussions, am active in a number of LinkedIn groups and I post updates to my profile whenever there’s something interesting to post – FBI activities, tradeshows I’m attending, etc. because I know my network will see my latest updates. I also have a link to the FBI Blog so anyone visiting my profile can see what I’m blogging about. Friends, colleagues, former co-workers can see what I’m doing career-wise and, through my LinkedIn connections, can also expand their networks.

As far as networking tools: I never leave home without a pen, a small notepad, business cards and, hopefully, a good attitude. Whenever I’m interacting with someone socially or professionally, I want to be able to write down something they may have brought up in conversation. I may want to exchange business cards. Sometimes I may just want to write something down for the other person. I just take one of my cards and write down whatever book title, article, author, etc. and hand it to the other person. What I don’t want to do is hand them a scrap of paper from my purse, an old grocery list or bank receipt. As I said previously, you never know who you’ll meet, so be prepared!

Jill Mazur is an independent apparel business and technology consultant working with Fashion Business, Incorporated. Email: jill@fashionbizinc.org

Cable channel HBO premiered their documentary entitled “Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags” on October 19, 2009. If you missed it the first time, I’m sure it will be replayed soon and is most likely available through some cable providers “On Demand” services. Whatever you do, don’t miss this program! It’s an 80 minute history lesson that everyone in the garment industry needs to watch.

First of all “Schmatta,” or the more literal transliteration “Shma-teh,” is a Yiddish term for a “Rag, or anything useless” and is usually used to describe a worn-out piece of clothing, but it’s generally used to describe any piece of clothing – high fashion to yesterday’s rags. It’s also a great way to introduce us to the history of the garment industry in New York. The documentary takes us from the late 1880’s to present day in New York’s garment center – seven square blocks of some of the most important history in our industry. Immigrants fresh off the boats from Europe trying to make a living cutting, sewing or designing clothes through the Triangle Shirtwaist factory tragedy in 1911 through unionization to modernization of equipment, a thriving and profitable industry and all the way to the outsourcing of most manufacturing related jobs.

Some parts made me laugh – I recognized many similar personalities in the people I’ve worked with in LA’s garment industry. Some parts made me cry – so many talented people out of work, with no prospects, as more and more jobs disappear from NYC. I’m quoting this directly from the Tenement.org website: “In 1950, the garment industry made up almost 1/3 of all manufacturing employment and 1/10 of total employment in NYC. Today, as a result of the shift from a production and distribution-based economy to a service-based economy, the garment industry is 8% of all manufacturing and 2% of total city employment. This is a drop of almost 75%.”

One of the most worrisome statistics from this documentary is the fact that in 1965, 95% of all clothing worn in the USA was MADE in the USA. Today, it’s less than 5%. How do we bring those jobs back to the US? How do we create living wage jobs in New York or right here in Los Angeles for contractors, cutters, sewers, textile manufacturers, trim suppliers and more. Working conditions around the world are a reflection of the consumer’s desire for quality merchandise at the lowest prices, regardless of the cost. Watch this documentary and note the similarities between NYC in the late 1880’s and present day manufacturing plants. The documentary shows examples of abusive foreign manufacturing plants, underage workers and a scene eerily reminiscent of the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire in modern day India.

The entire documentary is not an expose on horrible labor conditions around the world. There is plenty of interesting historical and political information as well as a number of colorful “garmento” characters from past and present. There are plenty of recognizable faces and a number of familiar personalities. Interestingly, if you go to HBO’s website or even search directly on Facebook, there’s a page where you can post your stories about your personal experiences working in NYC’s garment center. How many of us out there had relatives working in NYC’s garment center 100 years ago? What will be left of it 100 years from now?

Some may place the blame on all of these outsourced jobs on unions, minimum wage, compliance or labor laws, but that’s not the real issue here. After watching the documentary, you’ll know – you already do – what the issues are and what we need to do about it.

I’m excited about the Globaltex tradeshow next week. Last week’s double whammy of Material World and the LA International Textile show have left me feeling mildly optimistic about the state of our industry. I saw several familiar faces and lots of great products. There was a lot of traffic through both shows as well as seminars, color forecasting workshops and a great session put on by Cotton, Inc.

Speaking of seminars, many of the FBI seminars we held in conjunction with Material World and the LA Textile show were full. In addition to the seminars, we had a lot of people stopping by to say “hello.” Speaking of which, Frances Harder, Ken Wengrod from FTC Commercial Corp and yours truly will be on one of the Globaltex discussion panels regarding Speed to Market, so please stop on by to say hello. I hear we’re even having cocktails!

I heard someone say “Why go to Globaltex if I’ve just been to the Textile Show?” Simple. You never know what you might find at Globaltex. It’s a relatively new show and there are a lot of great new vendors testing the tradeshow waters. They may be looking for a different venue to display their products or are looking for a different type of customer. Plus, it’s not just for textiles, trims, etc. I, of course, am excited about the technology vendors. But that’s just me. Who wouldn’t be when there are supply chain, CAD, PLM, ERP, RFID, product development, logistics and warehouse management systems to review! Fine, go ahead and look at all the pretty fabrics…I’ll be very happy looking at the shiny software.

Getting back to our panel discussion next Tuesday, 3:30 p.m. at Globaltex: The panel will discuss how the textile and clothing industry are reacting to the new demands from the retailer for rapid response, what are the new buying habits of retailers and end consumers and how they are changing the way they do business, as well as how this effects California fashion and the global market as far as importing and exporting. Topics covered will consist of: logistics and speed to market, product development, production and the financial impact. The panel will include a group of experts in International finance, logistics, importing and exporting, production and retailing.

Hope to see you there!

Jill Mazur is an independent apparel business and technology consultant working with Fashion Business, Incorporated. Email: jill@fashionbizinc.org

Lots of excitement here at the California Market Center, or as I will never stop referring to it – the Mart. For those of you looking to find new suppliers or just check out the latest trends in textiles, don’t miss the Los Angeles International Textile Show . And, for all of you technology fans, or those looking for hardware, machinery, software and all the latest gadgets you won’t want to miss Material World. Let’s hope for a big turnout this year. It’s great to be able to pull all of these activities into one great space.

While you’re here, come up to the FBI office – Suite 786 and say hello to our great team. Stick around for great seminars. Seriously, people, FREE SEMINARS for FBI Members and only $10 per seminar for non-members on all types of relevant topics. I’m presenting a seminar on the Importance of Networking Wednesday night. Even if you know how to network with the best of them, it will be a great opportunity to meet new and interesting people and maybe learn a thing or two.

FBI SEMINARS:
 

Wednesday Sept. 30Understanding Apparel Principles Using Software Applications

9:00am - 10:00am

EDI Made Simple; De-mystifying EDI & RFID
10:00 am - 11:30amQuickBooks for the Apparel Industry

12:00pm - 1:00pmRetailing Online

2:00pm - 3:00pmHong Kong Trade and Development Presents:  Export to China - (Hong Kong) World Boutique - Jan. 2010)

4:00pm - 5:00pmThe Importance of Networking!

6:30pm - 8:30pm 

9:00am - 10:00am
De-mystifying the Small Business Loan Application

11:30am - 12:30pmChoosing a Factor

1:00pm - 2:00pm

Friday Oct. 2Starting Your Own Apparel Business
10:00am - 11:00am Realities of the Investment World
11:30am - 12:30pmBrothers Digital Garment Printer Training
1:00pm -2:00pmIllustrator and Photoshop for Textile Designers
2:30pm - 3:30pmWhere & When

110 East 9th St., Ste C786
Los Angeles, California 90079
213.892.1669

Simply put, Viral marketing is a way to utilize existing social networks – mainly online or by word of mouth – to generate buzz for a business, product, person, event, etc. Using video clips, text messages, blogs, images, games, promotional items and more, the goal of viral marketing is to reach a targeted market of consumers without having to spend money on standard marketing or advertising campaigns. Seems like a good idea, right? Maybe. It really depends on your customer and target audience.

Viral marketing can be very successful when launching a new product or brand to a carefully targeted audience. Introducing a new energy drink? Hip, trendy nightclubs may be a great place to promote it. Saw a celebrity wearing your design at last week’s movie premiere or awards show? Tweet, blog, post it on Facebook and email all of your clients and contacts a link to the video or image and tell them where to buy the product. Sometimes you’re the beneficiary of someone else’s viral campaign and the next thing you know, you’ve got a best-selling item on your hands.

I was talking to a colleague the other day about marketing her new product. She mentioned to me that she was thinking of spending her advertising budget to remodel her office instead of buying ads in trade publications and magazines. She was hoping to capitalize on viral marketing instead to maintain interest in her products and generate new customers. Problem is – her products are basic apparel items targeted to the 45 – 60 year old female demographic. Not necessarily the prime audience of a viral campaign. Her response to me was “Well, Oprah Tweets!” Yes, Oprah Winfrey “Tweets” and getting a product mentioned by Oprah is a fabulous example of viral marketing. But don’t hold your breath hoping Oprah will mention your product on her program, magazine or next Twitter post.

Take a page out of many retailers’ handbooks – spend your advertising dollars and energy wisely. If your customers expect to see your ads in traditional print media, keep placing your ads there and create an online presence to help increase your market share. Is your presence mostly online? Keep your website up to date and make sure your home and product pages look fresh and exciting. Launching a new brand or product line? Figure out whom to target first and how best to reach them. Just don’t expect your product to sell itself if you’re not out there selling to the right audience in the right place.

As for my colleague, she realized her customers probably didn’t know what Twitter was, let alone how to use it. If Oprah was Tweeting about her product, most of her target audience would miss out on Oprah’s wisdom. Her office remodel would have to wait. Her traditional advertising works for a reason, that’s where her customers find her products.

Jill Mazur is an independent apparel business and technology consultant working with Fashion Business, Incorporated. Email: jill@fashionbizinc.org

Results from a Recent Twitter User Survey:

Alex Cheng and Mark Evans of Sysomos Inc. created a survey on how much (or how little) Twitter is currently being utilized.  Before placing all of your viral marketing eggs in the Twitter basket, think about this - after analyzing information from 11.5 million Twitters accounts, they discovered:

• Just 5% of Twitter users account for 75% of all activity
• 85.3% of all Twitter users post less than one update per day
• 21% of users have never posted a Tweet
• 93.6% of users have less than 100 followers, while 92.4% follow less than 100 people

Read the full survey results on their blog.

Join Social Media Maven Macala Wright for and in-depth discussion on what the world of social media means to fashion designers and brands.

This seminar will help fashion brands and designers understand if they should include social media in their marketing efforts–what social media outlets make sense for fashion brands and how social media can complement a comprehensive marketing strategy.

This course will also delve into the basics of using popular social media outlets like twitter, facebook and youtube for marketing and promotional purposes.

When	July 29th, 2009 6:00 PM through   8:00 PM
Location	110 East 9th St. Room C786 Los Angeles, CA 90079 United States
Contact	Phone: 213-892-1669 Email: info@fashionbizinc.org
Event Fee(s)	Member $ 25.00 Non Member $ 40.00

What’s the Worst Thing About Twitter?…Was the first question on the topic posed by the moderator at a social media panel I attended earlier this week.

People tweeting about things like…” I just ate a taco,” the moderator laughed as did the audience full of PR and Media professionals who all knew exactly what she was talking about. We were on a mission looking for ways to use wildly popular mediums like Twitter for marketing purposes.

We want to Build our brands and Sell more goods.  Yes…we were shameless..and we did not care about other peoples tacos!

There is in fact, tweeting for business and tweeting for pleasure. In business you want to direct your tweets so although they may be fun and cutesy…they still work towards some particular goals.  Goals like… Building your brand, Aligning your company with special causes or simply communicating to your customers …It all goes back to the “Why” you’re actually taking the time to tweet..even if it is only 140 characters or less.

Besides Stella McCartney’s show above here are a few others that are using it well….

Designer Rachel Roy shares words of wisdom, style advice and forges a personal bond with her followers on her page.. http://twitter.com/rachel_roy

Designer Tory Burch gives her followers a sneak peek behind her stylish and fabulous life http://twitter.com/toryburch

Dior weaves together an intricate brand story on their twitter…filled with mystery, Parisian adventures and of course..handbags! http://twitter.com/Lady_Dior

Friend to the FBI Peggi Burdick, also known as the Financial Whisper submitted the following article to help designers unlock the keys to achieving financial success in business and in life.

So many designers have a dream, are propelled by their passion, but get ‘stuck’. What is the answer people need in order to move forth and not sacrifice their passion?

Why does it feel sometimes that the more one wants to move ahead, there is an invisible rope that holds them back.

All of it can be traced back to one’s childhood where the messages were potent and long lasting. I call it: Living Your Life on Two Tracks.  One’s very early childhood, from birth to 5 years old is total imprinting, for better or for worse.

That imprinting can create havoc when we are adults. We have the body of a 30 year old, but the reactions of a frightened five year old.

For those of you who were sewing at an early age, dressing the dog for a walk around the block, making all sorts of hats, purses, shoes and the like, clearly, your path was set; your passions were taking shape.

What happened?

Reality verses your fantasies clashed.

How do you at this stage ground yourself so that you can proceed and fulfill your dreams?

The key is to get rid of your self-sabotaging behaviors. And, you accomplish that by becoming the perfect parent you never had.  Your inner four-year old often is ‘driving the bus’. The adult in you can help your inner-child calm down and make better choices.

There is a workshop starting Wed June 17^th for four weeks, held in the evenings in Santa Monica. This workshop will help those who really want to move ahead with becoming financially stable to finally make their dreams come true…

For more information, go to: www.thefinancialwhisperer.com/events

Or call: 310-316-3579

UK’s Industry Forum and [TC]are joining together to present a Fashion Fashion workshop May 28th at Fashion Business Inc. in the California Market Center, Los Angeles, CA.

*Understand in more depth the principles behind the Zara and fast fashion business models and improved efficiency reduces costs.

*Explore how to achieve a fast supply chain and deliver better products with low risk, reducing the cash to cash cycle.

*Learn how to improve the critical path, re-engineer the supply chain, and manage the process more effectively.

*Learn what processes enable the Fast Fashion cycle from design to point of sale to be achieved in 4 to 6 weeks and the company culture required to support the processes.

*Understand how financial performance can be improved through Fast Fashion.

The presentations will include Fast Fashion examples of tools and techniques which have been successfully applied. [TC] will show how Fast Fashion meets the sustainability agenda and how advances in digital technology will make processes even faster.

For information or to register, contact Debra Gill at 919.653.3501, or email dgill@tc2.com.

This special workshop has been endorsed by the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) and IAF (International Apparel Federation)

FBI is announcing the launch of a brand new free program for unemployed patternmakers launching at the end of April.

Courtesy of a grant provided by Microsoft Corporation, this special program provides free training to unemployed patternmakers who need to improve or enhance their computer skills to obtain full time employment.

Participants will rotate through the following courses for the duration of the 8 week program:

Microsoft Excel 2007 Overview Class

Learn the basics of Excel 2007 that will prepare you for the remainder of the program

Pattern 101 Using Excel

A full professional introduction to computerized pattern-making, using the Pattern Assisted Design (PAD) system and Microsoft Excel.

Knockoff Class Using Excel:

Learn to replicating designs quickly and accurately - using the Pattern Assisted Design (PAD) system and the Microsoft Excel system.

Made to Measure—Using Excel

Using PAD and Microsoft Excel to automate your fitting, grading, and spec process.

Participant Qualifications:

1. Must Be Currently Unemployed

2. Must Have Minimum 1 Year of Full Time Patternmaking Experience

3. Must Have Basic Computer Knowledge

Spaces are limited.  Please submit your resume to info@fashionbizinc.org, or attend the open house for immediate consideration.

**Open House**

Wednesday, April 22nd

12-1 pm

The New Fashion Business Inc. Resource Center

California Market Center   C789