Sessions

Rescheduled for November 22, 2011
Give your Creative business the Business Edge
Tuesday 25 October, 2011
9.30am-11.30am

Let's be realistic. You are creative, you are imaginative, you are talented & you bring ideas into reality everyday. Not everyone can do this & that makes you & your business unique. The same goes for anyboady in the creative industries or those in any small business. you had the idea, you made it happen. But in these economic times & even in the good times, it is the business side of things that many in the creative industries fall short in. And why should you be talented in this area, your strength is in your role of creator. But to keep on creating, you need to get business smart.

I speak to creative people everyday, & I have discovered a secret to those whose business side is as successful as their creative side. It appears the secret is Michael Doneman of Edgeware. Mentoring creatives is his passion & his business.

There is not a creative person I have spoken to who has met or worked with Michael that is not sucessful on the business side & living their creative dream with a successful financial business.

Personally, I can't wait to hear him speak this month, October cannot come fast enough!

Guest Speaker

Michael Doneman of Edgeware. "Make Money, Have fun, Change World, Creative Entrepreneurship." Mentoring for creatives by creatives who have walked the walk and can now talk the talk with you. Michael is all about showing you how to turn the creative business into one of positive cashflow, while not losing site of what you do & enjoy best.

This is your opportunity to ask how to make money - and be answered! If you are serious about your idea or creative side being a very real & viable business, then you will be at Frocks in the Vines on October 25.

The story of local to international
Tuesday 6 September, 2011
9.30am-11.30am

Can you really take your dream of being a designer stocked throughout Australia and Europe, to reality? The answer is yes you can, with passion, determination, a business mind and a whole lot of nouse.

Guest Speaker
Begitta Stolk is the guest label at the 2011 Sunshine Coast Fashion Festival Group Show. A Brisbane based designer, in just a few short years Begitta has won competitions, awards and taken her label to Europe. Begitta is returning from Paris straight to the Sunshine Coast Fashion Festival & Frocks in the Vines. this brilliant young designer is going to share her story with you this month. The trials & tribualtions, what went right and what went wrong and how she came to be the dream now every day.

Inspiring for everyone. Learn more about Begitta







 

Fashion photography: the right images will make your business money
Tuesday July 12, 2011
9.30am-11.30am

How many times have I looked at an image and thought "Now that shot is going to get massive media coverage". How many times have I looked at an image and thought "I hope they didn't spend any money on that shoot because it's just embarrassing." That last comment sound a bit harsh? Welcome to the world of publicity, branding, marketing and media. Without the right image, you have next to no chance of receiving editorial coverage or sales from your website/facebook. That's harsh, and that's the reality. It doesn't matter how good your product or business is, if the image isn't right, nobody is buying. Get your image right, make sure it matches quality branding, and you will start getting the positive attention you need.

This session will include:
* what images NOT to use to promote your label
* what media and buyers look for in the images you DO present
* the importance of having your own head shot
* bring along your product or a garment, as well as your best face on, as we hold a photoshoot with Maleny Mountain Winery as our back drop, you as a model (headshot poses) and you as photoshoot assistants.
* bring along your current images for a professional critique


Guest Speaker

Photographer Paul Fletcher has more than 20 years experience behind the lens. Head photographer for the Sunshine Coast Fashion Festival, Paul also photographs Rosemount Australian Fashion Week, Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, and is a registered photographer with ACP magazines. (And when not photographing high fashion, he may just be snapping celebrities - paparazzi style).

Marketing Secrets to ensure you rise above the pack
Tuesday 21 June, 2011
9.30am-11.30am
Maleny Mountain Winery, 787 Landsborough-Maleny Rd, Maleny

In todays fast changing world of fashion (garments, shoes, jewellery, accessories, homewares), your relationship with those new media entrepreneurs, bloggers, can play a major part in contributing to the bottom line of your business. While a glossy magazine takes 3 months + to go to print, the trends have already changed. Fashion/beauty bloggers can make sure your label is the one everyone is talking about and buying, while it's still hot!

This session will include:
* social media for your fashion business
* buidling a relationship with fashion bloggers
* be your own PR machine

Guest Speaker:
Nikki Parkinson's background is in journalism, and includes stints as an editorial stylist, fashion editor and magazine editor (Sunshine Coast Daily's Saturday magazines Revive & Style). Today Nikki is well respected as a personal and corporate stylist, as well as one of Australia's top fashion & beauty bloggers. Nikki will share her expertise with you as both a stylist & blogger, and how you can make the most of your relationships with these key players in the creative industry.

Fashion Editors - what do you need to do to get the editorial coverage you desire?
Tuesday 17 May, 2011
9.30am-11.30am
Maleny Mountain Winery: 787 Maleny-Landsborough Rd, Maleny

Advertising is one thing, but editorial coverage in those fashion & lifestyle pages and be the beginning of some very big sales for your label or retail store. How do you get your label/store included in editorial?
With national Fashion Week Season having now started, and MBFF & the Sunshine Coast Fashion Festival still to come, how do you ensure your label gets the pre fashion week and post fashion week coverage you desire?

Candice Gregor is the fashion editor of the Sunshine Coast's Weekender magazine. The woman behind all of the glossy fashion pages that are poured over by 10's of thousands, is this months guest speaker. Find out how to make your relationship with fashion editors work for you.

The Business of Fashion - it's not just good design
Tuesday 12 April, 2011
9.30 - 11.30am

Fashion is business, and at the end of the day, no matter how creative you are, it comes down to making a dollar. The road to success isn't always smooth, but the learning experiences are invaluable.
This session will include:
* the collapse of business
* rebulding to success
* learning from your mistakes and those of others
* learning from the knowlegde of others
* not giving up in the face of adversity
* rolling out to global success

Guest Speaker

Who would have thought that the good old Aussie thong/plugger/jangles were such big business. Craig Taplin of Aussie Soles knew it. With a 1 million dollar turnover in 2006,raising 1.5 million dollars in the US in 2007 while going public - while the GFC hit the USA! And this is just the beginning of a global roll out that Aussie Soles is currently undergoing - all from the Sunshine Coast.

Funding your business through Grants
Tuesday 15 February, 2011
9.30am-11.30am

Those in the creative industries are always great at one thing - creating. But you need money to create. money to take advantage of opportunities such as trade fair, fashion parades, education, manufacture, to open your facilities, marketing... Where do you find that elusive extra financial support.
This session will include:
* what are grants?
* the difference between grants & sponsorship
* types of Grants
* list of funding opportunities available to you
* where to find funding & how to apply
* what you need to know when applying for grants on your own
* avenues of assistance when applying for funding
* Q & A

Guest Speaker

Gina Foster is the Principal of Grants 4 U, a Sunshine Coast based firm specialising in grant applications for all industries. Having been in the industry for an number of years, Gina Foster is on top of the latest changes, new funding opportunities, and the thinking behind the decisions made by the powers that be.

Onshore vs Offshore Production
Tuesday January 18, 2011
9.30am-11.30am

It's always a hard decision to make. Do you go offshore to produce your garments or remain local. If you go offshore, how do you find the right production house, manage the quality, make sure your order doesn't get pushed to the side for another fashion house. If you go local, is it really that much more expensive, and again, all of the same questions apply. This month, we are privileged to have two guest speakers to guide you.

This session will include:
* anecdotes from offshore production
* maintaining your quality control
* ensuring your place in the production cue
* hidden costs such as customs, shipping and tax
* local production

Guest speaker

Laura Savage started her career at UK high street icon John Lewis following a degree in Fashion Design at the University of Creative Arts.  Following that role, Laura worked for a London design house supplier for major high street brands. These included European & Middle Eastern chains such as Primark, Adams Childrenswear, M&Co, dunnes, John Lewis, New Look and Mothercare as well as online fashion phenomenon ASOS. Her designs have sold in their thousands throughout those retailers, and she enjoyed numerous trips to China to oversee sample production. Aveteran of 3 months on the Coast, Laura is now busy working freelance for Melbourne and Dublin-based suppliers/retailers, as well as developing her first range of own-labelled clothing for launch in Summer 2011.

Laura Savage will provide anecdotes & learning points from those production trips to factories spread across the vast Chinese state. As fashion brands grow, they invariably endure time, volume and pricing pressures, which can lead you, as a fashion label, to seek offshore production to maximise efficiency & profitability.Laura's experience of the cultural, practical and professional considerations, as well as changing production trends, could help you 'dodge some bullets' when considering overseas production.

Melanie Harris is the Director of Harris Production House. A couture designer herself with over 22 years experience in the industry both in Europe and Australia, she has recognized the need for a local (Sunshine Coast) based production house. Over the past 12 months, Melanie has established a production house - capable of high end, quality couture finishes, to your basic requirements. Handpicked seamstresses, pattern makers and pattern cutters make up the team available to work on your label - freeing you up to do what you do best, design!

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Trade Shows
Tuesday December 7, 2010
9.30am-11.30am

Why do some labels get all the sales at Trade Shows and you are sitting there twiddling your thumbs as the buyers walk on by?
Were you prepared? Did you network? Did you expect them to flock to you because your product is pure brilliance? In just a couple of months, the Trade Shows beging for 2011 and you need to be prepared. This session is especially relevant to those attending Fashion Exposed Sydney 2011.

This session will include:
* basic preparation: paperwork templates
* your retailer wishlist
* buyer appointments
* minimizing your costs

Guest Speaker

Melanie Harris has been in the industry for 22 years. With years of experience in attending trade shows internationally and locally, as both an exhibitor and a buyer, she brings to you a wealth of knowledge from both sides. Be prepared to make the most out of your trade show exhibition.

Fashion Publicity
19 October, 2010
9.30am-11.30am
How to get that elusive editorial coverage, locally and nationally.

Guest Speaker

Gina Fink of Savage PR has run her own PR firm nationally over the last 4 years. With over 15 years experience in the industry in buyer & PR roles, she has also worked at London Fashion Week and Graduate Fashion Week in London. Gina has worked with emerging designers as well as international brands such as Nike, Quicksilver, Juicy Couture, Levis, several London based designers as well as in Australia (Shaboosh, Sudo, Tribe, SOSOOKI and Sookibaby).
Gina will be sharing all the tips on how to achieve that editorial coverage, what a fashion publicist does, all the story angles, what is required of you the label to achieve editorial coverage, and how to find the right publicist that fits with you and your label.

Launch My Label
Tuesday 7 September, 2010
9.30am-11.30am
There is so much more to launching a label than designing a product and holding a get together for friends. Legalities, publicity, selling, branding, and that's just the beginning.

Guest Speaker

With years of working with emerging designers, and as a designer herself, Helen Sattler (founder of F.rock Fashion), has combined all of the resources that have made F.rock Fashion the success that it is today, and is now offering them to all emerging designers to fast track their success in launching their label.
"Launch my Label" is a complete Fashion Label Accelerator System. It's not how to run your business it is how to launch your label. "Launch my Label" gives designers the forms, templates, agreements, ideas and all of the structure, PLUS lists of who to contact to sell their label, promote their label and to support them in building their brand.

Helen Sattler will not only be talking with you about Launch my Label, but will be giving membership to Launch my Label, valued at $997, away to one lucky designer on the day.

Do you have something to offer our Creative Talent?
If you have valuable information or are a part of this exciting industry and would like the opportunity to address our creative talent at a future Frocks in The Vines, please contact us.

Fashion Agents
Tuesday 20 July, 2010
9.30am - 11.30am

What are fashion agents and how do you find the right one for you? In a world of high street fashion, disposable fashion, investment dressing, high turn over, limited edition, how does your label get a look in, in the world of PR and retailers? Even a label that has been around for some time with a steady client base can find it near impossible to make an impact outside their own 'backyard'. So how can an agent help? An agent represents your label to the bigger world. But finding one that will take you on and one that is the best fit in representing your brand can be daunting. So how do you do it?

Guest speaker

Margaret Farrell, will be joining us directly following on her from her sojourn at Delhi Fashion Week. Margaret is internationally renown as a fashion consultant and represents select Australian and International labels.

Margaret Farrell founded the private company Rushe–Farrell in 1985.  Since then the company has grown and is the Umbrella Company for several wholesale and distribution companies within the fashion trade in Europe.

Margaret has been awarded many accolades, too numerous to mention, in her time as Managing Director of these companies which she overseas from Europe and Australia. 

She has been listed many times in the Who’s Who of various countries.  She has sat on many fashion boards of fashion weeks around the world and has been an international Judge at some fashion weeks plus fashion television programmes.

These days Margaret divides her time between Ireland, UK and Australia where she maintains homes and has family.  She has advised many designers and design companies worldwide on both current and future trends in the wholesale fashion industry and currently is advisor/consultant to many large international stores as a consultant buyer.  She is invited to most fashion weeks worldwide as a VIP guest. 

Margaret has been asked to sit on various government forums and grants committees regarding the fashion industry and has been chairperson of various fashion organisations worldwide, including Chairperson of Textile Clothing Footwear in Western Australia for many years, as well as being a Government appointee to the ARTSWA for fashion grants.

Margaret has organised several fashion shows at Fashion Weeks worldwide and has assisted many emerging designers to gain a foothold in markets that would otherwise not be available to them, including many designer groups to show at Australian Fashion Week in Sydney

Margaret is passionate about fashion and emerging designers, she is happy to use her experience and skills to lecture and mentor when time permits and has been doing so internationally for a number of years.

Join Margaret on Tuesday July 20, and ask her everything you have always wanted to know about getting your label the representation it needs.

$25 incl wine and cheese ($20 students/FITV partners)

Marketing on a budget
Tuesday August 10, 2010
9.30am-11.30am
You need a presence but as an emerging or struggling label, fund are extremely tight. There is always a way! If you can attach a photo or document to an email, then you have the skills to market on a budget. Topics covered are:
* websites don't have to be expensive
* e-newsletter's don't have to be expensive
* marketing and print materials on the cheap (without looking it)
* advertising vs publicity
* social media

Guest Speaker

If Jacinta can put market the Sunshine Coast Fashion Festival, Sunshine Coast Style Awards and Coconut on the smell of an oily rag, then surely she has some marketing on a budget tips! As a fashion & lifestyle publicist, she has some tips and tricks there too!

Give your creative business the Edge