When I was 12, I thought that the only way to break into the fashion industry was as a designer.

I forced my grandmother to teach me to sew, begged my mother to enroll me in drawing classes, and started scouring the websites of FIDM, FIT, and Parsons.

My path, I decided, would be to attend FIDM in LA and get a degree in Apparel Design, intern at Prada or a similar fashion house, and then launch my own (very successful) line.

I found out I wasn’t suited for the life of a designer – I almost stitched my hand to the fabric, couldn’t draw to save my life, and wouldn’t have been able to afford any of the private fashion-focused colleges.

Life happened, and my plan kind of fell apart. 

Six years later, I’m a student at The University of Texas at Austin majoring in Marketing, French, and Rhetoric. I couldn’t be happier with the way things turned out.

I still plan to work in fashion, however.

And I think that’s what a lot of girls forget when they’re thinking about their careers and how to apply their major.

There are so many ways to get into the fashion industry, even if you’re not majoring in something textiles-related. If your passion is in the clothing or beauty industry, pursue it!

My respect for those majoring in apparel design is beyond high, but there are also a lot of cool careers behind the scenes.

Below are 12 lesser-known careers in the fashion industry. Simply scroll down to learn more about each of these professions:

Table of Contents

Business

As a business major, I’m going to show a little bias and cover these careers first. If you’ve ever wondered why certain brands seem to sell so much better than others (despite having similar products), how marketers seem to know exactly what you want to see, or how clothing is priced, read on!