15 highest paying fashion jobs

Whether your talents lie in being creative, leading others or promoting products, you have plenty of opportunities. Here is a selection of high-paying fashion jobs, including their salary expectations and essential duties. For the most up-to-date salary information from Indeed, click on the salary link for each job title below:

Primary duties: Fashion stylists plan and coordinate outfits to help clients look their best or showcase the clothing itself. They may select clothing for photo shoots, advertising campaigns, television and film productions or appearances made by public figures. Stylists’ responsibilities include keeping up to date on trends by attending fashion shows or events, sourcing clothing from brands and consulting on sets with other creative professionals such as hairstylists, makeup artists and art directors.

Primary duties: Fashion designers create original clothing and accessories, usually specializing in certain products. Depending on the designer, they may create items for mass-production or more unique items for runways, boutiques and high-end stores. Fashion designers are involved in the full creation process of a collection, from conceptualizing and sketching design ideas to creating prototype garments and choosing materials. Those with more control over their designs may also make manufacturing, production and merchandising decisions.

Primary duties: Fashion merchandising managers make decisions regarding the stock, prices and presentation of products at retail stores. Day-to-day responsibilities include maintaining a store’s visual appearance, coordinating sales promotions and checking inventory levels. Fashion merchandising managers also conduct market research and analyze customer data. They may use this research to help them decide which vendors to purchase products from or determine which products will sell best in their store, for example.

Primary duties: Buyers watch the latest fashion trends and work with retail or department stores to select the products sold in their stores. The job may require buyers to attend trade shows and fashion shows or meet with designers to find products. When making decisions on merchandise, buyers take the price, quality and customers’ habits into consideration before selling it in stores. They may also be responsible for working with suppliers to negotiate contracts and coordinate deliveries.

Primary duties: Fashion public relations managers direct the public relations and communications departments for a company, ensuring to uphold its positive reputation. They are responsible for overseeing and executing public relations strategies, which often involves building relationships with media outlets to promote the brand. Promotional campaigns and events may include fashion shows, press releases, fashion look books or showroom appointments. Fashion PR managers also oversee the marketing and PR calendars, media target lists and press kits developed by their team.

Primary duties: A fashion editor-in-chief oversees digital or print publications and makes the final decisions on what is published. For example, they would be responsible for setting the tone of a magazine and planning the layout, design and contents of monthly issues. They also manage the staff of editors and writers, including making some hiring decisions, and oversee the publication’s budget. A fashion editor-in-chief serves as a representative of their publication and promotes it by attending industry events, such as fashion shows.

Primary duties: Fashion account executives are responsible for promoting retail chains or designer brands to help them sell products. They meet with media outlets and representatives to coordinate ad campaigns, which may include ads in print publications or on the internet, TV and billboards. Account executives often set sales and revenue goals and analyze trends to improve the brand’s sales strategy.

Primary duties: Fashion e-commerce managers oversee a retail organization’s online sales presence, with the ultimate goal of generating more purchases. Their regular responsibilities include reviewing sales data and inventory levels, creating pricing strategies and planning promotional campaigns. They also help improve the online shopping experience, which may involve working with other departments, such as the development and marketing teams, and developing search engine optimization strategies. E-commerce managers also have administrative duties, such as managing payments and returns.

Primary duties: Fashion marketing managers determine the marketing strategies that will best drive sales for a company or brand. They are responsible for managing branding efforts, creating advertising campaigns and analyzing the results of these tactics. Fashion marketing managers collaborate with the marketing and product development teams and supervise the creation of briefs, logos and package designs used to price and advertise products. They also must monitor market trends to make decisions on whether a marketing plan is effective or needs improvement.

Primary duties: Fashion brand managers oversee the maintenance and creation of a company’s image with the goal of attracting and retaining customers. They collaborate with the creative, marketing and product development teams to ensure that all launches adhere to the brand’s value and message. They are responsible for managing and signing off on the production of promotional content, such as advertisements, email campaigns and websites. Fashion brand managers also use market research to determine which areas the company should invest in based on customers’ spending habits and needs.

Primary duties: In the fashion industry, art directors supervise the creation of visual materials for advertising campaigns, magazines and other media. They create the vision for the images and manage creative staff such as photographers, graphic designers and others to ensure they correctly execute the concept. Fashion art directors commonly work at fashion magazines, where they are responsible for signing off on the cover, approving page layouts and maintaining budgets and deadlines.

Primary duties: Sourcing managers in the fashion industry often work within the manufacturing sector and are responsible for keeping the process on schedule and cost-effective. They could be responsible for sourcing a variety of items for manufacturing clothing and accessories, including raw materials, fabrics and zippers. Sourcing managers also determine which suppliers to use, which means they often have to work on negotiations and legal agreements with these sources. The role also requires analyzing the manufacturing process to decide whether to replace a supplier based on the quality or cost of their goods.

Primary duties: A fashion product manager oversees the product development, design and sales teams through its manufacturing lifecycle from conception to release. Their role is also to ensure that the product aligns with the company’s overall vision and goals. They usually manage a specific product or product line—for example, footwear or women’s wear—and plan the product requirements based on customers’ needs. Fashion product managers monitor commercial trends to determine which strategies will make the company’s product or service more marketable and profitable. They also handle setting up and implementing the product’s quality assurance protocols.

Primary duties: In the fashion industry, creative directors develop the vision for publications, such as magazines, or a company’s products and branding. When working for a publication or advertising, they plan out the layout and visuals then have the final approval on the resulting photographs, art or graphics. Within fashion product development, the creative director will communicate a vision to the design team and have the final say on details such as fabrics, colors and other design details. They are responsible for ensuring all elements under their control remain cohesive and consistent with their brand.

Primary duties: Fashion design directors manage a team of designers to develop product lines for a retailer or brand. They provide creative direction to their team each fashion season, ensuring that the products align with current trends and market demands. Fashion design directors oversee all aspects of the design process, from market research to design sketches to product fittings and more. They also maintain compatibility along product lines—for example, making sure that a brand has a consistent look between its children and adult clothing lines.