I Answered Your Questions About Style & Other Things!
Plus 5 camp collar shirts to buy right now!
PLEASE READ: I have decided to make this Substack not just a hobby but give it a real shot and dedicate a significant amount of time to it. Because I love it,—it being sharing the fashion, music, movies, and other stuff that bring me joy.
After 11 years in the fashion industry building up my voice, I humbly think I’ve earned a place to own my own channel, where the content is what I wanna do when I wanna do it. And I want it to be the best it can possibly be, because you deserve it—but the only way to do that is with your support. Not to get all telethon on your ass but for just $6 a month (or $60 a year, less than some socks y’all wear!) you can literally help me realize these dreams.
On a more practical level you are helping pay the $650 a month that my health insurance costs. (Note: Cobra is ass.) I am so grateful for having the chance to do this and I hope you’ll pitch in.
Anyway here are the answers to the questions you asked! Thank you!
Pros and cons of working in the fashion editorial space and where you see the industry heading? — Ben
The cons are plentiful, but one that resonates with me is that you really, truly, do not make the kind of money that I think editors deserve, let alone the kind of money that justifies constantly recommending people buy $4,000 jackets and $1,000 jeans. Especially not in your early days. (Luckily, my homies at Condé Nast just announced they intend to collectively bargain and unionize, which could change this!)
None of this is a secret, but it’s well known that this results in an industry that is only really “open” to those who can financially get help early in their career, often from their parents or other family. This is no fault of those people, but it’s the reality many others have spoken to in the past. As for me, I barely had help from my parents (meaning I’ve paid my own rent since I was 21), and it was nearly impossible make ends meet while also fronting like I had what I didn’t. Frankly, I chased the lifestyle I was selling which led to bad decisions. (When I was 25 and making let’s just say NOT A LOT, I bought a $2,000 Raf Simons fishtail parka with PayPal Credit and it took me YEARS to pay it off.)
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