Kimberly Palmeter is a Design and Merchandising Manager. She is currently working for a garment manufacturer that focuses on designing, producing, merchandising and selling men’s dress shirts and tailored clothing.
Tell us about the company that you work for?
I work for a garment manufacturer. We focus on Men’s dress shirts and tailored clothing. We do a small business in women’s wovens as well. We have the dress shirt and tailored clothing licenses for the two brands which we design, merchandise, produce and sell. We are a vertical manufacturer meaning that we own all of our own mills and factories.
How did you become interested in this field?
I’ve always been interested in fashion and apparel.
What is your educational background?
I have a bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising from Marist College, and I am I certified color specialist. I think hands on employment experience helped prepare me as well, such as working in retail establishments.
I am fortunate enough to work for a company that develops people they see potential in. I’ve had the opportunity to grow and learn on the job.
Would you say that your college degree program was beneficial to your career?
Yes, I’d say that my degree helped me by giving me a foundation to grow on. However, I think that hands on experience is equally beneficial.
Do you suggest internships? Did you participate in an internship program?
Yes, I totally suggest internships. In fact, I would recommend participating in an internship program as early on in your career as possible. I participated as an intern at French Connection in their merchandising department. I also volunteered at fashion week on a few different occasions.
What is an average day at work like for you and what types of projects are you currently working on?
As Design and Merchandising Manager I’m responsible for designing our branded dress shirt lines. I present my line to the licensor for their sign off and it goes into the development process. I’m responsible for everything in the design process from picking the color stories to the creation of a sample line for the sales team to use in our showroom. I manage our CAD team on pattern direction and layout for branded projects. I also work with the graphics department to make sure our trim packages are current and accurate depending on the garments specifications and fabrications.
I’m currently working on the Spring 2011 dress shirt lines for my brands.
What do you like most about your job?
I love that I get to be creative and work in a fast paced environment where the day flies by.
What advice do you have for others who are interested in pursuing a career in this profession?
I would recommend really researching the education program that you are looking to enroll in to make sure that they have what you are looking for in your education. Make sure to take any of the computer courses offered because they can totally give you an advantage. Also, to be open to jobs other than exactly what you were looking for. I worked in production before my current job and it really gave me a better idea of the industry as a whole. Every experience is a learning opportunity.
Finally, don’t expect it to be what you see on TV, the industry can be glamorous but for the most part it is not!
