The Relevance of Color in Visual Merchandising
The goal of a Visual Merchandiser is to create a pleasant shopping experience at the point of sale- meaning a pleasant experience that the customer can attach to the brand and the store. Color has a very important role in the aforementioned. Color theory, which is essential for all visual communication, can shape the customer experience. It can highlight, darken, or draw attention to the items in the store. In this professional path, color trends, and the Pantone color of the year, and different palettes also have a role in the store’s decor.
Different colors have different connotations for humans, they evoke different emotions and reactions, for this reason, Visual Merchandisers make conscious choices of which colors to use in relation to the space to create impact.
Although geographical and cultural references, as well as the intensity will also change the types of emotions and sensations evoked by colors, here are some very general examples:
Pastel colors are more child-like,
Bright colors are more aggressive, younger and dynamic.
Warm colors such as reds, yellows, oranges tend to be more associated with “moving forward”, they are active.
Cool colors such as greens and blues, are more linked to ice, moonlight, serenity, the sky, the sea, immensity.
Additionally, the way the colors are combined also marks a difference for the space, common combinations in Visual Merchandising are:
Gradient: Going from the lightest to the darkest, or vice versa; or creating a range from warm to cool colors, creating smooth transitions, and some points can be highlighted.
Harmony: In this type of combination two or three colors from the same range or with soft contrast, the base is always harmonious.
Contrast: This use of combination creates a dynamic feeling by putting opposite colors against each other. This type is the most dependent on seasonal trends, but there are basic combinations such as dark blue, red, and white.
What Is the Right Time to Change Careers?
Interesting fact: by age 50 the average person has had 12 different jobs. That means 12 changes in career paths; because sometimes this just means changing industries, sometimes changing responsibilities, changing jobs, nevertheless, in the end it just means people leave their jobs; and this number might even increase with the fast pace of society.
Why are we talking about this? Education is an essential tool for those seeking to change direction in their career paths, in fact some of our students enroll in our courses to do just that! At ELLE Education we believe everyone should follow their passion even if it seems scary, life is about taking risks and seeking fulfillment. Your job ends up playing a big role, and changes carve your way to success, given this importance, today we are going to talk about signs that point that it’s time to change careers.
First, let’s get this out of the way, this is a great year to change careers, with the current state of the world gaps in your CV are explainable and reasonable. Even though it’s also reasonable to stay in your safe zone given the already mentioned current state of the world, it’s also an opportunity to explore what you have always wanted to do. Nothing can be worse than everything that’s already happened…
1- You daydream about a different job
If you are constantly thinking about what your life would look like if you didn’t have to stay at your current job, this is your mind telling you that you don’t want to be there and seeking escape even if imaginary.
2- You really don't want to show up to your workplace
If you spend the whole weekend stressed out about Monday chances are you are very unhappy. You can’t even enjoy your downtime because you dread your job so much.
3-Your job is starting to affect your personal life
If you are constantly tired, have insomnia, headaches, or permanently stressed and this is affecting your social life, family life, and love life, you should find something else.
4-You don't feel like you are making an impact
A job is a way in which we contribute to society, if you don’t feel like your job makes a difference, and it’s pointless you are probably not very happy in your position.
5- You are apathetic
Highly related to the previous point, but if you have no initiative or enthusiasm for your work, and you are just doing the minimum this is probably not the right place for you.
6-Your salary isn’t enough for the misery you feel going to work
Before a paycheck may have made it all worth it at the end of the month, but now you feel like you are wasting your time and potential, another clear sign this is not the place for you.
The world is changing everyday, and there is no guarantee that tomorrow it will go back to what we called “normality”, many jobs are increasingly becoming obsolete, you might as well do something you love! (and if that it’s in the world of lifestyle, we may be able to help you, click here)
What You Should Know About a Color Study
Image Consultants use color studies to find out what are the best colors and tones for their client based on their skin, eye, and hair color. Today we share with you some key facts about what this tool entails.
Why is a color study necessary?
Knowing the colors that best suit a client can help them to hide imperfections, to highlight parts of the body, and to change their entire image!
What exactly does it entail?
Color studies require the client to be in a neutral environment and to wear neutral colors, this means wearing a black or white gown, no make-up, hiding highlighted or dyed hair, in good natural light or white light, then identifying the best tones by taking a cloth with a colored palette and comparing it against their skin tone.
How are tones classified?
Image Consultants use seasons, the characteristics of each one are listed below:
AUTUMN: radiates in warm and intense autumnal colors with their golden tones.
SPRING: impressive in soft, delicate colors, with their warm yellow tones.
WINTER: needs bright, primary and cold colors.
SUMMER: needs pastel and soft colors with their cold and blue tones.
How do I know the “right” colors?
In short terms the right colors will make the client look healthy, bring out the natural tone in their cheeks, and will accentuate the best natural features of the client.
Curious for more? Check out our Image Consultant and Personal Shopper short course by clicking here.
Marketing and Communication Terms You Have to Know!
Are you an aspiring Marketing and Communications professional? Maybe you already are, but you want to renew your knowledge or specialize in fashion and luxury, in any case, today we want to share with you some terms we think are key in this profession.
Brand Positioning
This refers to how you stand out from the competition and how your customers relate to your brand.
Unified Brand Experience
Establishing a consistent brand identity through all selling platforms.
Brick-and-mortar
The term for the physical location of a store, this is one of the most important places for fashion and luxury brands, where the customer interacts with the brand and can absorb the lifestyle the brand promotes.
Brick-and-click
The integration of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce sites to provide the customer with a unique experience. This could include special perks and web-to-store services.
Inbound Marketing
An organic customer-centric marketing approach that aims to provide relevant and useful content to the customer. It focuses on long term results, as opposed to paid campaigns.
Atelier
French word used to describe a fashion designer’s studio or workshop, the perfect place for your customers to visit and see the “making of” process.
Demand Generation
The term refers to the use of technology to create awareness and interest in your product.
Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
This is the profile of what you would consider to be your ideal customer, in other words who needs and would benefit from your product or service; an incredibly useful tool.
Diffusion Line
A modestly priced line of merchandise created by a high-end designer.
Growth Marketing
This term refers to setting up “experiments” or trials to see how you can optimize and improve the results of your target area.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
The first thing we think of is “databases” but actually it goes beyond just a software to keep contacts, it is a tool that allows sales teams, and marketing and communication teams, to understand their consumer through tracked interactions.
Paid Search
This is the practice of showing ads to a possible consumer when using a search engine to look up terms or keywords related to your product.
Our New Year’s Resolutions
The year has just started and we wanted to share our New Year’s resolutions with you!
In 2021 we want:
-To connect with more students all over the world!
We want our educational offer to reach anyone who wants to work in fashion, interior design, lifestyle and has no idea where to start.
-To give more people the opportunity to work in their dream career
If we have to expand our offer we will… Stay tuned for new courses!
-To continue giving the best combination of practical and academic knowledge to prepare our students
Sometimes you just gotta polish what you already do well
-To provide you with more content and knowledge
We got some things coming up for the new year that will allow us to give you even more content and learning opportunities in the areas of fashion, interior design and lifestyle!
-To continue training the future leaders of the industries of fashion, lifestyle and design
This one needs your input! Sign up to your favorite course ;)
My Experience at ELLE Education
I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank ELLE education for this memorable opportunity.
I’m a 28-year-old aspiring fashion entrepreneur and International Vogue featured fashion model for runway work. While completing my Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in psychology and sociology at Western University through an entrance scholarship, I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to model. Although, obtaining a degree was very important to me, it was the fashion industry that I fell in love with.
Today, I continue to grow in the fashion industry by working with National and International brands. On top of that, I’m currently building my own consulting business and it continues to grow daily. I have the passion and drive to become a great principled innovative leader in the fashion industry by applying the learned concepts and principles within the industry. When given the opportunity to learn from ELLE Education, I jumped at the opportunity. I was so excited to be accepted into a program that offered everything I was looking for.
Finding a program that can check off all the boxes on my list can be extremely hard to find. A program that gives me the first hand experiences, exceptional professors and industry appropriate material was a dream come true. I thoroughly enjoyed learning all of the topics that was presented to me during the “Marketing & Communications for Fashion & Luxury Brands” program. One of my favourite things about the program was how current the industry professionals and CEO’s were. It was inspiring knowing that they were my professors. Nothing motivates me more than learning from our current and future leaders. They are creating the paths for us to follow. Another part of the program that I liked, was that I had the ability to connect with students from all over the world.
This year was a little different than most due to the pandemic, but that didn’t stop the program from moving forward in a positive manner. All of the students and professors were always passionate, positive and eager to work together within the program. I believe and understand that fashion can be interpreted on many different levels. Collaborating with other artists, students and professionals by combining ideas to the highest level is one of my true passions. It helps the industry grow in unique ways to a large degree. With the fashion industry going through a historical shift, it is important now more than ever that we collaborate, support and learn from one another to set the tone for future generations. In closing, my goal is to become one of the future leaders of the fashion industry while inspiring others along my journey. I truly believe in good business, honesty, creative thinking and working together. Thank you ELLE Education for playing a prominent role in my journey. I am forever grateful!
Meet Your How to Create a Brand Professors
Want to know who you will be learning from in the How to Create a Brand course? Meet your professors:
Francisco J. Lopez Navarrete- CEO & Founder of Mindway, and President at ELLE Education
Since 2010, López Navarrete has directed ELLE’s Fashion and Luxury programs with the Complutense University of Madrid. He studied Public Affairs and has completed graduate studies in Marketing. López Navarrete is also among the youngest graduates of the OPM at Harvard Business School. López Navarrete, a luxury specialist and consultant, has taught strategy for the past 12 years across Spain, Latin America, and the US. He is the author of several books and articles on the fashion and luxury industry.
Matteo Bianchi - Director & Founder at MATTEO BIANCHI STUDIO
Matteo Bianchi is the inspiring force behind his London based Studio. Always with a smile on his face, Matteo has an eye for quirky details and a passion for bold and balanced design solutions. His bubbly personality allowed him to collaborate with some of the most prestigious clients and unique product design companies in the world. Originally from Venice, Matteo had a dream to become an interior designer 15 years ago: he is now living the dream and successfully leading a global design consultancy. Matteo trained at the University of the Chelsea College of Arts where he now also teaches and his Studio specialises in Interior Design, Product Design and Art Direction.
Pooja Nerurkar- Launching and Brand Communication Expert
Pooja Nerurkar is passionate about marketing, in both digital and traditional channels, having experience in a variety of fields, both B2B and B2C. Her forte is working with startups or established companies exploring new markets or going through change. She currently heads marketing for a tech startup and also teaches Consumer Psychology for Digital Marketing at UAL's London College of Communication. She has previously run two successful startups, being heavily involved in sales, marketing and customer relations. She has an MBA and attended UPenn and Columbia University. She is a strong advocate of women excelling in the digital and tech sphere.
Want to learn from them? Click here to find out more about the How to Create a Brand short course!
Meet Your Influencer Marketing Professors
Thinking of signing up for Influencer Marketing? Learn more about some of the professionals you will be learning from!
Natalia Cortazar- Founder & Director, The Good Egg Influencer Marketing
Natalia is a Bilingual Spanish-English Influencer Marketer based in London. With 8+ years’ experience in the field, she is considered ‘One to Watch’ on Top #Influencer50 by Talking Influence. Natalia - usually called Nat - is one of the most active players in the industry.
After heading different Social, Events and Influencer Marketing teams, she founded The Good Egg, a “no-fuss” approach to Influencer Marketing. She currently works for several international fashion brands and agencies.
Ana Thorsdottir- Head of Business Development at Tagger Media
Previously Head of Influencer Marketing at MediaCom, Ana is an impartial industry leader, evangelist and consultant. Her role at the UK’s biggest billing media agency included working with Business Science and Econometrics teams to determine the best way of measuring ROI, often with bespoke solutions. Ana has provided influencer marketing strategies for budgets up to $5million and for brands including Revlon, The Coca Cola Company, Boots, Brand USA and BOSE. Now Head of Business Development, EMEA at Tagger Media (Software as a Service), Ana was also named as one of '100 of The Most Influential People in Influencer Marketing' by Influence Weekly in 2020.
Jennifer Quigley-Jones- CEO & Founder of Digital Voices
Digital Voices is a YouTube-specialist, Influencer Marketing agency in London that has grown rapidly in the last two years and runs campaigns for clients like Rolls-Royce, Universal Music Group.
Jennifer speaks internationally and was named as one of Campaign’s 30 under 30 this year. Digital Voices has been featured by Forbes, BBC News, the Evening Standard and Sky News.
Prior to founding Digital Voices, she worked at YouTube, teaching creators to grow on the platform. Before that, she completed her Master's at Harvard University in Middle Eastern Studies, on a full scholarship from the Kennedy Memorial Trust.
Chloë Downes- Community Manager at TreasureTress
Chloë Downes is an Influencer Talent Manager, based in London, who has been working in the industry for over 2 years. She has managed a wide range of talent throughout her career including studytubers, fitness, fashion and lifestyle creators, chefs, journalists and activists. From negotiation to campaign completion, Chloë guides her talent through the campaign process assisting with creative concepts and wider content strategy. With a focus on making a change in the industry, Chloë has participated in and hosted panels discussing how to make the industry a more inclusive, diverse and fair space for all creators.
The faculty also includes:
Rupa Shah- Founder, Director & Influencer Marketing Regulatory Consultant at Ad Consulting
Sergio Alonso-CMO & Growth Hacker at Peoople
Want to learn from them? Click here to find out more about the Influencer Marketing short course!
My Experience at ELLE Education
Hi!
My name is Christian, I'm from Barcelona, 22, and I’m studying the ELLE Education short course of Event Production.
I've just finished my fashion design studies and one of the things I've enjoyed the most has been fashion production. I’m a very organized and a problem-solving kind of person so I thought that this course would fit with me perfectly.
At first, Event Production might seem like an easy job, but it’s not that easy! I have learned every step in a very focused and practical way to produce an event on my own. All the information is very useful without any fillers!
I think education is important to achieve your goals because it gives you a global vision and not only your own. You need to know the theory and how it’s done in order to know when and how to break the rules and be successful at your work.
The best part of studying at ELLE Education is that it is a very flexible method. It's great because it lets you organize in the way that is easier for you. In addition, both video classes and documents complement each other very well to give you all the necessary information.
Should I Sign Up for an Expert Certificate?
A common question we get from students is if they should sign up for an Expert Certificate, so today we have made a small checklist to help you, if you resonate with the majority of the items on the list, then you should definitely sign up!
-I am interested in more than one short course
If you are interested in more than one, just do it, no one ever regrets having more knowledge! (Also, did you know you get a 15% discount on the third course if you sign up for all of them at once?).
-I want to learn more about the industry I want to go into
Short courses are designed to give you all the necessary knowledge to follow a career, but, if you are changing professions, or you are just one of those people who want to know everything before they jump into something new, this is a good path.
-I really want to impress my recruiters
With an Expert Certificate you tell recruiters you went an extra step to understand your job, the industry, and it shows your ambition and drive to achieve your goals.
-I am interested in an industry more than a job in itself
Expert certificates are a great way to get to know different roles in the same sector for example, Product Launching, Editorial Processes, these require more than one specific skill in a team.
-I am already in the sector I want but I want to become a Manager
With more education superiors tend to see a person’s commitment to doing their job well, and to have more knowledge means to be more prepared for a more important role.
Want to know more? Click here and find out everything about our expert certificates!