Creative Trajectories of Fashion Designers : An Exploration of Creative Workshops and Professional Strategies in Montreal Fashion

In the Garment and Fashion industry, the issue of interconnection between cultural and creative industries, and non-creative and  non-cultural industries, has been debated for some time by various international organizations (UNESCO, UNCTAD, etc.). In the end, the scope of the new creative economy remains unclear and elusive (Bouquillion 2010) and some sectors such as fashion, are on the frontiers of two worlds, garment being more in industry, while Fashion is definitely in the creative world. In any case, this gives way to a transformation in careers, creative careers becoming more and more common in the Fashion part of the industry.  In our research, we analyzed these new boundaryless  careers, including the paradox and some tensions that arise from the confrontation of a creative activity and an entrepreneurship venture simultaneously in the context of a fashion designer’s career. Our research is based on a literature review but also on three series of interviews with fashion designers and intermediary organizations done over the period of 2009 to 2014.We will concentrate mainly on the most recent interviews in our presentation, but will also use the previous ones as a background. The results show that the image of the designer has clearly changed in recent decades. Indeed, in light of the changes in the creative industries over the past 20 years, designers have had to adapt to this context, moving from the image of designing custom-fitted clothing to that of the combination of artist/entrepreneur. Today, the development of a new business model seems to be a major concern and confirms the need to remain creative and innovative and to select a specific niche in the fashion/garment sector.