How To Email Fashion Brands For Job Opportunities

If you’ve been following my advice on breaking into the fashion industry, you know I emphasize thinking creatively when applying for fashion jobs and internships. One of the most effective strategies I teach in my “Break into the Fashion Industry” course to accelerate the job search is to email fashion companies directly asking for a job or internship even when they don’t advertise any position online. 

Over the past decade, I’ve received numerous emails from individuals seeking internships or jobs at Glam Observer, both spontaneous applications and responses to advertised positions. Unfortunately, I’ve noticed that around 70% of these emails contain significant mistakes, demonstrating a lack of professionalism that led to rejection. And just like me, if you send the wrong email to major fashion brands, (think Dior, Vogue, etc.) they will probably reject your applications even faster, considering they receive even more.

So if you’ve been struggling to land a job or internship in fashion, your emails could be one of the reasons why your applications have been rejected.

When applying for a job or internship in fashion, you might spend the majority of your time preparing the resume, the cover letter, and a portfolio and you might overlook writing a proper email to fashion brands when requesting or applying for a fashion job or internship. 

Yet, writing a professional email is just an important part of the job application process. This step can make or break your application depending on your e-mail quality. 

Whether you found a cool fashion job offer online and plan to apply, or you have decided to send a spontaneous application, in this article I wanted to share some tips on how to email fashion brands and get the recruiter to hit ‘reply’ instead of sending your email to the trash bin. If you need the full tips and email templates you can enroll in the Break into the fashion industry course here. 

So let’s review some common mistakes and what to do instead when emailing fashion brands for job opportunities. 

How To Email Fashion Brands For Job Opportunities

Crafting Compelling Email Subject Lines for Fashion Job Applications

A good email doesn’t start in the body of the email but already in the subject line. 

Too often I have received emails without any subject at all or the body of the email in the subject already. Major mistakes. 

The subject line is the first thing a recruiter notices in their inbox, making it essential for two key reasons:

1. Clearly communicate the email’s intent: This means letting the recipient know why you’re reaching out, whether it’s to apply for a fashion job or internship.
2. Capture the hiring manager’s interest: Your subject line should be attention-grabbing to encourage the hiring manager to open your email and read further.

These are some of my tips for an effective email subject when reaching out to fashion brands to request/apply for a job or internship.

1. Keep your subject line concise and professional. Avoid using vague subjects like “Hi” or “Job Inquiry”, as they don’t convey the purpose of your email effectively. Instead, opt for something that immediately communicates your intent and grabs the reader’s attention.
2. Some fashion companies indicate in the job description what you need to write in the subject line. In this case, you should follow the instructions because by failing to do so you will appear as someone who doesn’t pay attention to details.  
3. Be Clear and Specific: Make sure your subject line clearly indicates the purpose of your email. For example, “Application for Fashion Design Internship” or “Inquiry About Open Fashion Marketing Position“. If you’re applying for a specific position at a particular company, mention the brand in your subject line. For instance,“Application for the editorial assistant position at Vogue”. 
4. Personalize When Possible: If you have a specific contact at the company, include their name in the subject line. For instance, “Application for Fashion Assistant – Referred by [Name]”.
5. Highlight Your Value: Use your subject line to highlight what you bring to the table. For instance, “Experienced Fashion Merchandiser Seeking Opportunities” or “Passionate Fashion Student Eager to Intern“.
6. Keep it Concise: Keep your subject line short and to the point. Long subject lines may get cut off, especially on mobile devices. Aim for around 6-8 words if possible.
7. Use Keywords: Include relevant keywords related to the position or industry. For example, “Fashion Design Graduate Seeking Internship” or “Fashion Stylist Available for Hire“.
8. Be Professional: Your subject line should convey professionalism. Avoid using slang, emojis, or excessive punctuation.

Address the e-mail to the right person

You wouldn’t believe how many applications I have to discard just because they start with a “Dear Sir/Madam” or “To whom it may concern” instead of addressing the email directly to me. 

Opening an email with a generic phrase like this is not a good start. It’s not personal and shows a lack of research about the position, the hiring manager, the team, and the company. 

Most of the time, brands mention in the job description the name and contact of the person you should send the e-mail to. 

However, it also happens they leave the email address without specifying the name of the recipient, something like [email protected]. Unluckily for you, this means you need to do some research. In this case, you have two options on how to proceed. 

At best, you can address your email to the whole team, saying something like “Dear Gucci team” instead of “To whom it may concern”. This is the easiest option.

If you want to go further and extend your commitment to getting the job, I suggest finding the manager of the department you are applying to, or the person who has the rank above the role you are applying for. For example, if you apply for an internship in fashion buying, you should find the name of the buyer. 

You can find people working at any fashion company on LinkedIn, the company’s website (sometimes), or the masthead if it’s a fashion magazine. You can also find second connections of your contacts who work at that brand on LinkedIn and kindly ask them who would be the best person to contact for this position. By the way, this is also a good networking strategy and I teach more about it in my online course Break into the fashion industry.

Yes, I know it’s not a funny task but you have to make an effort to get a job in fashion. 

Personalize your email to the specific fashion job

It’s easy to spot a generic e-mail that people send to apply for other jobs. And you can tell the difference between a generic email and a personalized letter. How? 

• You don’t mention the name of the company or the position
• You just write a super short paragraph and don’t develop your email 
• The email just reads “This is my resume. Do you have a job?” or something in this spirit.

If you make one of these mistakes, the recruiter will probably think you are applying to different fashion jobs or internships randomly and you are not that interested in this specific job. 

Your email doesn’t have to be long but it always needs to include the name of the recipient or company and the job title. In short, you should introduce yourself, explain the reason for your message, and tell which job/internship you want and why. Imagine this email as a cover letter. 

How to structure the email to send to fashion brands for job opportunities

Sometimes, we overdo it, thinking that the longer the email – the better. 

Normally, you already said everything you need to in your resume, cover letter, and portfolio. So your email should be quite short. Recruiters and hiring managers are busy, so they appreciate emails that are easy to read and get straight to the important information.

It doesn’t mean you must fall into another extreme, just writing “Here is my application” or  “Hello, I am sending my resume. I noticed your job offer on LinkedIn so I decided to apply. I am skilled in this and that. Please find attached my CV. Hope to hear from you soon.”

Clearly, this is not the proper way to write an email to brands. Instead, you should follow a structure and care to maintain logical connections between paragraphs. Every email should have an introduction, a development part, and a conclusion. It doesn’t have to fit strictly into 3 paragraphs, but this should be the order.

Introduction: Greet the recipient, introduce yourself, and explain the reason for your email.

Development: Briefly mention why you are interested in this company and role and why they should hire you. Just a few sentences are enough; this is not supposed to replace the cover letter. 

Conclusion: Call to action, farewell, and signature. 

End your email with a Call to Action

It may sound obvious that sending a fashion job application email means you want to get to the next application stage aka the job interview, but so many even great applicants forget to say that by including a CTA, aka Call to action. 

A call to action is a sentence at the end of the email that invites the recruiter to proceed forward with the application. Politely request an interview or further discussion. Express your enthusiasm for the opportunity and your willingness to provide additional information if needed.

It can say something like: 

“I would be glad to talk to you more about my background and this position in a job interview.”

Or even as simple as “Thank you for considering my application. I look forward to hearing from you.”

It’s simple but effective because it demonstrates a proactive attitude. If you end your email without the CTA, it doesn’t mean the recruiter will never contact you but you will probably appear as someone more passive who doesn’t take action. 

Write a kind farewell 

While it may seem like a minor detail, don’t forget to include a polite farewell in your email. Following the call to action, your email should conclude with a brief closing. In English, common closings include “Best regards” or “Kind regards”. However, different countries may have their own standard endings for emails, so it’s advisable to research appropriate closings based on the country where the job is located.

Don’t forget your signature

We have reached the final step – your signature. Of course, here we don’t refer to your hand signature (unless you are sending a handwritten application letter) but simply your full name.

Some people forget to include it because their name already appears in the email address. But even if it seems clear, you should still write your name. First of all, it’s a proper way to conclude emails, and second, you want to make the recruiter’s job easier; they don’t have to search for your name. So instead of guessing what they may or may not do, don’t overthink and just include your signature. 

Include a professional email signature with your full name, contact information, and any relevant links (e.g., LinkedIn profile, portfolio website).

Proofread your email

When you finish writing your email, you should always double-check it. Care for grammatical and spelling mistakes when you email brands. Typos can give a bad impression about you, that you don’t pay attention to the details. The best way to avoid them is to read it through a few times, and you can also install Grammarly which will spot the mistakes for you and make the whole process less stressful. 

Don’t use Chat GPT to write your emails

Nowadays, Chat GPT is used for many things including writing emails. But I must warn you it’s easy to spot an email written with AI. I don’t recommend using it as it can make your email look too generic. Obviously, you can use it for proofreading it to make sure it doesn’t contain any typos or grammar mistakes anything, but avoid copy-pasting the whole text from Chat GPT. 

Now you have all the tips to write a good email to fashion companies. Following these simple rules will make you look professional and serious about the fashion job or internship you apply for. 

Need more help with applying for your dream role in fashion?

In my Break into the Fashion Industry course, I teach resume, cover letter, and portfolio-building techniques, where to look for fashion jobs and internships, and more job application tools and out-of-the-box strategies to get noticed by fashion recruiters.

Want to get a glimpse into my teaching style first? Enroll here in my free webinar where I share 5 strategies to impress fashion recruiters.