(What recruiters are really asking for, and how to build each skill before you apply)
Every October and November, I sit down with a coffee and read through the newest fashion internship and job listings from the big houses. It is my favorite ritual because it tells me exactly what the industry will ask from you next year. This season, I looked at roles across PR, merchandising, CRM, demand planning, social media, events, private clients, design, and even TikTok Shop. Think Fendi, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, Balenciaga, Kering, Boucheron, Dior, Guerlain. Different maisons, same message.
I also analyze industry reports and trends from sources such as Businessoffashion, WWD, Vogue Business, McKinsey, EY…to come up with this detailed list.
And spoiler alert: recruiters today aren’t just looking for people who “love fashion.” They want candidates who are tech-savvy, analytical, organised, and globally minded, people who can connect creativity with business.
So, before you hit “apply,” let’s talk about what skills you should focus on now, before 2026 begins, if you want to get a job or internship in fashion.
To make it simple, I’ve grouped them into three categories:
💼 Foundational skills: your must-haves to even get noticed.
🚀 Advantage skills: what helps you stand out once recruiters start comparing applications.
🌎 Future-proof skills: the ones that will keep your career growing in the years ahead.
Let’s dive in.
I will also show you how to phrase each skill on your resume, and where inside the Glam Observer Academy you can build it quickly.
Foundational skills, the non-negotiables for 2026
(These are the “fashion office essentials”; every recruiter expects them.)
If you look closely at the 2026 internship listings, you’ll see the same words repeating over and over again:
1) Microsoft Excel and data basics
You saw it in CRM and Digital at Louis Vuitton, Demand and Supply Planning at Balenciaga, Management Control at Dior, Merchandising at Givenchy, even Event and VIC roles at Boucheron ask for Excel and PowerPoint. Translation, you need to be comfortable with spreadsheets, not just open them.
Resume bullets you can use
- Built a weekly sell-through dashboard in Excel, flagged low stock and bestsellers by market
- Used Pivot Tables and XLOOKUP to consolidate orders across five regions, cut errors to zero
- Turned campaign data into a one-page deck in PowerPoint with next-step actions
Where to learn fast
- Excel for Fashion teaches the exact office tasks recruiters test, from sell-through to style codes and pricing ladders, plus tidy charts that look good in a deck.
2) Organization and attention to detail
Fendi PR asks for confident, organized, and professional. Boucheron calls for rigor and excellence. LVMH Corporate Comms asks for detail and creativity. That is because luxury runs on details, sample codes, timings, VIP initials, and correct brand tone.
Resume bullets you can use
- Maintained Fashion GPS sample logs with zero late returns
- Owned event run-of-show and guest lists, delivered all assets 24 hours early
- Quality-checked creator captions and links before livestreams went live
Practice with us
- Break Into the Fashion Industry includes event, PR, and editorial simulators where you manage timelines, checklists, and deliverables the way you will in a real office.
3) Communication and languages
Strong writing keeps showing up. Kering Press Relations wants excellent writing in French and English; a third language is a plus. Celine asks for English and social platform fluency. Many roles want Italian or French, and everyone wants email and deck clarity.
Make it visible on your CV
- Wrote bilingual press notes and post-event recaps for EU media
- Presented a weekly performance readout for the creator team with three clear actions
- Answered VIP requests with brand tone, coordinated with retail and VIC teams
Build it here
- Break Into the Fashion Industry rewrites your CV, cover letter, and outreach emails so you sound like an insider. You also learn how to present projects crisply in interviews.
Advantage fashion skills, what makes recruiters remember you
These are what make recruiters remember your name.
Once you’ve got the basics, it’s time to show you’re not just “ready” for fashion, you understand it.
In the 2026 listings, some skills are popping up much more often. These are the ones that help you go from candidate to must-interview.
4) Digital and social commerce fluency
The TikTok Shop internship speaks for itself: creator engagement, affiliate campaigns, product matchmaking, livestream support, and campaign performance. Guerlain E-retail also requires digital project management skills. This is where creativity meets numbers.
Show it on your CV
- Built a creator shortlist and affiliate tracker, drove 9 percent of campaign sales
- Supported three weekly livestreams, coordinated product picks and creator scripts
- Created UTM labels and a dashboard that connected content to conversions
Where to learn by doing
- In Break Into the Fashion Industry, our Marketing and PR projects simulate an influencer launch and a retail activation. You plan, execute, and measure, then add it to your portfolio.
5) Business and analytical thinking
Balenciaga Sales Merchandising wants a strong analytical mindset and comfort with quantitative data. Dior Management Control asks for Excel plus basic accounting or SAP. Even Boucheron events ask for analytical competence. This is the new fashion language: creative ideas with a business reason.
Fashion has always been creative, but in 2026, it’s becoming more strategic.
Brands want people who can connect creativity to results, to think like marketers, not just artists.
That’s why Excel for Fashion is such a game-changer: it trains you to use data to tell stories. You’ll learn how to read numbers and turn them into insights, like “which collection performed best” or “how a campaign increased conversions.”
This is the kind of thinking that makes managers trust you with bigger tasks.
Talk like this in interviews
- I reconciled PO and GR variances in SAP and flagged root causes to finance
- I identified three hero SKUs from demand signals, proposed a re-buy that lifted sell-through
- I reviewed campaign cohorts, shifted budget to high-ROI content, and improved CTR by 12 percent
6) Relationship building and teamwork
Every recruiter still lists “team player,” “good communication,” or “relationship skills.”
It might sound generic, but in fashion, where projects often cross five departments, collaboration is key.
Make it credible:
- Coordinated between PR, merchandising, and editorial to return 120 samples on time
- Partnered with assortment and campaign teams to prep creator livestreams
- Supported cross-functional briefings, sent clear follow-ups with owners and deadlines
Where we help:
- In our Fashion Internship Simulators, you’ll experience how PR, styling, and editorial work together on real tasks, especially in our Editor-in-Chief for a Week and Styling Assistant for a Day projects.
During these simulations, you’ll coordinate press pulls, manage sample returns, and align messaging between editorial and PR, exactly like you would in a real fashion office.
And if you want to go further, you can even collaborate with other students on group projects inside the Academy. It’s a great way to put your teamwork skills into action and add concrete experience to your resume, something recruiters always look for in candidates.
Future-proof skills, where the industry is headed
These are the skills that will make you relevant long after your internship ends.
If foundational skills get you in, and advantage skills make you shine, future-proof skills keep you growing.
7) Tech and AI awareness
Even when AI is not spelled out, you can see the direction in requirements like Power BI, data visualization, fast analysis, and digital tool stacks. Supply Planning at Balenciaga calls Power BI a plus. Digital Media at Dior wants love for numbers and perfect Office skills (aka Excel again!). Design roles ask for Illustrator and Photoshop with a business context.
Resume bullets you can use
- Built a lightweight dashboard for inventory risk using Power Query and Pivot Charts
- Used AI to draft first-pass product copy, then refined tone to match brand guidelines
- Prepared CADs and spec sheets that sped up vendor handoffs
Learn the mix
- Excel for Fashion + my new upcoming AI for the fashion industry course helps you turn raw data into visual insights, understand dashboards, and present digital work clearly, without needing to be a coder.
8) Customer understanding and omnichannel mindset
Fashion is no longer just about physical products or boutiques; it’s about creating one seamless brand experience across every touchpoint: e-commerce, social media, mobile, and retail.
When I attended the EY Luxury Conference, industry leaders like Cartier’s Rodolphe Ratzel, MC2 Saint Barth’s Max Ferrari, and Save the Duck’s Antonella Bompensa all agreed: luxury is being redefined by how well brands understand and connect with clients across channels.
Today’s customers expect:
- Tangible quality, fabrics, craftsmanship, and durability that justify the price.
- Sustainability through longevity, not slogans.
- Personalized experiences, both in-store and online.
Your takeaway: Develop an omnichannel mindset, understand how PR, marketing, product, and retail connect to deliver one consistent brand story.
Where to build it: Inside Break Into the Fashion Industry, you’ll learn how each department contributes to the customer journey, while Excel for Fashion + AI for the fashion industry shows you how brands measure online and offline performance together.
Recruiters now look for candidates who don’t just “love fashion,” but who understand how clients think, shop, and stay loyal, online and offline.
9) Global and cultural intelligence
Fluent English is mandatory. Many roles want French or Italian. A third language is a plus. Teams are international, and recruiters love candidates who are at ease across cultures.
Build and show it:
- Collaborated with an international cohort on a campaign and presented findings to the group
- Added local calendars and cultural notes to the launch timeline for three markets
- Wrote bilingual press emails and adapted pitch angles by country
Role-by-role snapshots, what to emphasize
Use this to tailor your application in minutes.
- TikTok Shop, Creator and Affiliate
Creator matchmaking, livestream support, campaign and data tracking, sales mindset. - PR and Corporate Comms, Fendi, Kering, LVMH
Focus on writing, Fashion GPS or sample tracking, languages, relationship skills, polished decks. - CRM and Digital, Louis Vuitton
Excel and PowerPoint, analytical storytelling, can-do attitude, prioritization, email clarity. - Social and Content, Celine, Dior
Community basics, platform fluency, organization, teamwork, light analytics and reporting. - Merchandising and Assortment, Givenchy, Balenciaga
Excel at an advanced level, product sensitivity, hero product identification, numbers you can explain. - Planning and Operations, Balenciaga
Rigour, autonomy, strong analysis, Excel and possibly Power BI, clear communication. - Management Control, Dior
Excel, accounting basics, SAP or ERP familiarity, clean reconciliations and tidy reporting. - Events and VIC, Boucheron
Project coordination, vendor and retail partners, guest lists, service mindset, InDesign a plus. - Design and SLG, Louis Vuitton
Illustrator and Photoshop, trend knowledge, team communication, bilingual where possible.
How to phrase your experience so ATS and humans both love it
Replace vague tasks with proof and numbers. Here are plug-and-play examples.
- Tracked 120 samples across eight looks in Fashion GPS, achieved zero late returns
- Built a buy review with pivots and charts, identified three hero SKUs to re-buy
- Supported three weekly livestreams, prepared products and briefs, increased CTR by 12 percent
- Consolidated EU orders in Excel, reduced manual errors to zero using XLOOKUP
- Wrote bilingual press notes and recaps, secured four pickups in target media
- Created a creator shortlist with rates and performance, delivered 9 percent of campaign sales
For more check out this PDF guide with the CV mistakes.
Your end-of-year prep plan, do this before interviews start
- Week 1, fix your application: Use Break Into the Fashion Industry to rebuild your CV and cover letter with the language above. Add one simulator project to your portfolio.
- Week 2, raise your Excel game: Start Excel for Fashion. Finish sell-through, pricing, and a simple KPI dashboard.
- Week 3, build one proof-of-work: Choose PR, marketing, merch, or planning. Create a small project you can link in your CV. We guide you through our programmes.
- Week 4, practice your story: Rehearse two answers: a time you used Excel to solve a problem, and how you would support a creator livestream. Keep it clear and concrete.
FAQs About Fashion Skills in 2026
1. What are the most important skills to work in fashion in 2026?
The top skills are Microsoft Excel and data analysis, organization, communication, and teamwork. Recruiters also look for digital fluency, customer understanding, and awareness of AI tools used in fashion offices.
2. Do I need to know Excel to get a job or internship in fashion?
Yes, Excel is one of the most requested skills in every department, from PR and merchandising to marketing and operations. You’ll use it to track samples, analyze sales, and plan budgets. That’s why we created Excel for Fashion, to help you learn it the same way fashion companies use it.
3. How is AI changing the skills needed in fashion?
AI is already used in fashion for product descriptions, clienteling, data analysis, and trend forecasting. Knowing how to use AI tools and interpret data will help you stand out in 2026. You can start developing this skill through Excel for Fashion + Digital Tools.
4. What skills do fashion recruiters look for in internship applications?
Recruiters value Excel, communication, organization, and teamwork, but also curiosity, professionalism, and attention to detail. They want to see that you understand how departments connect and that you’re proactive about learning.
5. How can I show fashion skills on my resume with no experience?
Create hands-on projects or take simulators that mirror real fashion jobs. Inside the Fashion Internship Simulator, you can complete PR, event, and merchandising projects that demonstrate Excel, communication, and teamwork, then list them on your resume as proof of your skills.
6. What are future-proof skills for fashion careers?
AI literacy, digital marketing, sustainability, and omnichannel thinking are key future-proof skills. They’ll help you stay relevant as fashion becomes more tech-driven and customer-focused.
7. How can I prepare for 2026 fashion internships now?
Start building your foundation this year, learn Excel, practice communication, and build a project-based portfolio. Our courses (Break Into the Fashion Industry, Fashion Internship Simulator, Excel for Fashion, and Excel for Fashion + Digital Tools) give you everything you need to feel ready and confident before internship season begins.
The fashion industry moves fast , and 2026 will reward those who stay curious, flexible, and multi-skilled.
The truth is, every single skill you saw in those listings , Excel, languages, communication, organisation, digital marketing, business thinking , is something you can learn.
You don’t need a fashion degree or five internships to prove you belong. You just need to start preparing now.
So don’t wait for January. Start today , and by the time recruiters start hiring for next summer, you’ll already have the skills (and the confidence) to make your dream internship a reality. If you want me to guide you step by step, here is how to start.
AI for the fashion office coming soon
Break Into the Fashion Industry, rebuild your CV, cover letter and portfolio, learn to present yourself like an insider
Excel for Fashion, master the analytical side that opens doors in merchandising, buying, e-commerce, CRM and even PR strategy
Simulators, where you can create your portfolios and gain experience, are included in the fashion internship simulator. Just like a real internship, you’ll work on brand campaigns, lookbooks, and media plans. Enroll now!
