What Is A Fashion Press Release And How To Write It

Do you want to work in fashion PR? 

You should know that one of the main tasks of a fashion PR is writing press releases. So if you are considering a career in this field you have to know what’s a press release and how to write it properly. 

In case you are wondering why you need to learn it now if you are a beginner and haven’t started working in fashion yet, let me reveal a secret: sending a press release in your application can significantly increase your chances of landing a fashion PR internship. But more on that later. 

First, let’s see what’s a press release, what’s its purpose, and which professionals use it. Then, I will give you tips to write a press release and share with you how to strategically use it to land an internship in fashion if you don’t have any experience yet. 

What Is A Fashion Press Release And How To Write It

What Is A Press Release?

A press release is a document that fashion brands or magazines produce to be distributed to share news.

 It is produced internally by the PR team or externally by the PR agency if that brand works with an agency.

A press release can be used to announce:

• A fashion show or another event
• The launch of a product, collection, line, or a new brand
• The appointment of a new designer/creative director
• A new headquarters 
• The opening or closure of a new store 
• The release or closure of a magazine
• A sustainable initiative
• Awards and nominations
• Etc.

Basically, most of the news you see in the press about the fashion industry has been communicated to journalists’ teams through a press release; that’s how they can find out about the different projects and events. While some news can be found by journalists in some press databases but also discovered just word of mouth or simply by reading news elsewhere and covering them as well, the press release remains the official and direct source of information provided by the brand to their press contacts.

A press release can be issued for different purposes, depending on what goal the brand wants to achieve with the spread of that information. It can be to get extensive media coverage by providing all the details about the product or event, or just to tease the news without revealing too much to spike curiosity and drive attention towards the brand. Therefore, the communication goals must be aligned with the expected reaction brands are looking to get in the media. 

Who uses the press release in the fashion industry?

The press release is mainly used by brands to send it to press contacts, such as editors of magazines, digital publications, bloggers, and influencers. They can then spread the news by writing articles and posting the news on social media. In sum, the press release can be used by any professional who can report on the news. 

Before sending the press release, fashion, and luxury brands make a strategic decision about which sources will be the best fit to report on this news. They take into account the type of publication or the profile of the influencer/blogger, the readership and its size, etc. 

For example, a press release from Chanel about an upcoming fashion show can be sent to fashion publications like WWD or the Business of Fashion. And the news about a new Dior collection can be shared with digital but also print publications like Vogue or l’Officiel. 

How to write a fashion press release

Let’s get to the exciting part of writing a press release! Here are some general recommendations on the structure and other things a press release should include, and the mistakes to avoid. 

Include the logo and the date

A press release should always include a logo of the company on top, as well as the date. 

The Headline

Some press releases can include a headline in a press release, which is a short statement and summary of the main point of the document. It should be as short as 1 line and generate interest to keep reading it further. 

The Body

A good press release must always answer 5 questions: “who”, “what”, ”where”, “when”, and “why”. 

It is recommended to follow the format of an “inverted pyramid”, meaning that the most important information is revealed at the beginning of the story, followed by the least significant information at the bottom.

The Closure

A press release ends with sharing the contacts of the press team so that the media can reach out for questions or more information.

Make sure your press release follows this structure to make it easily readable.

Include quotes

Quotes can give your press release extra validity. You can support your story with comments from the brand’s spokesperson (a CEO, a creative director, a brand ambassador, etc.) who can provide further insight into the topic and make it easy for journalists to quote your brand in their articles. 

What Does “For Immediate Release” mean?

If news shall be shared immediately, the press release includes a note that says “For Immediate Release”. It must go at the top, beyond the logo, the first thing the reader sees when they open the document. 

How many pages should the fashion press release be? 

The information in a press release should ideally fit in one page or at most two. More than two pages in a news release is considered off-format. 

Indeed, journalists and editors receive hundreds of PR pitches every single day, meaning that many of them are either ignored or discarded immediately. On average, the press contact will only spend a few seconds looking at an email to decide if the content is relevant. 

Keep in mind that a press release is not an article or review but just a short news. Therefore, you should be clear and concise, and go straight to the point. Keep it short and sweet. 

If your press release is more than one page, type “more” or “over” at the bottom of the page to make the reader acknowledge that more information follows. 

Where to send the fashion press release?

Nowadays, the fastest and most common way to send a press release is by e-mail. To increase the chances of your press release getting noticed by your press contacts, make sure you not only attach the document but paste it into the body of your email, ensuring key information can be seen immediately. This is important because some journalists won’t bother opening an attachment without seeing short information first and what the press release is about. 

Avoid sending large image files because they either won’t get sent or they will clog up your recipient’s inbox, and instead compress all media to avoid bouncebacks.

Fashion Press release example

Below you can find 2 real press releases from Chanel and Dior to give you a better idea of how one looks like just in case you need to write one or you’re just curious.

How to use the press release to land a job or internship in fashion PR?

As I said at the beginning of this article, you should learn how to write a press release (and now you know 😉 ) even before you land a PR internship. 

Even though it’s generally not required from fashion companies in the job description, knowing how to write a press release can make you stand out from applicants who don’t have this skill.

You should indicate it in your CV and cover letter, but in addition, I recommend you do not just tell but show that you know how to write a press release aka include it in your portfolio. 

It’s very simple. You can take any news that has already been written about a past fashion show, product launch, or anything else and pretend you are a PR manager working at some brand that released this news. So you don’t have to come up with an imaginary project but use real news and write a press release about it considering the type of content. 

Just a few press releases are enough to build your portfolio for fashion PR. Trust me, the recruiter will be impressed by this initiative and the fact that you can write a press release as a total beginner.

I explain more about how to build a portfolio project for fashion PR in my online course Break into the Fashion Industry.

If you want to get a glimpse into my teaching style first, register here for my free webinar 😉