Hi, I’m Mary……

….and I wrote the Fashion Designer Survival Guide to help fashion entrepreneurs find answers to all their questions about starting and running their own fashion label.

As Fashion Director of Gen Art, a teacher at Parsons School of Design and a small business advisor, I’ve met hundreds of talented designers from all over the world and helped them show their work to retail buyers, consumers and editors through fashion week shows, competitions, shopping events and by leading the selection process for several seasons of Bravo’s Project Runway. 

These entrepreneurial designers are each working hard to manage production, financing, sourcing and sales and there are few resources to help. I wrote the Fashion Designer Survival Guide to provide all the information to help them succeed in one place. It includes advice from dozens of designers on their biggest challenges and keys to success, as well as the generous insights of patternmakers, factory managers, sales reps, attorneys, and investors whom I interviewed for the book.

As a passionate advocate for sustainability in fashion, I believe small businesses are key to a more positive future and can led the way in adopting responsible practices, educating customers and inspiring others. Technology is also causing rapid change and the most recent Fashion Designer Survival Guide is written to help designers not just survive - but thrive in this evolving world.

I am thankful for the designers who inspire me each day when I visit studios, speak at schools, and see them applying their creativity and innovation to beautiful design.