What I do

I take the garment from conception all the way through to the finished product – from sketches to garment fittings, to testing with customers.

How I became a technician

I knew I wanted to go down the fashion route, so I did art, textiles and economics at A-level and went to Nottingham Trent University to study Fashion and Textiles Management. I spent my third year working for a knitwear supplier in New York.

After this, I worked at All Saints for three years. I started in knitwear and dabbled a bit in woven products, but it was predominantly menswear. I then went to Topman and then onto Burberry - it wasn’t until I moved to Burberry that I started working in womenswear.

A typical day in my
working life

Most of my day centres around testing the products. I take the garment from conception all the way through to the finished product. If we are at the beginning of the season, I’ll test the ‘proto samples’ the suppliers have sent. These have been created from sketches and the garment specification I have provided

I then fit the garment and send feedback to the supplier. They then either resubmit it or, if we’re happy, we move to the showroom stage. I then test it for customers to see if it’s functioning correctly, and if it’s secure and safe.

We do this work on a computer, but our main fitting process is on live models in-house. We also fit on mannequins, but as a result of COVID-19 there is a whole new 3D world for fitting - we call them ‘our avatars’. This really helps with seeing how print works in different sizes.

A surprising fact about my job

There are strict rules for testing garments, but I find it surprising that there are different testing standards for different countries. We have to be aware of this as we ship our garments around the world.

A little more about
my everyday role

The most exciting thing I’ve achieved so far in my job

It’s a big achievement when I help create multiple versions of a tricky garment, to get it where it needs to be. The most memorable one was a knitwear style that had been developed for our runway show. When it went to mainline production, it was so difficult to make. It was large strips of knitted fabric that were woven into each other, and we had to turn them into a dress. It was really tricky, but the finished product was beautiful and was used in one of our campaigns. I was super proud I got it to that point.

The next steps in my career journey

After seven years I am actually moving on from Burberry. I’ve been offered a job working for a brand called Aritzia in Vancouver, so my family and I are moving there in three months’ time.

Find out more about this role

Discover what qualifications you’ll need, how much you can earn, and what the next steps are.

Nine apprentices sitting on sofas socialising

Meet other technicians

Read more real life technicians stories, see what they do every day, and how they got started.