KFW Seminar: ‘The BUSINESS of Fashion’
Friday 8th of March 2013
The Carlton Hotel, Tralee, County Kerry

Featuring top speakers on the fashion industry, employment law, business development, HRM, Branding, SEO, Social Media and PR

HONORARY GUEST SPEAKER, DON O NEILL, CREATIVE DIRECTOR, THEIA

Creative Director, Theia (NYC) Don O’Neill
“I am so excited to participate in Kerry Fashion Weekend Business of Fashion seminar. I look forward to sharing the experiences of a career that has taken me from Dublin, London, Paris and New York, culminating in THEIA, an Evening wear and Bridal collection sold in over 500 stores around the world”.

The 5th annual Kerry Fashion Weekend (KFW) 2013 held a one day seminar entitled ‘The Business of Fashion’ on Friday 8th of March in the Carlton Hotel, Tralee, County Kerry. Aimed at everyone, at all levels, working within the Irish fashion industry, the Seminar primarily focused on the core fundamentals of operating and developing a fashion business in today’s challenging economic climate. Organised in association with the Sunday Business Post, the Seminar was opened by Jimmy Deenihan TD, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, and speakers included Caroline McEnery, HR & Business Solutions; Paul Ruane, Midpoint Creative; Shane Diffily, author and web consultant; Lisa Brady, Fashion Editor,  Sunday Business Post; Melanie Morris, Editor, Image Magazine, Orla Diffily, Upfront PR and top international designer, Don O’Neill, Creative Director, Theia (NYC).

Paul Ruane, event organiser (MD Midpoint Creative) “We have developed this event to offer Irish Fashion Designers invaluable insights and practical advice into the business side of the fashion business.  We felt there was a need for both more information and support to designers to assist and encourage them into turning their passion into a long-term business and career”.

Orla Diffily, Upfront PR and KFW co-ordinator, commented, “The Irish fashion industry makes a substantial contribution to the economy, particularly in terms of local employment. Unfortunately, a career in fashion, like many of the creative arts, can be seen as less worthy than perhaps accounting or law. Last year we ‘road tested’ the concept of a fashion business seminar and received exceptionally positive feedback. This year we are focussing on branding, traditional and on-line PR, social media, SEO and business planning. We are also delighted that one of Ireland’s top international fashion designers, Don O Neill, Creative Director, Theia, will speak at the Seminar. Originally from Kerry, Don, who has dressed everyone from Oprah to Taylor Swift, will tell his personal story of making it big in the highly competitive international fashion world.”

New this year is a presentation by Caroline McEnery, HR & Business Solutions. She will discuss the importance of Human Resources within all businesses, big and small, and give easy to follow and apply steps on developing any creative passion into a structured formalised business plan and ultimately a profitable enterprise.

One of the most popular presentations at last year’s event related to SEO, google analytics and selling on-line and was presented by author and web consultant, Shane Diffily. This year, Shane discussed “Why being successful online is becoming harder – but the rewards are great too”.

Shane commented, “The sheer pervasiveness of the web means all low hanging ‘web-fruit’ has long been plucked, so how can you make sure your site or app stands out from the crowd? In this seminar you will learn how to address the challenge of increasing online complexity by focussing effort on a small number of core activities that mean you will get the attention you deserve. You see, for all its complexity, the fundamentals of the web remain the same. Those who focus on doing the simple things to a high standard continue to reap the rewards, while those who chase every new fad find their budgets never stretches as far as they hoped”.

Shane explores why good content works better than any fancy ad campaign and why obsession is a virtue when to comes to data and web analytics. Also included was practical tips and insights into converting a good site into a really great site, including  grabbing the attention of Google to notice you more via SEO and the use Social Networks for profit.

Lastly, the seminar included a discussion on the ‘do and don’ts’ of generating media exposure that builds both the reputation and ‘desire’ for a fashion brand or business. This is an excellent opportunity to discuss how to secure media coverage with senior fashion journalists, Lisa Brady from the Sunday Business Post and Melanie Morris, Editor, Image Magazine. In particular, to explore what the fashion media are looking for in terms of type and quality of content, how it needs to be presented professionally, and given news angles, so it is of interest to their respective readership.