8 important lessons we've learnt from successful women in fashion

Success stories aren't written overnight. These women have endured self-doubt, creative blocks and even taken time off—to carve their own path. In occasion of International Women's Day, we remind ourselves of the hard work and persistence it takes to journey to the top. Here are nine women, in their own words they once told Vogue, the importance of looking back—and ahead. 

Marine Serre, fashion designer

On her creative process

"I try to lead a normal life. I take a bike to go to work, travel a lot, but very simply. I like looking at people walking the street or taking the metro, and see how they style themselves. I try to see what’s practical and develop the concept from that. The other important thing is I connect what I do to economics and politics. Fashion is a way to talk without words, and that’s the path I took. While working with regenerated garments, I need to know what I am looking for when I source fabrics, what the scenario is going to be.I think we’ve grown quite a bit already, so my goal is not to become a huge brand tomorrow morning. To me, what type of product we’re creating, and how we can keep changing parts of the system, is more important." —February 2020

Isha Ambani Piramal, businesswoman

On equality at the workplace

“As much as I want to believe that women can have it all, I know that my mom gave it all up to raise us. But once we grew up, I also saw her balance work and home perfectly. Watching her play all these different roles—from full-time mom to businesswoman—I learnt how important each facet is in a woman's life and how one needs to define what “having it all” means during these different stages."

"I feel very passionately about gender equality and equal participation in the work force because growing up I was made to believe that I could do whatever my brothers could do, as well if not better. So as a working woman, I believe that companies must create an environment that fosters equal participation. At Jio, we have programmes for women that allow them to form communities and support each other. But what would really give me satisfaction is when I know that no matter which meeting I enter, engineering or design, there will be an equal number of women in the room.” —January 2019

Mary Katrantzou, fashion designer

On channeling self-doubt into design

“I always say that you have to stay true to your own voice and have the strength of your own conviction. If your voice is unique, people will support it. As a designer, it’s very difficult to understand your point of difference when you are starting out. Looking back now after 10 years, you realise so many other pillars of your work, of why women are drawn to it. I realised it isn’t just the design [that mattered]; it was the value that you hold as a brand. My own personal values, which is how you connect to people, has given me the opportunity to make women feel unique, and it almost heightens their own sense of identity. I’ve embraced self-doubt now, I accept it and I allow it to push me to be fearless and make bold decisions.” —December 2019

Maria Grazia, fashion designer

On finding with a deep connect with other women

“If someone says a woman has to be this way or that, I find it tiring. Who is the Dior woman? It is all about individuality and the mood of that particular woman. Women are mercurial and they change their attitude and spirit, not within days but within hours in a day.” For her Dior debut (spring/summer 2017) Maria Grazia Chiuri opened the show  with the slogan ‘We Should All Be Feminists’. “What surprised me the most was that in the moment I felt so deeply connected to women all over the world. For me, the T-shirt was a personal thing. Since I did the collection in a month I had no time to think, overthink and analyse. I worked from my heart and it was led by pure instinct. So, it came as a surprise to me that I was so connected with the moment. I could never imagine that there are so many people who share a similar thought process as me.” —June, 2017

Ruchika Sachdeva, fashion designer, Bodice

On taking time out for oneself

"It's something that drives me; it is very important for me to keep enjoying what I do, and I think being in fashion it is hard because you're constantly meant to create a lot, and you're developing a product on a very frequent basis. I think as the founder of this brand, it is very important to me to remain authentic to what I'm doing. Travelling and getting out of my comfort zone is kind of like my process of how I keep myself inspired and how I keep myself relevant. It also makes me realise the things that are actually really good about our country. Meeting people from different cultures, it opens up your mind.\

“I took a lot more effort in going home on time instead of working as much as I can. My priorities have changed. There's no drastic change in the working of Bodice. It's all happened slowly over time. All I can say is that it's more evolved, more secure, more confident and that allows for more free and authentic creations.” —February 2019

Anita Dongre, fashion designer 

On adding a strong sense of conscientiousness to life 

“When I started out as a designer working in export houses, nearly 30 years ago, I hated the conditions of the factories I visited. I vowed that when I had one of my own, it wouldn’t be anything like that. Everyone does beautiful stores, but no one wants a beautiful back-end. I did.” —January 2020

Rosh Mahtani, jewellery designer, Alighieri 

On the importance of sustainability 

“It’s such an important question for all of us. It’s really hard to be perfect, and as a small brand there are so many challenges. The biggest thing we can do is try to create things that are forever, and not adhere to trends. It’s never about [creating] something that’s then not relevant next season. There's been a lot of pressure for us to explore manufacturing overseas, but I believe in knowing exactly who's made [our pieces]. It's for the environment, but it's also because of a personal connection with that business.” —February 2020

Stella McCartney, fashion designer

On finding, and standing her own ground

“I was always a bit of a freak in the house of fashion. My regime, my culture, has been different from day one. My working practice was totally at odds with the rest of the industry. Even now, every single day in our office is this sort of daily challenge—a way of trying to perfect and persist and find realistic solutions within the luxury fashion sector— and even in a more broadstream way with the collaborations. Each day, there are questions that I ask that we try to find answers for. And if we can’t, we’ll try again tomorrow.” —January 2020

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