Dynamic consultant Jane Hamill talks business fundamentals for creatives, from time and cash flow management to the importance of being thick-skinned and self-assured.
“I hate to be the capitalist pig here, but I am, and so I will be. I would like to know that every decision is predicated on what you want the outcome to be. Why would I do this show? Well, I want recognition. What particular recognition do I want? If I get that, what will it lead to? If it led to that, what would you get? If there’s no answer, then skip the show.”
Jane Hamill is the creator of Fashion Brain Academy, a training and mentorship course for emerging designers. Raised in Minnesota, Hamill attended Boston University for art history and economics before transferring to the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City. Hamill received a BFA in Fashion Design from FIT, then took a position in Manhattan’s Garment District where she worked with craftspeople designing children’s outerwear. She took a position with the same company in Chicago for one year before resigning in 1992 to open an eponymous boutique in the Lincoln Park neighborhood. Over the course of nearly fifteen years Hamill designed and sold a number of successful fashion lines, placing them in major department stores such as Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s. She also began buying lines from other emerging designers and eventually had brand representatives in five different cities across the United States. Following the birth of her second son Hamill sold her business. She spent the next several years working as a small business consultant for RETAILMavens, a coaching and consulting organization for retailers. In 2010 she founded the online training program Fashion Brain Academy. The program concentrates on helping creatives reach sustainability through the development of specific business skills.