Tell us about your background:
Fashion buying leader with 15 years of experience overseeing multi-million-dollar OTB management, vendor negotiation, and cross-functional alignment among multi-brand retail environments (Saks Fifth Avenue, Moda Operandi, Bandier, and Shopbop). I have a proven ability in building assortment and financial strategy, leading teams, and partnering across planning, marketing, and technology to drive growth and profitability.
What do you wish you’d known when you started out?
How important Microsoft office proficiency is to being a merchant. I wish I had educated myself in excel in particular much earlier on vs. just learning on the job. This would have helped me operate my day to day more efficiently and stand out among my peers.
Best career advice you've ever received?
You may be right, but how you deliver the right answer and/or the right message is the secret to successful communication, cultivating strong relationships, and driving results.
What leadership qualities are important to you?
Empathy, respect for work life balance, clear and constant communication, providing real time feedback.
What has been the biggest challenge in your career so far?
Establishing healthy boundaries between work and my personal life. Fashion never sleeps and everyone wants to be prioritized, so it has been a challenge to deliver for all the people who count on me, both professionally and personally.
How do you define success in your career, and how has that definition evolved over time?
I measure success in my career by the relationships I have built with my vendor community. Many have outlasted the jobs where they began and have served me well in later roles. The retail landscape has changed dramatically over the last 15 years, often for the worse, but these connections have endured. We all need to stand by one another and champion each other’s wins.
How has networking contributed to your professional growth and success?
All but one of the jobs I have held came through networking, which has been vital to my professional growth. It has also made a lot of brand acquisition possible at the stores where I’ve worked. Fashion is a tight-knit community, so I am certain that strong connections are the key to success.
What are your top networking tips for building strong connections in your industry?
Pay it forward -- help give advice to more junior people. You never know where they may work in the future or how you may interact with them again.
Answer Linkedin messages even if you aren't interested and be kind.
Follow people on all social platforms.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelsea-paige/
Instagram: @chelsea.arden.paige
