Business, Design & Style
Running a Business
Lesson time 05:38 min
Laura teaches you how to build a strategic and robust business model and how to create realistic budgets when launching your new business.
Students give MasterClass an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars
Topics include: Running a Business Develop Your Business Acumen Craft a Business Plan
Teach Creative Collaboration and Fashion
Fashion luminaries and Oscar de la Renta creative directors Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia teach you how to bring ideas to life through collaboration.
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[MUSIC PLAYING] LAURA KIM: When Fernando and I launched Monse in 2015, we quickly realized we had a lot to learn. We had the designing a collection part of the business down, but we had to figure out the nuts and bolts of how to make a company a financial and commercial success. When we started Monse, I planned for it for three years. So I personally saved quite a bit of money to fund the business. And my parents and Fernando's parents were very kind to give us some money to start. But six months in, we're running out. And then I realized we have to get a job. So we were doing part-time jobs to fund it a little bit more. The minute our CEO came on board, I just told her, this is how much money we have. Let's plan for us to not have anything coming in until another 12 months. You just have to be very clear about what you have and what you can support. But have a partner or advisor tell you how you can execute that. I think to launch a business you have to make sure you have a fund to go on without profit for good year and a half. I mean, in fashion they say 10 years. But luckily, Monse was profitable in its second year. And also make sure there is a lot of buzz around the brand. Because that's when you actually have to spend a little more to create the buzz, get people's attention, get your name out there. And I'm someone who don't like to spend money on PR and marketing. And Fernando does. But I do see the need for it. And he did an excellent job when we started Monse. [MUSIC PLAYING] I definitely think it's a good thing to work for someone before you start your own business. So it's just like, you know where to buy fabric. You know where to buy garment bags. You know who to call for help. And you know people who knows people. Honestly, our first show, if we didn't have the connections, I don't think we could have pulled it off, not even a quarter of what we did. The fabrics were all through the same vendors. It was manufactured in the same factory that Oscar makes their clothes. All the magazine editors who came in, they were friends of ours from Oscar. I mean, it's endless. Like, model agency, makeup artist, music producers, everything, even my own staff. If you were to start your own business, I think you should really understand who you are as a person. Like, what are you good at? What can you do for this brand? And find someone who can do stuff that you can't do. It's not about hiring CEO, CFO, head of marketing. Because maybe you could cover those things. But maybe you're really bad at, like, accounting. So it's about really knowing and being honest with yourself. Realizing what you really need first, like, six to 12 months, and find the right person to support you. Because I'm a planner, I wish I can say you should plan for your company to be something at a certain point. But if you do it with love, and you do it with passion, it becomes bigger than what you actually thought coul...
About the Instructor
As founders of fashion line MONSE and creative directors at Oscar de la Renta, Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia have transcended their industry with a partnership that’s more than the sum of its parts. Now they’re teaching you their secrets to creative collaboration. Learn to cultivate strong business relationships, navigate the creative process, and join forces with others to improve the workplace—and the work.
Featured MasterClass Instructor
Laura Kim & Fernando Garcia
Fashion luminaries and Oscar de la Renta creative directors Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia teach you how to bring ideas to life through collaboration.
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