You can be creative and have a career

With phenomenal figures of university attendance and thus increasing numbers of graduates entering the job market, it’s little wonder even those from high-end universities can easily fall into a vicious cycle of desperate thinking.

Talented graduates are frequently sacrificing their dreams for security – I hear record numbers of Oxbridge graduates have been entering the civil service and a recently published article in the Financial Times stated that passion for one’s career is an outdated and unrealistic concept.

For previous generations, arguably, requirements for a career in journalism or as a make-up artist might have merely required exceptional talent and ambition.

Now, there are schools dedicated to the art of make-up and journalists are expected to have first completed an expensive degree, then receive a leg up via nepotism and then a considerable amount of luck on top of these aforementioned traits. To state the obvious, there aren’t many jobs out there, least of all interesting or creative ones.

In theory, for those willing to take the chance there is still the opportunity for being creative with your career path; though admittedly high-risk, the potential rewards to be reaped are perhaps worth the fear.

In practice, I couldn’t think for the life of me what this path might be. Pipe dreams of becoming an artist aside, I was running fresh out of ideas.

Whilst plunging deeper into this abyss of desperation six months on from graduation and still working part time, I came across an old school friend’s newly formed website and business, a styling and consultancy agency that takes a fresh look at the way we dress ourselves.

Vintage clothing, a done to death concept, you might say. However, One Off isn’t just another vintage website, it presents something different; founder Josie Harris’ online clothing company is an attempt to fill a gap in the market – the gap in question being an online shop that sources high street gems as well as second hand pieces, blending the two to create unique and incredibly stylish outfits.

As wannabe entrepreneurial graduates, we have often been told that, shock-horror, ‘second-hand’ clothing does not sell online, that it cannot be a success.

Why though? I rarely try an item on before I buy, perhaps a sign that I should buy more well-fitted clothes, but arguably a sign that when an item is unique and a steal, you know you have to have it.

Furthermore, a fear of buying vintage online is the second-hand nature of the clothes, a worry that when it arrives it will be moth-eaten and smell of cigarettes. With our website, this is not the case – everything, if not brand new, has been chosen with an eye for perfection and originality.

So surely this idea would appeal to everyone who wants to look good? A non-snobby approach to vintage – accessible to all and blending classic high street buys with items that you will not find anywhere else.

Many would advise us that it’s nigh impossible to get a business off the ground without considerable financial backing, but we’re optimistic that with sufficient public exposure and a gradual build-up clientele, the potential of our idea will be realised.

For me, One Off offered something different and the chance to be creative, avoiding drudging down a career path I really did not want to take. For those who are fretting about life after university – it’s tough.

But we believe that having optimism and confidence in your future is something really vital in the current economic climate and with enough determination, exciting things are possible.

Thomas Fuller was right when he said, ‘Good clothes open all doors.’

http://www.one-off-style.com/