90 Second Interview on LinkedIn: Fashion Design, Manufacturing and Real Industry Insight
The 90 Second Interview is a weekly LinkedIn feature created to share concise, experience led insight from professionals working across fashion design, clothing manufacturing, apparel supply chain and creative business. The format is intentionally short and practical, designed for busy designers, founders and brand owners who want real perspective rather than surface level commentary.
My freelance success comes down to being consistent, resilient, and relentless about putting my skills out there. Lauren Robson, Founder, Lilie Studio
Each interview captures honest answers around career decisions, challenges, working processes and long term thinking within the fashion industry. The aim is to make hard earned knowledge more visible and accessible, particularly for start up fashion brands and independent designers navigating product development and manufacturing.
Explore the full interviews on Jonathan Mitchell’s LinkedIn
The full 90 Second Interview series is published on my LinkedIn profile here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonmitchell/
Why the 90 Second Interview Exists
Fashion design is not just about creativity. It is a commercial and technical discipline shaped by production realities, supply chains, communication and decision making under pressure. Much of the most valuable learning happens informally through years of hands on experience.
A great factory for a start up brand is very different to one supporting a £10m plus business. Anthony Mellor, Fractional COO and Supply Chain Director, Onflair
The 90 Second Interview was created to document those insights. By asking focused questions and removing unnecessary context, each post delivers clarity quickly. This makes the series useful for people at different stages of their fashion careers, from early stage founders to experienced professionals.
How the interviews help fashion brands and start ups
If you are building a product range, every decision connects. Design affects cost. Materials affect performance. Fit affects returns. Trims affect lead times. Sampling affects launch timing. Manufacturing affects cash flow. These interviews sit in the space where the creative meets the practical.
- Decision making how people choose a direction and commit to it
- Process how they gather information, test ideas, and learn quickly
- Production reality what causes delays, cost creep, and quality issues
- Brand clarity how they communicate value to the customer
Industry Professionals Featured So Far
The series has featured specialists from across the fashion and apparel industry, including denim consultants, technical product developers, supply chain directors, creative strategists and manufacturing experts.
The reality is that clarity is what creates the best results. Anthony Mellor, Onflair
These insights are particularly relevant for start up fashion brands and growing businesses, where early decisions around design, sampling and manufacturing have long term impact.
What Makes the Format Work
The 90 Second Interview avoids overly polished storytelling. Contributors are encouraged to be direct and honest, which is why topics such as stress, difficult clients and failed projects are discussed openly.
Managing expectations at the early stage is still one of the hardest parts of the job. Rocío Evenett, Sewing Incubator USA
How do you deal with tricky clients? Fire them. Seriously. Ana Kristiansson, Founder, Portia and Desinder
This approach reflects the reality of working in fashion design and manufacturing. It also aligns with how professionals consume content on LinkedIn, where clarity and authenticity matter more than long form promotion.
How This Connects to My Fashion Design Consultancy
Alongside running this interview series, I work with fashion brands through J Mitchell Design, a UK based fashion design consultancy supporting clients across the UK and internationally.
Knowing your value, understanding the full supply chain, and being adaptable. Knowledge is everything. Mohsin Sajid, Creative Director, ENDRIME®
I support start up and established brands with clothing manufacturing support, fashion design development, CADs and tech packs, helping ideas move cleanly from concept to production.
Interviewees and further links
Below are links to the businesses and personal platforms of the professionals featured so far in the 90 Second Interview series.
- Mohsin Sajid, ENDRIME®
- Anthony Mellor, Onflair
- Lauren Robson, Lilie Studio
- Paola Bertoncini, LinkedIn
- Ana Kristiansson, Portia
- Rocío Evenett, Sewing Incubator USA
- Philippa Cooper, LinkedIn
Outro
If you are building a range and want experienced support, I can help you plan the product properly, design it clearly, and prepare factory ready tech packs that reduce sampling issues. With over twenty years in fashion design across sportswear, activewear and technical apparel, I focus on getting ideas into production in a commercially sound way. Visit www.jmitchelldesign.co.uk to learn more.
