Behind the Seams with Courtney Smith: Media Moguls

IMAGE.ie and Samsung are delighted to join Courtney Smith on her mini-series ‘Behind the Seams’, where she meets Ireland’s brightest sparks in the world of fashion, to shine a light on the vast spectrum of opportunities in fashion and what it takes to truly make it.

Who among us hasn’t spent hours watching The Devil Wears Prada and pouring over Vogue and Elle (and IMAGE of course), dreaming of a career at a high-flying fashion magazine? But while many still view it as a pipe dream, working in fashion media is actually much more accessible than many think.

In the final episode of mini-series Behind the Seams, Courtney Smith is chatting to the media moguls that create the fashion media we all consume every single day. Chatting to journalists, editor and social media managers, Courtney looks at how to break into the fast-paced world of fashion publishing.

First up, she heads to the Big Apple to meet one of Ireland’s finest exports, editor-in-chief of Glamour magazine Samantha Barry. Originally from Cork, Samantha has made a huge impact during her short time as editor-in-chief, migrating Glamour from a stalwart fashion magazine to a digital-first, groundbreaking media experience. As Samantha tells Courtney, the media landscape has changed so much in recent years, that there are so many routes into the career you may want.

Courtney stays stateside to chat Sarah-Louise Colivet, who has worked with clients such as Victoria Beckham and Calvin Klein, and is now photo editor of New York-based The Last Magazine. Sarah-Louise talks us through her career to date, from interning to her current position in such an interesting publication, and working with photographers that she wrote dissertations on. Passion, drive and developing relationships is key to succeeding in a competitive industry, and to carving out your own space in a publication, like Sarah-Louise has done in The Last Magazine.

The next guest is Michaela O’Shaughnessy, who, at the time of filming, was Social Media Manager in Teen Vogue. What does it take to be a social media manager for one of the biggest digital platforms in the world? Michaela weighs in, talking about how social media and the fashion industry, in general, is not a typical 9-5 life. As she explains, the work is long and hard but absolutely worth it when you work your way to such a position. Since filming, Michaela has joined Samantha Barry at Glamour magazine as their Senior Social Manager.

And finally, Courtney returns home to chat to IMAGE’s own Digital Editor Dominique McMullan. Dominique, despite having been at the helm of IMAGE.ie for under a year, has overseen it go through major changes and has morphed the site to become Ireland’s leading digital publisher for women. She explains how she views content as a three-course meal, why hard graft is key to a long-term career, and why curiosity is the key ingredient to a great digital journalist.

Check out this week’s episode of Behind the Seams above, powered by Samsung and in collaboration with IMAGE.ie.