[sqekcx]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LucieRibbons Japanese I would say is important for fashion and is (apparently) easier than Mandarin.

I don't think Japanese is easier than Chinese. Both languages are difficult to learn. There are tones in Chinese, and there are no letters, unlike Japanese, which has hiragana and katakana, but Chinese uses Subject Verb Object word order, which is similar to English, and it doesn't have a complicated structure. It's easy to progress too. There are several ways of making character, and two of them uses the method of combining different characters or different roots which make up the meaning of the whole character. Some words are made up using this method as well, combining different characters that make up the meaning of the word. You don't need to know every character to read.

I don't like the idea of learning a language because it helps with your career or anything like that. If you're not interested in something, it's hard to force yourself to study it.

[Katie123]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LucieRibbons I've got French and English as joint first languages and I found Spanish pretty easy to pick up. I also do Latin at school and it's close enough to Italian to get by a little. I want to learn Portuguese because apparently if you speak French and Spanish there's not much to it. Although my Spanish isn't amazing. :/ Japanese I would say is important for fashion and is (apparently) easier than Mandarin. Russian has a groovy alphabet and sounds pretty but I think it's not a major priority if you're only planning on learning one language.

True, portuguese is my main language and it's almost the same as spanish, honestly. i've never learnt spanish but i can understand everything and if you speak some "portunhol" (portuguese with some basic spanish words in between) you can get anywhere! i know for a fact as i've been through some hard times in argentina
and french and italian were SO much easier to understand because i speak portuguese.

[LucieRibbons]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sqekcx I don't think Japanese is easier than Chinese. Both languages are difficult to learn. There are tones in Chinese, and there are no letters, unlike Japanese, which has hiragana and katakana, but Chinese uses Subject Verb Object word order, which is similar to English, and it doesn't have a complicated structure. It's easy to progress too. There are several ways of making character, and two of them uses the method of combining different characters or different roots which make up the meaning of the whole character. Some words are made up using this method as well, combining different characters that make up the meaning of the word. You don't need to know every character to read. I don't like the idea of learning a language because it helps with your career or anything like that. If you're not interested in something, it's hard to force yourself to study it.

Sorry about my judgement but I based it on what my friend said about learning both simulatenously. She said that she found Japanese easier because it was so different that most of the structure was new and she didn't try to apply any rules to it until she'd learnt them. But with Chinese (I think she struggled a lot with speaking in tones) but aside from that she always tried to apply rules that she knew that didn't necessarily fit so it seemed irregular as it followed some patterns she knows but not all.

[MakeupYourStyle]

I would say, french, there are a lot of talented designers but for some reason I feel that french would be a staple in that business

[BetteT]

I agree. I think, if you read through this thead ... that for working in the fashion biz ... French and Chinese comes up the most (after English, of course, which is pretty much the language of business everywhere).

[KhaoticKharma]

I'm thinking about trying to get into the modeling agency business (ie, internship at an agency), and I get the feeling Italian might be useful. Most all models have at least three agencies- the New York agency, the Paris agency, and the Milan agency. I'm sure the fashion industry is full of wannabe fashionistas casually dropping phrases Francais in an effort to vie for the in demand jobs, but I don't doubt Italian is as common. Is my logic far off?

[prettyswanky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LucieRibbons Sorry about my judgement but I based it on what my friend said about learning both simulatenously. She said that she found Japanese easier because it was so different that most of the structure was new and she didn't try to apply any rules to it until she'd learnt them. But with Chinese (I think she struggled a lot with speaking in tones) but aside from that she always tried to apply rules that she knew that didn't necessarily fit so it seemed irregular as it followed some patterns she knows but not all.

In my experience, for both languages it is relatively easy to grasp the basics. Not sure about japanese, but for chinese, to be able to speak and write at an advanced level takes a lot a lot a lot of time and work! you'd probably have to really immerse yourself in the chinese culture to be a pro.

[arvy]

Of course, French & Italian will be welcomed in any part of the fashion industry, but Sweden has been rising in the ranks as a fashion capitol for quite a while now. ACNE, H&M, Filippa K, Cheap Monday.... all internationally known, all based in Sweden. I am learning Swedish because I've taken a large interest in Scandinavian fashion. So I guess for anyone wanting to learn a foreign language, learn the language of the place you want to work in.

[Dkammern]

i was very surprised to hear in this new The Day Before Fendi documentary (youtube) how many people in the team speak french and not italian.
Even Karl talks in French to Silvia Fendi and the company's CEO (and of course all of them speak italian)
The show producer, who also does the shows for chanel, speaks both.

[MimiV]

I speak English, Swedish and French fluently right now and I'm looking to learn a new language.. I've been thinking about Russian, seems like it's a good language to know when working in fashion and just in everyday life. I guess Italian would be a good choice too

[*Jibrielle*]

I would say english, french, italian, spanish and japanese

[*k.a.t.e*]

To revive an old thread....I'm interested in a career in fashion buying (I'm about to enter the final year of my International Business degree) and I'm thinking of taking an extra-curricular language class.

I have a choice of Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian and Spanish - which would be the best choice (bearing in mind I already know basic French)? Does the old advice in this thread still stand, or has Chinese/Japanese become more prominent in the last 3 years in the role of a buyer, especially since so many manufacturers are in the far east?

I'm swaying towards Italian, because of the obvious fashion link, and I also go on holiday in Italy most summers so it would be useful but a second opinion would be very helpful!

[fashionista-ta]

^ I wouldn't have thought buyers would be dealing with production ... wouldn't that be internal to a label? Unless perhaps private label buyers do that?

[Lena]

Quote:

Originally Posted by *k.a.t.e* To revive an old thread....I'm interested in a career in fashion buying (I'm about to enter the final year of my International Business degree) and I'm thinking of taking an extra-curricular language class. I have a choice of Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian and Spanish - which would be the best choice (bearing in mind I already know basic French)? Does the old advice in this thread still stand, or has Chinese/Japanese become more prominent in the last 3 years in the role of a buyer, especially since so many manufacturers are in the far east? I'm swaying towards Italian, because of the obvious fashion link, and I also go on holiday in Italy most summers so it would be useful but a second opinion would be very helpful!

Italian is not so important, all good european showrooms speak english...
I'd try Russian or Chinese if I was into fashion buying
German is also an option since they are the only ones in EU with money to spend

[Marjon]

French, Italian or Chinese