milena encheva
I've been in fashion for nearly 20 years, and honestly, every time someone asks me what exactly I'm doing, I'm like, how much time do you have? I wear multiple hats. I work as a consultant with different sized companies on product development, product ops, and increasingly business operations. I also run my own high-end women's wear clothing line, which I officially registered in January 2013. We've done runways and presentations, sold worldwide in places like the U.S., Japan, South Korea, England, and Dubai, and worked with major department stores. It was great but exhausting, so at some point I decided I wanted to focus more on the creative side versus the commercial side. Now we're doing more custom work and small events, making it a more boutique business versus the mainstream department store business. The third part of my job, which is fairly new, is working for a fashion tech startup where we're marrying brands with retailers to achieve the perfect fit. When you go online, you're not spending half an hour trying to figure out what's the best size for you from a brand you've never bought before. You just upload pictures, it gives you measurements, and we tell you exactly what you need. This eliminates a lot of frustration and the unknown for customers, but also has huge benefits for retailers and DTC brands because it reduces returns and hesitation throughout the purchasing process.
• Industrial Engineering Degree
• Associate Degree in Fashion Design from FIT
• Business Operations Certificate Program at Wharton
• Keen - Working with Autistic Children
What do you attribute your success to?
I think my support system is a huge thing. My mom has been, and I know that's a total cliche, but it's true, the most supportive person on the planet every time. Whatever, even if it's dumb, she might tell me it's dumb, but she'll still support me anyway. And I'm very much a go-getter. I decide I want something, and I make it happen. That helps, too. Your support system is your number one. Without it, you are nothing.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've received is go for it. Whatever it is, go for it. Don't leave it for tomorrow, don't leave it for next year, whatever. Get it done. I also had this amazing woman boss at my latest full-time job, the one I worked at before I started my company, actually after I started it. I worked both for a year, and then I quit. She was the sweetest person, but she was so firm at the same time, and she taught me to be so kind, but be so firm, because if you're not, they're gonna take over. Her name is Judith Shelleman. She's in her 80s now, and she's still the queen of the industry. She was a very positive influence on me and helped me grow mentally and guided me.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I think the biggest challenge is that I'm an artist by heart, and I've always wanted to do creative, creative work, but the realization that in order to sustain a business, you have to be commercial as well, and maybe even more commercial than creative. That's been probably the hardest part, because that took me years. I even have a big poster on my wall that says, designed for humans, not for designers, because I did that for many years, where I'll just go bananas, and people look at it, and they'll be like, this is beautiful, but where do I wear it? So that's been a major challenge.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I think honesty is very important, in both professional and personal life. Being true to your goal, and not deviating, but knowing what you want and going for it. There are so many things that are important, but those stand out most to me.
Locations
Minnoji
907 Street 303, New York, NY 10025, 10025