Watch the total interview, Constructing a Profession in Trend with Ssense’s Haein Dorin, on-demand on LinkedIn. Uncover related job alternatives throughout the globe on BoF Careers at the moment.
Haein Dorin’s first foray into style was on the shopfloor at Abercrombie & Fitch as a youngster forward of attending the College of Southern California. She went on to work in leisure publicity, accumulating internships and work placement roles on the likes of Warner Brothers, Sony Footage and NBC Common, earlier than touchdown a temp job at publishing home Condé Nast.
It was right here that Dorin turned a short lived place into her first full-time job, going from “selecting up dry cleansing to pulling reporting for a way company offers had been being transacted.” She credit her “willingness to be taught and roll up [her] sleeves” with impressing her seniors at Condé Nast, who provided her a job in company partnerships.
From there, Dorin went on to work on the likes of GQ as director of brand name advertising and marketing earlier than shifting to Highsnobiety in 2019, the place she rose up the ranks to turn out to be normal supervisor of consumer providers. In 2023, Dorin joined style e-commerce platform Ssense as world head of partnerships and group, the place she oversees world model partnerships throughout the artistic, style and enterprise communities.
Now, BoF shares key insights and recommendation from Haein Dorin’s interview on the BoF Careers collection, Constructing a Profession in Trend.
What drew you to working within the style business?
I’ve been working for so long as I can bear in mind. I come from a financially challenged background and so I performed an element in contributing financially for my household wherever I might [while] rising up. My first official job was in retail after I was 16 at Abercrombie & Fitch — it was a tremendous job. I discovered the basics of retail and got here to know the inventory room — beginning off from the bottom there.
I used to be so fascinated as a result of, as you recognize, season after season, you’d be getting these merchandise and seeing which merchandise offered the quickest, the recognition that it gained and the way that influenced tradition. I feel that’s positively after I began to dream about working on this business.
What position has additional training performed in advancing your profession?
College was such an enriching and difficult time for me as a result of I wasn’t fairly certain of the profession I needed to enter. Quite a lot of my lessons had been in observational research — within the arts — I did worldwide relations, artwork historical past, media research. I fell in love with the world of media and leisure throughout that point. That’s what I discovered essentially the most fascinating and it pushed my essential pondering.
I used to be attending quite a lot of profession festivals, speaking to quite a lot of my academics. Throughout that point, I landed my first internships, which had been in publicity, which [happened] fully out of luck as a result of I had utilized to a whole bunch of internships seeing the place I might acquire essentially the most expertise.
Coming from an immigrant household, I used to be the primary particular person to have company expertise. It was a useful jumpstart to my profession, studying the basics, like the best way to write an e mail correctly. I learnt the best way to construction storytelling pitches and create experiences for various audiences, for various movies. That have helped me construct that skillset of company communications and the best way to place tales, which actually prompted my curiosity in going into the media world.
How did you land your first full-time position in style?
I dabbled in quite a lot of totally different industries — PR, comms, media. I used to be an admin assistant temp earlier than I used to be a finance temp at Riot Video games. At my final temp position in occasions at Condé Nast, I used to be fortunate sufficient [to meet] two wonderful mentors who provided me a full-time job, which was how I broke into the style business as a digital affiliate on the company partnerships workforce.
These girls noticed one thing in me that I didn’t. I went from selecting up dry cleansing to pulling reporting for a way these company offers had been being transacted. And so, there have been quite a lot of late nights, quite a lot of tears and overnighters on the workplace of me studying the ability set.
Throughout industries, quite a lot of the foundations of what you do day-to-day may be very related, whether or not you might be writing to any person a few pitch or an thought, or you might be in conferences […] speaking with the management workforce.
Your first job may not be precisely what you’re dreaming of or what you aspired to do, however the ability units that I discovered by way of billing, reconciliation, studying the best way to learn an analytics report and pull insights out of that — these are nonetheless abilities that I [still] use at the moment. It doesn’t matter what the job is, it’s in entrance of you. Simply attempt to be taught it and turn out to be well-versed in it, as a result of that’s simply one other ability set that’s going that can assist you get your subsequent job.
How did you hone your ability units for the style office?
After I broke into style, I had a publicity, PR and communications background. On the time, style was all about digital advertising and marketing and quite a lot of that’s based mostly on storytelling. So, bringing that communications background was useful as a result of I used to be capable of place a pitch e mail and [use] my ability set by way of writing that e mail which might be translated right into a enterprise alternative.
Throughout industries, quite a lot of the foundations of what you do day-to-day may be very related, whether or not you might be writing to any person a few pitch or an thought, or you might be in conferences and you might be successfully speaking upwards to your management workforce or your workforce. Quite a lot of that’s about how you might be speaking within the office.
My present mentor, who was my supervisor, at all times mentioned: “How are you going to present up at the moment and tomorrow and have the ability to contribute and rally the groups and suggest options to maneuver it ahead?” And it’s precisely that mentality — how do you present up on a regular basis with a clean slate and actually attempt to dive in and downside remedy?
How would you advocate constructing your community when beginning out?
Immediately, greater than ever, with platforms like LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram, everyone seems to be beginning to inform their clear tales. It’s wonderful to have the ability to have direct communication with individuals within the business. So lots of my mentors and business leaders now, I first grew to become associates with on social media. We began following one another on social then we set to work on initiatives collectively. We’d go to an occasion collectively and additional deepen that relationship.
I’d [suggest you] attain out to whoever you’d like to be taught from. Typically they won’t reply, however I feel that more often than not they’ll and they’re at all times keen to assist as a result of everybody began their profession in some capability by receiving mentorship and rising their group.
It’s form of like relationship — there are going to be some individuals within the office that you just meet [with whom] you instantly click on and bond. After which there are some individuals within the office the place you’ll develop to be taught to respect one another due to the work that you just do. For me — it was actually a matter of relatability. I grew up an solely baby and so I used to be at all times looking for that bond of friendship and group.
How did you develop management abilities to progress in your profession?
My first promotion right into a management place was at that first job [at Condé Nast] […] main all of the digital planning out of the West Coast. As a pacesetter, it’s important to be outward dealing with internally, to construct relationships with totally different departments. That approach, you’ll be able to get data [you need] forward of time round what sponsorships are taking place, which units you and the workforce up for achievement by way of understanding the work that must be completed.
Your first job may not be precisely what you’re dreaming of or what you aspired to do, however the ability units that I discovered in my first job […] are nonetheless abilities that I exploit at the moment.
I used to be capable of see that it’s really not nearly my job and my workforce — it’s about how I liaise with the opposite departments to have the ability to set my workforce up for achievement. In order that sort of position opened plenty of different prospects that led to me transitioning into a job at GQ.
As a pacesetter, there’s nothing extra necessary than understanding and listening to what has been happening. What has been working? What hasn’t been working? Along with your management methodologies, it’s essential to know this from a human and empathetic viewpoint. Then, you may construct and modify or make small tweaks right here and there, with a view to make issues extra environment friendly or innovate some sort of division functionality.
Nevertheless it all goes again to being observational and studying earlier than having two toes on the bottom and beginning to run.
What does your job entail as world head of partnerships and group at Ssense?
I’ve been at Ssense for about 4 months now — and it’s a 20-year-old profitable e-commerce and content material, cultural hub. It’s […] studying concerning the viewers and listening to what our group needs, constructing a partnership technique round that. I’ve been working hand-in-hand with our insights and buyer analytics workforce to determine [what that looks like].
My job actually is to watch, see what’s doing effectively and what the group likes, and ask the questions: “What does the Ssense universe appear to be? Who’re our buyers and readers? What are they consuming? How are they adorning their properties? What would they need to drive?” Constructing that group and the world round it.
It’s extremely various: I’m analysing buyer information at some point; one other day I’m crafting an F1 programme with a accomplice; the following day, we’re integrating a magnificence model into the editorial calendar. Every thing is about taking what already exists and bringing manufacturers into the magic that’s already being completed.
What do you worth in a junior at the moment?
I really like individuals which might be exhibiting their willingness to be taught new issues daily, as a result of that’s additionally my curiosity. After a decade of expertise, I’m again in class, studying about enterprise and advertising and marketing, and it’s good as a result of it’s nearly like having a tutor for my office, which is tremendous useful.
What I really like is that if there’s a ability set that you just haven’t developed but, however you’re keen to take these further hours, [you can] take that further on-line course to be taught it. That at all times stands out to me as a result of it exhibits me, if we have now one other enterprise problem that we face in one other yr, I do know I’m constructing a workforce of people that need to come on board, who’re open to studying abilities that they don’t know but with a view to contribute and push the enterprise targets additional.