How To Build Fair Creative Collaborations In Fashion

I break down what makes a fashion collaboration fair, productive, and worth your time, especially when you’re new and trying to build a portfolio without a big budget. We also get real about how “exposure” can turn into exploitation and how to protect your work with clearer communication and stronger boundaries. 
• why collaborations matter when you’re starting in the creative industry 
• a real example of a boutique lending clothing and not getting proper credit back 
• what “win win” actually looks like for models, photographers, and designers 
• how to build a modeling portfolio and photography portfolio through smart trades 
• why vague “want to collab?” messages fail and how to reach out with intention 
• how to pitch a concept with location, team, and creative direction upfront 
• the red flag where one person is expected to do everything for free 
• when it’s better to pay a professional or take a workshop to level up 

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Transcript

A Boutique Collab That Went Wrong

Defining A Real Win Win

Portfolio Building Through Smart Trades

Better Outreach Than Random DMs

Bring The Concept And Share The Load

When Paying Pros Makes Sense

Community Goals Closing And Sponsor

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Hello, hello. Welcome back to That's the V. Today's episode is very much a continuation of last week's episode with my friend Victor, founder and creator of Clothing Stories Boutique in El Paso, Texas. Such a vibe. And for those that don't speak Spanish, that episode wasn't Spanish. But YouTube, you can put English subtitles, and we can you can still read and see what happened. But um if you're not a YouTube viewer and still want to know what we talked about, this episode kind of attaches or talks about the main topic we touched base on, which was collaborations in the creative industry. So I feel like it's such a like common thing for brands or starting designers or photographers or just creatives in general to do a lot of collabs when you're starting and you don't really have the budget to spend for anything. I mean, models, photography, etc. And I get it. I'm all for it. I'm honestly like very open to collaborations. But what we talked about, Victor and I, mainly was how he went that route at some point. He opened his clothing boutique and he did some collaboration with uh like pageants and lending his clothing to be showcased by these pageant queens. And in exchange of, I mean, when you do a collab, you want it to be a win-win situation. So his thought process was very much like I'm gonna put my clothing out there, and I'm not gonna necessarily make money off of them, like not, you know, not buying the clothes, but using it to promote it, and then being seen and being out there in that way. But that was not the case, and he wasn't mentioned, they basically just took his clothes, didn't give some of it back, and he was not promoted in any way. So definitely a bad experience, not okay. Like, how should collaborations be done? And basically, a collab should really be, as I said, a very much win-win situation. So if you're a model, for example, or an aspiring model, and you don't necessarily want to spend all this money on photo shoots or photographers, studios, etc., collabs are a great way to build your portfolio and reaching out to photographers that may be open to also having you work for them as a model in exchange or tagging them, promoting them on your page kind of deal. But definitely has to be a two-way street. You can't just be like, I'm a model and I need some photos, and I really like I will tag you on all my posts. Like, okay, that can only go so far. And it has to be very much like, okay, if you're a starting model and really want to work with a certain photographer, but that photographer has a lot of experience in the industry, you know, it may be worth it to invest in something like that. But if you're trying to work with a photographer that's also fairly new in the industry, you're a model, you're you're also fairly new in the industry, that can be a very much win-win situation where you as our model are building your portfolio by collaborating with this photographer, but the photographer is also building their portfolio by by having you in their their images. Um, so that's an example of like, okay, you both are very much in the same level. You're both gonna create content, and you're both gonna have new images for your portfolios. So, all for that, and I think that works in the same way for designers who are aspiring and models that are aspiring as well. So uh like starting and really don't have a ton of experience, but still want to start somewhere. I feel like collaborations are necessary when you are starting. I think they can help so much build your portfolio, gain experience. And I really do think they work for any creative outlet in the sense of if you're a starting photographer, you want to collab with models or collaborate with businesses even to build a portfolio that you can later showcase and be like, this is what I can do. I know when I started photography, I very much did that in the sense of I had like friends who also had businesses, and they allowed me to take photos of their business, headshots, anything, you name it, dipping my feet in the water to see also what I wanted to focus on. And of course, I mean fashion is my main focus, so like editorials, but there's only so much editorials can get you. So having these opportunities to collaborate for like with hotels and even allowing them to keep my content to promote in exchange of I mean me doing these photos to just add to my portfolio to let later on be able to sell to different other hotels where now I can really pitch my work and you know it goes around. So that's on like the photography side of things. At least that's just how I did it. I know there's other ways, I know there's other examples of people, photographers far more experienced than I am, but you know, I do think everything is a learning process, and I do think that you never really truly stop learning in this creative journey experience industry. Um I think that's what's beautiful about the creative industry. I it's just like you can never know it all truly. Like there's always gonna be something new to learn, there's always gonna be like some different outlet come up, like AI on social media kind of thing. But it's you know embracing it and also knowing your style. I think that's the hardest thing. Finding your style. Anyway, I'm going off subject and going back into collaborations. I think it's very important also something that Victor, my friend, mentioned, is how you reach out to people, to whoever you want to work with in the creative industry. Um, he did say how like everyone wants to communicate on social media now, versus really presenting yourself and creating that real connection rather than just like a DM and like, hey, I want to collab. Are you open to it? And I know sometimes it is not possible to meet in person, like let's say you live in another city, you really want to collaborate with someone to in a city that you're traveling to, for example. Um, but I still think there's a way to properly talk to anyone you want to work with. And with that being said, that being a collaboration or a paid gig, let's say you really want to work with a certain photographer, and maybe it's not gonna be a collaboration, but maybe you can get like, I can I have this budget, but I would like to still find a way to kind of collaborate because you can still be paying for it, but maybe that's not their full fee. But if you communicate properly in the sense of like, hi, uh, my name is so-and-so. I have this experience in the modeling industry, in designing, etc. And I really admire your work, even use like very specific examples of what work do you admire? Like, maybe send them something that you really like that they created, and be like, I really like this type of style that you did, and I admire it, and I would like to work with you for that reason. Rather than like, I really like your work, but also like sent some concept of something that you didn't create, and it's like the work of another photographer, I think that can be a little offensive. I mean, everyone's different and takes things differently, but I that's just like one example I would say that could go like badly. So just I mean, if anything, it's talking genuinely and not just because you need content or just or not just because you want like a free collab, I think it's important to do your research and really know who you're trying to collaborate with, what type of work they've done in the past, and how you both can benefit from it. Uh, because at the end of the day, that's what a collaboration is. Even with bigger brands, you know, when there's like a fashion brand or a very high-end designer brand collaborating with a more commercial brand. It's seeing like, okay, how is this gonna bring us sales? Like, I know that's like another realm of collaborations, but at the end of the day, that's still a collab. So basically, I think collaborations are can be very good and can be very beneficial and can really help creatives grow, but I also think that both parts of the collaborations need to communicate properly and have a genuine respect for each other's work. Um, I know, like for me personally, if I want to collab with a model, for example, for my photography portfolio, I will definitely see how I can benefit them in their portfolio and see kind of like what they already have on social media and really pitch them like, hey, like I'm doing this creative editorial work. I don't see that you've done something like this before, and I think it would really benefit your portfolio, for example. And that's I feel like a way to add value to the collab rather than just like, hey, I like your look. Can you collab kind of thing? Or even me uh reaching out as a model to a photographer that I really want to work with. Again, going back to using that example of like, I've seen this type of work that you've been doing, and even like pitch in a whole concept and not just say that I want to work with them. Give them the concept, give them the location, give them even like I'm working with this brand, or I have this outfit that I think would go great with this concept. So it's like you're you're already adding the whole set. All they have to do is come in, do the photos, and collaborate with you. Because it's really hard when I um this has also been like a personal experience where someone reaches out and says they want to collaborate in regards to like photography, in my experience, and say, like, they will say something like, I really like your work and your aesthetic. I want to collaborate on a shoot, and it's like, okay, well, like, thank you. I highly appreciate it, but um, like, what is the concept? Who are the models? Is there hair and makeup? And then when then when it there's like nothing, when there's like, well, I don't really like have anything, but this is what I want you to, but I just like want to work together, I just want to collab. That's when it becomes really hard to say yes and to be open to a collaboration. Like, why would I collaborate with someone who wants me to do absolutely everything? Like, not just the photography side of things, but you also wanted me to look for the models, look for hair and makeup, look for location, and create a concept. Like, that's I feel like that's not okay. There is so much that goes into an editorial, a creative shoot, and it's not just like showing up and taking the photos. So maybe that's like a misconception, and maybe other photographers can agree with me or not, but that's just how I feel. I feel like there should be value added on both parts, especially if you're the person asking to do the collab. But if you are also a starting creative and don't really have any experience and you cannot really find someone to collaborate with you, I do think it is a good idea to invest and pay these professionals and just grow your portfolio, even if you have to pay a little bit at first to have like the right images that you're missing, or just like the experience of you know, doing like a this is coming from like the modeling side of things, but doing a workshop, even in photography, doing a workshop to learn better lighting, things like that. I think it's definitely worth your investment. Uh, but just having a balance of both, some collapse, some investments, so then later you can charge for your work from all the experience that you've gathered. So those are my two cents today. That's the V. I hope this was also very like eye-opening in the collaboration world of things. And yeah, I think this was like a topic that needs to be talked about a little bit more. But I mean, let me know in the comments what you think. If you have any experiences you want to share, um, you know, slide into my DMs for any other questions you want me to talk about or subjects or people you want me to interview in the fashion industry. Thank you so much for listening, watching, supporting. It really means the world to me, to whoever's actually listening and watching uh on this uh podcast fashion journey. I really just hope to build a fashion community and you know educate a little bit more on leader like fashion history or just like from my own experience, if I could help anyone starting out, it's basically a lot of how to do lots of creative things kind of thing. But thank you again. Please like, share, subscribe, all the things, and yeah, we're like growing together, I feel like because I know it's still like a starting point. It's like this is like fairly new, so let's see where it takes us. I won't forget all of you who are supporting now. So maybe we get to do like a whole New York Fashion Week event or something if this gets big enough. We'll see. But thank you so much and stay tuned for the next episode. Bye. Thank you for tuning in. Make sure to follow at That's the V Podcast on all platforms for more fashion content. And a big thank you to our sponsor, Jag Premiere Advertising Agency. If you're looking to get on platforms like Hulu or Netflix, check out the link in the description.