A highly successful graduate from De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) is returning to talk about her experiences in the fashion industry and share her story of how to run your own business.
Salima Hussain-Chowdhury graduated from DMU in 2000 after studying at the School of Fashion and Textiles and her hard work and determination has seen her progress through the industry to where she is today, running her own design consultancy company called Sachy Ltd.
The event on Friday 6 March has been organised by the inspirational WIRE DMU, which is the university’s enterprise society. The society, which is run by students, provides guest speakers, networking opportunities and promotes social interaction so undergraduates can gain vital skills and experience to prepare them for running a business.
Salima said: “I’m coming in to explain how I’ve got to where I currently am going from leaving university and working my way up, from the very bottom all the way to running my own business. I want to make students aware that if you want to get somewhere you really have to work hard.
“I learnt so much from the course at DMU it was fantastic and the teachers were inspirational, however, there’s a lot you can’t learn until you actually get into the trade but if you are prepared to work hard then there is always a way to achieve your goals.
“I think what Wire are doing is really important for students because the only way you get an understanding of what your desired industry is like is to make connections with professionals before you graduate, which is what they’re all about.”
Oli Bass, the Managing Director of Wire DMU, said: “It will be great to hear about Salima’s journey, she will be an inspiration to students of fashion related courses because that is obviously huge at DMU, and Wire members will get an awful lot out of hearing of her success in business.
“In her first year when she was predicting sales of £75,000 she actually took in over £200,000, all whilst being a mother to her two children as well so she obviously knows her stuff.”
You can attend Salima’s talk at DMU's Innovation Centre on Friday 6 March from 6.30pm.
Posted on Wednesday 4 March 2015