An Interview With Senior Vice President of Chic Little Devil Style House

Lifestyle

An Interview With the Senior Vice President of Chic Little Devil Style House

An Interview With Senior Vice President of Chic Little Devil Style House Image

As a self-proclaimed girly girl, Rebecca Raskind, 31, has always had a love for fashion. With a penchant for sexy and refined styles, her current position as Senior Vice President of Chic Little Devil Style House and CLD PR provides the perfect opportunity to combine her skills and her passions. Chic Little Devil specializes in renting and styling fashion items, as well as managing PR for clients. With fashion items ranging from their massive cowboy boot collection to an Alexander McQueen gown, it’s not surprising that CLD invented (and proudly claims) the term “fashion house.”

When Rebecca first joined the Chic Little Devil team as a booking agent, she didn’t know where it would lead. Trying out numerous jobs in her twenties, she worked to make herself visible within the industry and ultimately formed relationships with people who opened up new professional opportunities. Her willingness to keep an open mind certainly paid off when she joined CLD, and now that Rebecca has established herself in the sartorial world, she doesn’t plan on turning back.

It’s hard not to be inspired by Rebecca’s philosophy on work, and we happily overstayed our welcome to soak up all we could. Even more inspiring is Rebecca’s story, which proves that hard work and seizing opportunities are the real secret to getting noticed.

Her Starting Point

Have you always had an interest in fashion? When did you decide you wanted to work in this industry?

I have certainly always had an interest in fashion! I’ve always been a girly girl. I’ve loved clothes and putting together outfits for as long as I can remember. I decided early on that I wanted to work in fashion, but figured it would be fashion journalism since I also loved writing.

Is the fashion industry really as ruthless as its reputation? What keeps your spirit up?

I think in any industry you are going to have people who are mean, catty and cutthroat. Fashion gets a bad rap, but I think people are people. You will find warm, friendly and respectful people in fashion, as you will any other industry. Personally, I only like to associate with those who are kind. Cultivating strong relationships with people that you admire and respect is important in fashion, and life in general.

What is a style house and how does it work? What is your favorite part about working at CLD?

A “style house” is a term that our owner, Michelle Wendell, invented. She had amassed such a huge archive of designer clothing from her years as an Ebay retailer that stylists began renting clothing for shoots. We are kind of like a costume house but for high-end designer women’s clothing. There wasn’t anything else like it, so Michelle created the term “style house.” Now, in addition to our rental business, we have stylists on staff to style music videos and photo shoots, as well as a rapidly growing fashion PR division, which is the current focus of the company.

My favorite thing about working at CLD is being part of a rapidly growing company and seeing it grow from the ground up. In a small business you see a lot and learn a lot, and I enjoy interacting with all of our clients—from designers to costumers, producers, photographers and stylists.

What advice would you give aspiring stylists and young women looking to enter the fashion industry?

First, living in New York or LA is preferable to just about anywhere else in the country. You will have an increased opportunity to earn experience through internships or assistant positions.

Once you are able to get a foot in the door it is important to work extremely hard, to not complain and to be up for any opportunity. A lot of jobs in this industry will come from relationships and word of mouth, so you want to make sure you are not only visible but also making a great impression.

Her Big Break

What was your initial position at Chic Little Devil and how has your role at the company evolved?

I started out as a booking agent. The rental portion of the company was new and my job was to get the word out to stylists and costume designers and book appointments for them to rent from us. Now, years later, my title is Senior Vice President. I work closely with the owner (and have since the beginning) in managing all divisions of the company, including the Style House and PR department.

What are the pros and cons of working at a small company?

I personally love working for small companies! Entrepreneurs fascinate me. They put everything they have into their work and I like that energy. In a small company you know everyone who works with you. You get to have your hands in many different projects, which I personally love. Plus you get to foster a strong relationship with the owner, as opposed to a large company where you may not even meet the person you work for.

Of course, at a small company you don’t get all of the corporate benefits that you would at a large company, but I gratefully take the trade-off.

You’ve worked as an entrepreneur in the past. Tell us about that time in your career. Do you see yourself returning to it in the future?

I worked as a freelance event planner for a while. I did like the freedom of working for myself, but it’s hard, especially in the beginning. You’re never really sure where your next check is coming from so you are constantly reaching out, pitching new business, networking and so on. In fact, it’s very similar to what I do now!

I wouldn’t rule out being an entrepreneur in the future, but I have no current plans to do so. Again, so much of what I do on a daily basis feels entrepreneurial.

Now that you’ve been in the fashion industry for over five years, do you see yourself remaining there? Is there a possibility you’ll return to your original passion in communications?

I do love working in fashion and can’t really imagine switching industries completely at this point. Even if I were to focus solely on communications, there would most likely be a fashion element involved.

If we had the chance to peek at your schedule, what would an average day look like?

Every day is different! Some days I broker deals with costume designers to use our wardrobe closet for a film or TV series, while other days I research and pitch new designers for our PR department. Some days I film “how-to” style segments for eHow or other media outlets, and on occasion I will be on set styling a music video or photo shoot.

Your husband is part of the successful entertainment photography duo Smallz + Raskind. You’ve worked together in the past styling some of his shoots. Would you ever work with your husband full-time? How do you juggle a successful marriage and an equally successful career?

I would gladly work with my husband full-time—we work really well together! But I like having separate professional lives that intersect only sometimes. It’s the perfect situation. Juggling everything is a non-issue. We are both busy and both understand the crazy schedules that sometimes go along with work. We take frequent weekend trips when our schedules allow, and like to go out on Friday night dates whenever possible.

Her Perspective

Many millennial women struggle to pinpoint their passions and translate them into a career. What advice would you give these women?

Not everyone is going to know exactly what they want to do right from the start. Of course it’s great for those who do and can road-map their entire career straight from high school, but for anyone struggling to pinpoint their passion in their twenties I would tell them to take every opportunity that even remotely interests them. You never know what will lead to a career.

It’s also a great way to figure out what you don’t want to do. In my twenties I worked as a sales rep for a cosmetics line, as a casting associate for MTV and as an event planner, all before I fell into my current line of work by taking what sounded like a “cool opportunity.”

Who is your favorite designer? What makes it/them so fabulous?

That’s like asking a mother “Who is your favorite child?” It’s impossible to answer! I’m partial to lines with a strong feminine edge that are sexy but also refined and ladylike, such as Oscar De La Renta, Chanel and Victoria Beckham.

What is the most important thing that you’ve learned since entering the fashion industry?

I’ve learned that if you are going to do something, you might as well do it right, unless you want to do it again!

What has been the best moment of your career so far?

This is a hard one as well, but one moment that sticks out is when my boss gave me a Chanel bag for Christmas. This may not seem like a career moment, but it was so unexpected and gracious of her. It really meant a lot to me and showed that all of my hard work wasn’t going unnoticed!