Making It with Caroline Vazzana
Published author, stylist, fashion editor, and modern day Carrie Bradshaw - these are just a few of the titles our cover star Caroline Vazzana holds. Read about some of her most memorable experiences, how she started her fashion and career platform, Making it in Manhattan, and how you can “make it” too!
Photo: @cvazzana
Can you walk us through your background a little bit, how you got into the industry, and starting Making it in Manhattan?
Growing up, I loved art and fashion. For the longest time, I thought I wanted to be an artist but I found the fashion industry and knew it was something I wanted to be a part of. When I got to college I studied fashion design and merchandising, and I started to get hands on experience in the industry. During college, I interned at Anna Sui, the women’s contemporary designer, and then decided I wanted to gain some editorial experience and landed an internship at Marie Claire magazine. After college, my first job was at Teen Vogue working on their print magazine. I started to realize the importance of digital in the industry and moved over to InStyle Magazine where I worked with their digital team. While I was working at these post-grad jobs I started to come up with the idea for Making it in Manhattan as a fun way to help the future generation of women in fashion. Over time the idea evolved and I decided to write a print book, which is funny because I always stress the importance of digital. After that I created the website and, eventually, Instagram for Making it in Manhattan.
What was the transition like going from working a full-time, “traditional job” to becoming your own boss?
Photo: @cvazzana
I started working on the book about a year before I left InStyle. Then about five or six months before I left InStyle my literary agent encouraged me to start the Making it in Manhattan website so that when the time came for me to quit my job, I would have already started building the brand. At the time, the website was only a few articles and interviews with people in the industry like Nicole Miller, Elisabeth Holder, the Co-President of Ladurée, and Patricia Field, the costume designer for Sex and the City. Overall, it was a really exciting time.
You have so much going on between your social media career, Making it in Manhattan, styling, and your Cosmo column. Can you tell us a little bit about how you handle them all on a day to day basis?
Photo: @cvazzana
The main thing for me is taking it as it comes. I can be very Type A, but I can also be laid back in some ways. It’s important to not get overwhelmed, know when things are due, and prioritize. What needs to get done today? What can wait until tomorrow? What can wait until next week? Focusing on too many things at once can stop you from succeeding, so prioritizing is so important. I also find it’s really helpful for me to break my work up into sectors like writing / editorial, styling, and influencing.
Your book talks all about how you landed jobs at InStyle, Teen Vogue, and Marie Claire. Was there a particular moment when you realized you had “made it”?
There are definitely little moments where I feel like I’m “making it,” like when I’m sitting at a fashion show, interviewing a designer, or someone has my book. But I wouldn’t say “I’ve made it, that’s it, I’m done.” There’s so much more for me to grow and do. I’m always asking myself what can I do more of? What can I do next? That’s why I think I’m still making it, there’s still so much to go. That’s why it’s so important to celebrate the little things, but don’t get too comfortable. Continue to work hard and don’t lose that drive that you start with.
You’ve worked with so many different brands and clients, is there one experience that really stood out to you as your favorite?
Photo: @cvazzana
My favorite campaign was a little over a year ago when I worked with Patricia Fields, the costume designer of Sex and the City. As the costume designer for the show, Patricia came up with the original Carrie nameplate necklace that Carrie wore on the show. When she decided to make a new version of the necklace, the Carrie 2.0, she asked me to be the face of the campaign. We shot all around the East Village and the campaign was featured in publications like Women’s Wear Daily, Glamour Italia, and Vogue Italia. It was a lot of work but so fun.
Photo: @cvazzana
TikTok has been an incredible platform for you to provide career tips as well as fun style content to a growing audience. How has TikTok affected your brand and what has your experience been like on the app?
While I had a TikTok before quarantine, it wasn’t until about a month in that I started to really focus on the app. I started posting frequently and my career advice videos were getting a lot of views so I focused on the career angle and kept doing more videos like How to Network, How to Build Your Brand, etc. Eventually I expanded into style and fashion videos. Originally I was a little hesitant to do that because I felt like there were already so many people posting that kind of content. But then, I realized if I started doing fashion and style videos, mine would be different no matter what because what I wear is very eclectic and I can show people how to style pieces like that. It’s funny because one way that someone described my style that I think really sums it up is “her style is so weird, but so cool it works.” Once I had about 10-30K followers, I started to share more elements of my personal life like my engagement since I had that community and following built of people that cared.
What advice can you give to college students and recent graduates who are looking to start a career in fashion?
Be willing to work really hard and have a good attitude. Also, you need to love it. Fashion looks fun, but there are days when it’s not glamorous and you have to carry garment bags all around the city. But those days that make the rest of it so amazing. This is such a special industry. As cheesy as it sounds, be ready for the best adventure of your life. Be humble, hit the ground running, work hard, be excited, and do everything with a smile.
Photo: @cvazzana
“As cheesy as it sounds, be ready for the best adventure of your life.”
Is there anything you think recent grads or young professionals could be doing during this time if they were furloughed or are looking for a new position that would help their chances and make them stand out?
I would recommend finding virtual work. Reach out to brands, influencers, whoever, and see if they need any virtual help whether it be more general, styling, or as an intern. Just keep gaining experience for your resume, and continue to learn and grow. There’s so many different ways you can do this, too, in case you can’t find virtual work. Say you like styling. TikTok can be great for that. Make styling videos! Even if you aren’t comfortable in front of the camera, you can style a friend or make it a flat-lay. Just build your social media portfolio and share what you love, that way when things start to return to normal you have something to show companies what you’ve been working on. Be proactive, make the most out of this time, and keep posting and sharing.
Do you have any tips for those interested in building their personal brands and online presence?
Photo: @cvazzana
Definitely posting consistently. That could mean everyday, could mean three days a week if that’s all you have time for. Quality over quantity but definitely be there regularly. It’s also important to reach out to your audience and be engaging. Build that community! I say this a lot, but it’s important to find your niche. What is your brand about? For me, I focus on fashion, lifestyle, career advice, and New York City. Someone should be able to look at your profile and in just five minutes be able to see what you’re all about.
Besides Making It In Manhattan, are there any websites or resources you love to stay up to date on the industry?
Ed2010 is a great resource for finding fashion media jobs, interviews, and staying up to date on the industry. Another great resource is Fashionista. They have industry news and a careers tab where they post new fashion positions opening.
To see more from Caroline you can follow her on Instagram and TikTok, and for more fashion and career advice check out Making it in Manhattan.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.