Lately, hiring has become harder.
You know it, I know it, every fashion executive I speak with knows it.
Many fashion brands are experiencing high staff turnover rates, key roles can sit empty for months, and a departure is more than just an empty desk. It's delayed work, teams carrying extra weight, and a hit to the bottom line.
Here's some food for thought: replacing one experienced employee can cost up to twice their annual salary once you factor in lost productivity and the knowledge that walks out the door with them. For fashion and luxury brands, this isn't just an HR headache. It's profit draining away and momentum grinding to a halt.
But here's the thing, it doesn’t have to be this way. It starts with hiring for retention, giving people a confident start, and genuinely supporting their growth. Even in a competitive market, this approach creates stability. This guide shares practical ways to build teams that last.
Key points we’ll look at:
Strategic workforce planning makes you five times more likely to hire successfully by identifying skill gaps before vacancies even occur
Strong onboarding improves retention by 82% and accelerates productivity by 50% when new hires receive clear first-week plans and regular manager check-ins
Development investment keeps employees 94% longer – people stay when they see genuine growth opportunities
Data-driven retention tracking reveals patterns in departures and enables you to fix problems before employees resign
The Foundation: Strategic Workforce Planning
Most fashion teams only start recruiting when someone leaves or growth suddenly picks up. I get it. Work piles up, posting a job ad feels like the fastest answer. But rushing leads to the wrong hire. Someone joins, struggles to settle, and moves on within a year. Costs rise, momentum slows, and the cycle starts all over again.
A steadier path begins with knowing what the team actually needs. Look past job titles and focus on the skills that keep work moving. There are many brands admitting that they face skill gaps. Spotting those gaps early, and anticipating new ones as the fashion industry continues to change, helps you avoid reactive hiring.
Clarity about each role changes outcomes too. Jobs built around real work needs, with room for growth and flexibility, attract stronger candidates and hold their interest. Skills-based hiring – choosing people for what they can do rather than which brand they've worked at – is five times more predictive of success than relying on job titles or past employer brands alone.
Workforce planning doesn't need to be a big project. Look at the roles you rely on. Think about the skills you'll need next year and the year after. Be ready to change course if the market shifts. When you've done that groundwork, hiring feels calmer, not rushed, and the people you bring in usually stay longer.
First Impressions: Attraction & Recruitment
Finding great people has never been harder. 74% of companies globally struggle to find talent. At the same time, candidates have more choices and higher expectations. They research employers, compare benefits, and walk away if the hiring experience feels cold.
Sixty-nine percent say they'd reject an offer from a company with a weak employer brand. For luxury fashion organisations, that first impression shapes retention long before a contract is signed. I'm always banging on about this – your Employer Brand is very different to your Consumer Brand.
A strong employer brand starts with honesty. Candidates want to know what it's really like to work there: the pace, the culture, the actual growth on offer. Overselling leads to early disappointment and fast exits.
A clear value proposition matters too. People want to see how their skills will be used, how success is measured, and what their future might look like. Without that clarity, turnover rises.
The mechanics of hiring play a role as well. Job descriptions should be clear, easy to read, and optimised for both internal and external readers i.e. keep an eye out for internal jargon or acronyms. Too many fashion companies still rely on lists of generic traits. I received one recently that screamed ChatGPT. I put the most basic prompt into the app and received the exact job specification I'd been sent. That's not going to cut it or help find the right person!
Speed matters too. It's important to be thorough but move swiftly. Although some senior roles can take up to 4 months, communication during that process is everything. When feedback slows, candidates move on. Quick, clear updates show respect, build trust, and communicate that the role matters to the business.
When competing for talent, the differentiator at this stage is often a personal, responsive experience. Candidates remember when they felt respected rather than left hanging.
The Critical Transition: Onboarding Excellence
The first weeks in a new fashion job set the tone for everything that follows. If those early days feel clear and welcoming, people settle in and start to trust the move they made. If they're confused or feeling abandoned, doubt creeps in fast.
It's no surprise that companies with well-planned onboarding keep far more of their new hires. Some studies show retention can improve by more than 80%, and new starters often become productive about 50% faster.
Onboarding doesn't have to be complex. Start before day one: a quick hello, a plan for the first week, tools and log-ins that actually work. In those first days, new hires need to know who to ask and what good work looks like. Keep checking in. Managers who remove small roadblocks and give straight feedback help people feel at home.
There should be a clear roadmap of what success looks like and what's expected to pass probation. There should never be surprises – regular updates and feedback are key to setting the new employee up for success.
Building Capability: Training & Development
People rarely leave a role just for a small pay rise. More often, they leave because they feel stuck.
When employees stop seeing a way to grow, they start looking elsewhere. In fact, 94% of workers say they'd stay longer if their employer invested in their development.
Training doesn't have to be costly or formal. What matters is showing people a future. For some, that's learning new tools or earning certifications. For others, it's mentoring, coaching, or projects that stretch their skills.
Companies that invest in ongoing development achieve 24% higher profit margins than those that don't. For fashion companies, this can be practical and personal. A sales executive might shadow a senior sales manager during market. Someone could be trained to become the technical expert in a system and subsequently train others in the business. A Product Developer and Production Executive could be encouraged to set up a cross-department taskforce to look at how they can improve product handover within the business. Cross-training helps fill skill gaps and provides people with a path forward without leaving.
Helping employees build skills isn't just an HR task. It's a retention strategy and a way to future-proof the business.
Sustaining Performance: Engagement & Retention
Keeping people isn't just about pay. It's about the day-to-day experience – whether they trust their managers, see a future, and feel their work matters. Many companies are struggling with that right now.
Engagement starts with trust. People stay when they feel safe to speak up and know their manager will listen. Recognition helps too. Not just awards, but small, genuine thanks when work is done well. Teams that feel recognised tend to leave far less often.
Flexibility matters more than ever. Many fashion employees now expect some mix of home and office work. When companies show they trust outcomes more than desk time, loyalty rises. Wellbeing support is another quiet signal that someone's future matters. Deloitte found 44% of workers doubt their employer truly supports mental health. Managers who spot overload and adjust workloads early can stop burnout before it becomes a resignation.
Purpose ties it together. People want to know their work makes a difference. Sharing stories about the organisational goal, and each person's role in achieving it, helps turn "a job" into "my place."
The Data-Driven Approach: Measurement & Optimisation
Many fashion businesses track hiring costs, but not what happens afterwards. People leave, they're replaced, and the cycle repeats. To stop it, you need to look closer.
Track how long jobs stay open, what each hire costs, and how many new starters last a year. Notice when people leave: six months in, after a manager change, or when promotions stall. Those patterns point to where action is needed.
You don't need fancy tools. A spreadsheet and a habit of updating it will do. Pair the numbers with honest conversations. Ask people who are staying why they stay and what might tempt them away. Those "stay interviews" are often more useful than exit ones.
Short surveys or casual check-ins can help too. The aim isn't perfect data. It's spotting trouble early enough to fix it.
Turning Retention into a Competitive Advantage
Keeping people starts with recruiting for the right skills and values, giving them a strong start, helping them keep learning, and paying attention to how work feels once they're in the door. None of it's quick, but it costs far less than replacing good people.
For any luxury fashion brand, this is a competitive edge in a tough market. Teams that stay build deeper relationships, deliver better work, and understand the business more.
For some businesses building a retention strategy from scratch feels daunting. My advice - begin small. Map the roles you really need. Plan a better first 90 days. Hold a few stay conversations. Track what you learn and build from there. Step by step, these moves build trust and reduce churn.
At LIFE, we don't just recruit for the start date – we recruit for the first year of employment and beyond. Because finding the right person is only half the battle. Keeping them is what builds a business that lasts. We work with fashion businesses on so much more than submitting CVs. We help with talent planning, employer branding, defining employee value proposition, team and organisational assessments to highlight vulnerabilities, as well as sourcing great talent. You can reach us at info@lifeinfashion.co.uk