Lisa Aiken. Photo: Net-a-porter.

The life of a retail fashion director may sound glamorous: Tickets to major fashion shows, a closet filled with designer brands and posh parties. But the lesser known fact is that behind all the perks, competition is tense and a lot of hard work is involved. “To succeed in this industry, you have to basically eat, sleep and breathe fashion. My friends think that my job is about attending parties and having drinks,” says Lisa Aiken, retail fashion director at Net-a-porter.

“But what a lot of people don’t know is that there’s also a lot of hard work. My normal day during fashion month is around 18 hours — it’s still a business and Net-a-porter is in the retail industry,” adds Aiken. Through our conversation, we discover more about the trends to look out for next season, plus: packing tips for fashion week.

What’s your earliest fashion memory?
Lisa Aiken When I was a kid, my mum made clothes for me and once, I remember vividly, my mum brought me to a fabric store and she let me choose the pattern that I wanted and I chose a black and gold fabric with lots of ruffles. Growing up, my fun time was sketching the clothes that I saw on fashion magazines. I guess now, it says a lot.

You’ve been to a lot of fashion weeks; what are your tips for packing?
Aiken I pack by outfits because I find it easier. Otherwise, I’ll take my entire wardrobe. (Laughs) When you’re packing, I’ll suggest you think about putting the looks together before they go into the luggage. I often wear evening pieces during the day with denim, and pyjamas dressing in the evening. Think about all the different events you'll attend and mix up where you’re wearing what.

Also, think about packing special accessories so you can be a little more playful. For example, Aquazurra has a lot of fun-looking heels; or pair a colour clutch or pouch with white shirt and black pants. Pyjama dressing is also something I’ll suggest you to bring too because it takes up so little space!

Don’t forget jewellery. Hair accessories were everywhere in the fall runways and it’s such a modern way of wearing jewellery. Plus, they won’t overload your suitcase.

What are your bag essentials when you’re out and about during fashion week?
Aiken I try to be quite streamlined with what I carry with me. There’s obviously my personal and work phones and a charger. I also bring a pair of sunglasses; you have to have them during fashion month because sometimes, you just don’t want to have your photos taken. I usually choose one at the start of the day and take it with me.

I’m quite minimal when it comes to makeup and Tom Ford is my favourite compact bronzer. I tend to put in an extra piece of jewellery because you never know when you have a sudden switch of plans. So even if you’re adding an extra piece of cocktail ring or a giant earring, your look becomes different and you’re ready to take on the night.

What are the emerging fashion trends that you’re seeing now?
Aiken It’s quite maximalist and there’s a lot of prints and colours. The most prominent trend has to be the idea of being eclectic and that can mean wearing prints from head to toe or adding a single accessory to update your look. I think that’s one of the key trends and it’s going to continue, particularly when big brands like Gucci are behind it.

The other one is street couture that includes sportswear pieces that somehow fit well with maximalism by balancing each other out. It can be like you’re wearing denim, and then you’re pairing them with an embroided Gucci handbag and finally, a pair of coloured shoes. That juxtaposition is so important in fashion right now.

You’ve worked with other websites when they were just starting out and they’ve now become very well-known brands. What are the things that contribute towards a successful brand?
Aiken I worked with those websites when online retail was in its infancy stage so it was very interesting. It’s crucial to get your point of view across to your users, as well as defining what your product stands for. These two elements are very much the ethos at Net-a-porter.

Here, there’s incredible customer service, and the fact that our website is global, shoppers can purchase what they want anytime and anywhere. These are very important but beyond that, we want our customers to see the best possible edit of fashion products. Since the online retail field moves so quickly, we’re always giving the customers something new and interesting.

“The most prominent trend has to be the idea of being eclectic and that can mean wearing prints from head to toe or adding a single accessory to update your look,” says Lisa Aiken.

How has the online shopping scene changed?
Aiken It’s changed enormously! Net-a-porter started in 2000 and the growth since then has been huge. The website has grown so much to show the users what is on the site; the descriptions, photographs, videos, close-ups. We even style the products in three different ways just to show the shoppers how versatile the pieces are.

The online shopping arena has become very competitive and challenging so we have to step up our game and the technological advances are huge. Forty per cent of our sales come from mobile devices so shoppers have shifted from desktop to handheld device to shop. That means we have to think of how we can incorporate social media and different content platforms into the business.

What’s coming up for Net-a-porter?
Aiken We’ve got some exciting new brands and we’re continuing to establish Net-a-porter as a destination for newness. Prada is newly on board and they’re going to be retailed on our website. Not forgetting the young brands that I’ve found this season; one that I’m very excited about is Attico.

What do you look out for when scouting for these new designers?
Aiken I receive a lot of look books by e-mail but here’s an advice for young brands: I want them to spend more money on the collection than the promotion. I also visit all the showrooms in Paris and Milan. I think Instagram has done the same for fashion like what Youtube has done for music. Youtube is amazing for discovering unknown talents. The same is with Instagram; you sort of go from one profile to the other, and just dig deeper.

For new designers, the crucial thing is to have a strong point of view. If they don’t have a defined aesthetic that I can sum up in three words, or I couldn’t figure out which other collections would be placed next to them on the same sales floor, then I think they’ll have a bit more work to do. Keep it focused and tight, and do something that doesn’t exist anywhere else.

How’s a day like in your life as the retail fashion director?
Aiken No two days are the same so when I’m attending fashion weeks, I’m always running around and catching the different shows, as well as visiting designers’ showrooms. Reviewing orders is also huge part of my work and the buyers send their orders at night for me to review.

What are your top sellers and why are they selling well?
Aiken They are the ones that you’ll expect — such as the likes of Saint Laurent, Gucci, Valentino and they’re all our power designers. One of the great things about Net-a-porter is that you see everything and most of our shoppers shop via our section called What’s New and it’s updated thrice a week.

It’s interesting because when Alessandro Michele went to Gucci, the direction changed very dramatically overnight. Those customers who’ve never looked at Gucci, somehow found out about the brand and they saw the designs that were featured in our What’s Hot and fell in love with the pieces.

What’s your style mantra?
Aiken Always throw in an item that’s unexpected. Whenever you’re dressed up and ready to go, add one other thing that wouldn’t work with the look. For example: You’re wearing colour but you can try matching your outfit with a colour clashing handbag. Or wear a pair of sneakers for a cooler look.