Apparel Design Career Guide: Roles, Salary 2026 & Future Scope

Making a career in Apparel Design can be considered one of the best career decisions that students can make in their lives. Candidates get an opportunity to showcase their artistic skills and talent and create various designer clothes from scratch, thereby gaining relevant skills, experience, and knowledge required to bag a high-paying job in this field.

The fashion Industry has been witnessing immense growth over the years as this field offers candidates a chance to express their emotions and creativity through designing versatile clothes from start to finish. This eventually helps them get exposure to this dynamic field of innovations and rise in their careers.

Aspiring candidates can study Apparel Design courses at various levels, such as UG, PG, Diploma, Doctorate, and Certification. Some popular Apparel Design colleges offering great placement opportunities include Banaras Hindu University, Guru Nanak Dev University, Bhagini Nivedita College - DU, MIT WPU - School of Design, etc.

Some of the widely opted job profiles by the Apparel Design students include Fashion Designer, Accessories Designer, Stylist, Trend Forecaster, Fashion Coordinator, Merchandiser, etc. Top Recruiters in this field include Zara, H & M, Park Avenue, Levi's, Louis Philippe, Allen Solly, etc. The average salary of an Apparel Designer is INR 5.9 LPA in India.

Interested Candidates may continue reading further to know more about the career scope in Apparel Design.

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Apparel Design Career Scope: Popular Job Profiles

With the rise of the fashion industry and technology over the past decade, various job opportunities have emerged that allow candidates to complete this course and opt for the desired job roles according to their comfort and interests. Here are a few of the job profiles that the majority of Apparel Design students aim for.

Entry-Level Apparel Design Jobs

Here are some popular entry level Apparel Design jobs and salary options for new graduates and freshers in India:

Job profiles	Job Description	Average Salary
Assistant Designers	They support and assist Senior Designers in various tasks throughout the pre- and post-production of a design.	INR 4 LPA
Junior Design Executives	Their job is to modify and revise existing designs while meeting clients' expectations and improving the quality and functionality of the product.	INR 2.9 LPA
Junior Design Consultants	They assist Senior Designers in the research process, complete basic Design tasks, provide client communication facilities, etc.	INR 4.1 LPA

Mid-Level Apparel Design Jobs

Here are some mid-level popular Apparel Design jobs and salary options for professionals who have certain work experience in the industry:

Job Profiles	Job Description	Average Salary
Fashion Designers	Involved in designing and maintaining the clothing line of an apparel brand. They create, illustrate designs and patterns, estimate the cost of manufacturing, and maintain their associated brands' clothing lines.	INR 5 LPA
Trends Forecasters	The fashion industry is ever-changing. Every day, a new trend is set. Therefore, as fashion forecasters, they are required to research and analyze the worldwide fashion industry. The fashion forecasters work with fashion designers to identify and create apparel designs that will set the trends in the market.	INR 8 LPA
Apparel Quality Controllers	The quality controllers are involved in setting standards for the fabric to differentiate original and quality products from faux material.	INR 6 LPA
Stylists	Responsible for the styling of the clothes and the designs in such a way that they best suit the requirements and desires of the customer.	INR 8.4 LPA

Senior-Level Apparel Design Jobs

Here are some senior-level popular Apparel Design jobs and salary options for professionals who have gained relevant, good years of experience, say 5-10 years in the industry:

Job Profiles	Job Description	Average Salary
Merchandise Specialists	Merchandises are the best ways to develop a brand value and create an image in the minds of the public. Hence, these are the specialists who handle the production of merchandise and help in selling them to their target audiences.	INR 12.5 LPA
Senior Designers	They are leaders who are responsible for developing and executing design solutions and leading design projects from pre- to post-production.	INR 10.9 LPA
Design Directors	They lead and guide design teams to ensure that the project aligns with their brand identity and meets high-creative standards.	INR 24 LPA

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Apparel Design Scope in India: Jobs, Salary, and Further Education

Aspiring Candidates who wish to pursue apparel designing courses will experience a wide range of benefits, as this industry offers lucrative salaries and incentives. This sector is rapidly evolving and will heavily contribute to the future world of urbanization.

From a Fresher graduate to an experienced individual, everyone is allowed to learn and explore the diversity of this field, which eventually helps them land a good placement opportunity and make a career in the fashion industry. This allows them to understand their goals and interests, make plans, and achieve them to boost their careers.

Apparel Design Career Scope: Popular Courses

Given below are the various types of Apparel Design courses available in India, which the aspiring candidates can consider to pursue to make a career in the field of apparel design:

Types of Apparel Design Courses
Diploma in Apparel Design	BSc Apparel Design
UG Diploma in Apparel Design	MDes in Apparel Design
B.Voc in Apparel Design	M.Voc in Apparel Design
BDes in Apparel Design	MA in Apparel Design
BA in Apparel Design	MSc Apparel Design

Links useful for the Fashion and Apparel Design Jobs:

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Apparel Design Career Scope: Top Recruiters

Given below are some of the top Indian and International recruiters for the Apparel Design aspirants. 

Apparel Design Top Recruiters
Allen Solly	Van Heusen	Levis
Park Avenue	H & M	Uniqlo
Marks and Spencer	Zara	Louis Phillipe
Balenciaga	Louis Vuitton	Dolce Gabbana

Links useful for Apparel Design jobs:

Choosing Design as a career

Best Apparel Design Colleges for Placements (in India)

Both Government and Private Apparel Design colleges in India offer this course with top-class faculty, campus life, and placements. Students considering pursuing this course and making a career in this field can select from a wide range of universities.

Given below are some of the top universities and their average packages (in INR), which the aspiring candidates can refer to:

Top Apparel Design Colleges	Average Package Offered
Banaras Hindu University Placements	INR 8 - 9 LPA
Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology Placements	INR 6.5 LPA
Guru Nanak Dev University Placements	INR 6.35 LPA
Pimpri Chinchwad University (PCU) Placements	INR 6.05 LPA
Garden City University Placements	INR 3.6 - 6 LPA
Bhagini Nivedita College DU Placements	INR 5.5 LPA
School of Design, MIT WPU Placements	INR 5.5 LPA
SD College Chandigarh Placements	INR 5.08 LPA
KCT Coimbatore Placements	INR 5 LPA
HITS Placements	INR 4.5 LPA

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How to become a Fashion Designer

Following are the most popular Apparel Design Colleges in India. Learn more about these Apparel Design colleges (Courses, Reviews, Answers & more) by downloading the Brochure.

Following are the top exams for Apparel Design. Students interested in pursuing a career on Apparel Design, generally take these important exams.You can also download the exam guide to get more insights.

Following are the most popular Apparel Design courses, based on alumni reviews. Explore these reviews to choose the best course in Apparel Design.

Following are the most popular Apparel Design UG Courses . You can explore the top Colleges offering these UG Courses by clicking the links below.

Following are the most popular Apparel Design PG Courses . You can explore the top Colleges offering these PG Courses by clicking the links below.