This post is a part of our #IamPearl drive, which is a celebration of innovative thinking, originality and exuberance unleashed by Pearlites in diverse fields ranging from fashion, communication, design to management.
Today we are featuring Amaan Ahuja, Founder, Zootox Beauty Products, Batch 2010, School of Fashion Designing @ Pearl Academy.

1. How did you become interested in studying fashion design?

Coming from a family business background of fashion retail, it was somehow a mandate for me to educate myself professionally in the fashion field. Besides, all these years I was growing up, being surrounded by a fashion-conscious family was another factor that made it easier for me to take the decision to pursue fashion business management course at Pearl Academy.

2. What is it about fashion that you love?

One significant factor about fashion that I love, and I’m sure what others may love too is that it goes with you wherever you go that eventually, it starts to define what you are. Another one; A good clothing and styling can make anyone, and everyone looks different and appealing to the world, and most importantly, to yourself – is the power of fashion designing – it can make you feel like a king even when you’re in your trending pyjamas.

3. How important is it for a fashion designer to have a fashion course related degree?

It is as important as a pilot needs a formal training before he flies the aircraft or a doctor needs formal training & license before he cuts open somebody’s, heart. When you call yourself a fashion designer, it is no longer left to creativity alone. Fashion now has become a STUDY because there are definitions and deeper meanings to colours, patterns, cuts, and lots more. Hence, a degree in fashion course for a fashion designer is an absolute logic.

4. How did working with mentors at pearl academy impact your creativity and thought process?

I’ve always said it and yet I shall repeat; the faculty at Pearl Academy is so talented, creative, modern and most importantly, they understand you because they want to know you. They’re not the typical/conventional mentors. They’re outgoing, and they just turn into your friends who guide you through your career path. Being around such beautiful mentors, the first thing that happened to me was that I started to listen and watch things/situation deeply before looking out for solutions. I cannot be specific about how it enhanced my creativity in fashion design, but generically it imbibed the art within me to add a character to everything I do.

5. Three things you learnt at pearl academy

The list is never ending, but three things I’ve imbibed from Pearl are:

a. Always think outside the box
We’ve always been encouraged to think outside the box to perform every task in our lives. It wasn’t just another lecture because I saw my faculty do things differently was that it created a significant impact in my life.

b. Think thrice before your actions
Most of us are lost souls, and we tend to take wrong decisions in haste. We’ve often heard “think twice before you speak” but at Pearl, my HOD Mrs Nandita Abraham told us to “think thrice before your actions”, be it speaking out or reviewing your projects thrice before submitting and primarily for everything you do. What it means is; be thorough and sure of your decisions in life. It was a significant learning fashion business management course, and I cannot thank her and Pearl Academy less for engraving this into my thought process.

c. My career
Even though I joined my family business of fashion retail, I’m still grateful to Pearl Academy’s School of Design and my faculty for giving me that exposure that possibly I couldn’t have had from another university or college.

You can also assist us in this initiative by a) sharing this post with existing students or b) recommending few alumni’s we should feature next or c) by writing us directly on iampearl@pearlacademy.com