Case studies: Colour technologist: Carla

Carla has a degree in product development for fashion. After a brief stint in textile testing, she moved into the field of colour technology. She is currently a fabric and colour technologist for Sainsbury’s.

Some time after graduating I posted my CV online with recruitment agencies. An agency contacted me about a job in textile testing. I went to a first, then a second interview and was then offered a position as a technician, which I accepted. It took six months from graduating to finding this full-time position at Intertek.

With this company I gained two years of practical fabric testing experience and a further year working as a representative within retailers. I left this role to pursue a buying career at Next, which I applied for through the graduate scheme online. This didn’t work out for me so I sent my CV to the contacts I met during my role as an Intertek representative. One of the contacts knew of a vacancy and recommended me. I attended an interview and was offered the position. This brings me to my current role.
 
Colour technology is just a part of my role; I didn’t have much experience in this field but my fabric knowledge is what secured the position. I think my subject of study has been relevant to all my job roles but it’s my practical fabric testing experience which secured my current job role as a colour technologist.

A typical day would start by arriving at my desk to review my diary for the day and read emails. I would then check if the design teams had submitted any new colour palettes to our library. I initiate these colours into the computer system for development and these will become mastered by an external company.

Once colours have been mastered, I need to approve them. There are ongoing investigations into developing shades for specific products and assessing products submitted from production which may or may not meet our standards. Analysis of data and cost implications will also be carried out to help understand how we can improve the system and get it to work more efficiently.

I am relatively new to the company, as is the colour technology system, therefore my role and the system will develop together. In the future I aim to provide colour training workshops for new employees and become further experienced with colour and production of colour. I want to become a driving force in helping Sainsbury’s improve product quality, reduce their costs and lead times and change the way the supply base and the head office teams work with colour.
 
I most enjoy helping others and using my technical knowledge to solve problems. I also love learning something new everyday. The most challenging part of my job is time management, unexpected issues crop up at any time and you have to keep priorities in order. But, I love the buzzing atmosphere and the variety of products this industry offers.
 
My advice to any students or graduates would be to keep an open mind when going into any career and apply for things you might not have considered before. I have found you may not enjoy the job you plan for and end up loving a job you didn’t realise existed.