Looking for a graduate position in fashion is a bit like searching for the perfect bikini: you know it’s out there somewhere, but you suspect that by the time you find it you will have lost all your self-esteem (and found yourself wearing bondage gear with a straight face).

So no, it isn’t easy. But nor is it impossible. As specialist fashion recruiters, we’ve seen a lot of people successfully launch careers in fashion (and even helped some through our XYG Graduate Service). Basically, there are two things you need to do to get a great first job in fashion (apart from being talented and passionate): stand out from the crowd and make yourself a low-risk proposition to employers.

Let’s start with your resume: it needs to be short, sharp, visually appealing and convey who you are. The creative types who work in fashion will no more wade through an 8-page CV than they will forgive an ugly font. Get it down to two pages and make it sexy. Show that you speak the same language as the tribe you’re approaching. Your CV for a job at Roxy needs to be very different from your CV for a job with Ralph Lauren. And don’t skimp on the personal details: talk about the magazines you love, the websites you frequent, the designers you admire, the books that inspire you. You are trying to convey that you ‘get’ their brand – you are one of them.

Secondly, make sure your folio is ready to go in case you get an interview. And keep it fresh. Your folio needs to show that you understand current trends. Generally speaking, you should omit work that is more than two years old unless it is award winning or exceptional and unique (and not just in your mother’s opinion).

Thirdly, GET SOME WORK EXPERIENCE! Even if it involves scrubbing out a skip on Christmas Day (for free), you need some industry experience on your CV. Technical experience in fashion is all well and good, but employers place a high value on practical on-the-job experience (and are attracted to candidates who demonstrate initiative by finding their own work experience placements). A placement will also help you start building your industry network and, if you’re a star, will often lead to a job offer or at the very least a fabulous reference.

Remember, in fashion it’s very much as case of who you know trumping what you know, so you need to get out there knocking on doors and making calls until someone gives you a break. (And if all else fails, skip the hair wash for a few weeks and hang around American Apparel in your bondage bikini looking depressed. You’ll be snapped up in no time.)