Jaimie Caron

Jaimie Caron is a Tutor for Portobello Institute’s business of fashion degree programmes and a bridal designer specialising in women’s tailoring. With six years of industry experience, her expertise spans fashion design and construction, garment technology, tech pack development, and production processes.

Industry Experience & Career

• Six years of experience across fashion design, pre-production, and production
• Specialist expertise in design and construction, with a particular focus on women’s tailoring and bridalwear
• Developed collections and designs for both production and custom client bases
• Created patterns and construction methodologies for sewing courses delivered nationwide
• Holds a BA (Hons) in Fashion Design from Limerick School of Art and Design
• Completed further training in areas including silversmithing, CAD design, textile manipulation, and garment construction
• Holds a QQI Level 6 qualification in Training Delivery and Evaluation

Jaimie’s Pathway in Fashion

Creativity has been part of Jaimie’s life from a young age. While still in her teens, she developed her own jewellery brand and turned her interest in design into a business.

Alongside this, a love of sewing developed through her family, eventually leading her to study Fashion Design at Limerick School of Art and Design.

After graduating, Jaimie continued refining her technical abilities and exploring different areas of the industry before finding the specialism that interested her most: bridal and wedding design.

Her education has continued well beyond her degree. Training in silversmithing at Grennan Mill Craft School in Kilkenny, alongside further study in CAD design, textile manipulation, and construction techniques, has helped her develop a broad understanding of the different processes and techniques behind fashion design and production.

“This gave me the tools to be able to enter the industry with full confidence in my own skill sets and an understanding of many facets of the industry itself from a design perspective,” says Jaimie.

Teaching & Guiding Students

Jaimie describes her teaching style as practical and hands-on, combining academic learning with opportunities for students to experience how the fashion industry works in practice.

Students apply what they learn through tech pack development, in-class presentations, industry trips, photoshoots, the annual fashion magazine, and collaborative projects with organisations including Dublin Independent Fashion Week and Enable Ireland stores.

Jaimie says: “It’s all down to balancing the academic information with real-world experiences and case studies to ensure everything they are learning they are able to put into an industry context.”

Portobello’s smaller class sizes allow Jaimie to provide more tailored guidance, both during class and on a one-to-one level.

“All of our students know we’re always available via Teams or email if they have any questions or are feeling unsure,” she adds. “I feel we give each student the support and guidance they need, tailored to the individual.”

Career Opportunities in Fashion

Jaimie believes the breadth of Portobello’s BA (Hons) Fashion Buying & Merchandising and BA (Hons) Fashion Management programmes gives students an understanding of many different sides of the industry.

“Both from the buying and merchandising and the fashion management perspectives, I feel we give our students such a well-rounded education on all facets of the fashion industry it allows them to slot into many different roles within the industry.”

Students explore areas including trend forecasting, sustainability, garment production, design and construction, retail, consumer behaviour, and fashion history, alongside professional skills such as presenting, financial decision-making, and leadership.

This can open the door to roles across fashion buying and merchandising, retail and brand management, fashion marketing, product development, e-commerce, trend research, supply chain, and product planning.

“We have many students who continue on directly after completing the course into paid internships and permanent positions with international and Irish brands such as Primark, River Island, Dunnes Stores, Avoca, and many more,” points out Jaimie.

“Other graduates have gone on to become brand owners in their own rights, creating and curating their own brands and businesses in both accessories and fashion.”

Advice for Future Fashion Students

Jaimie’s advice to anyone considering the business of fashion as a career path is simple: stay curious.

Fashion is continually changing as new technologies, techniques, and trends emerge, meaning professional development does not stop when formal education ends.

“Never stop trying to learn new things,” she says. “Whether that’s through industry documentaries, journals, articles or additional courses, everything is always evolving and we have to evolve with it.”

She also encourages students not to let self-doubt stop them from attempting something new.

Jaimie emphasises: “I think you have to leave the defeatist attitude at the door if you want to succeed. The minute you allow yourself to think, ‘I can’t do that,’ the battle is lost.

“Make a plan or a list to help centre yourself before you begin and then just take it one step at a time.”

Why Portobello Institute

The opportunity to work with smaller class groups and deliver practical, hands-on learning first attracted Jaimie to Portobello Institute, and she describes the business of fashion programmes as “one-of-a-kind”.

She also believes the diversity of industry expertise within the business of fashion teaching team makes the learning experience distinctive.

“We all specialise in different facets of the industry, so we bring different experiences, perspectives, and passions into the programmes,” she explains.

That combination helps students explore the fashion industry from multiple angles while learning directly from tutors with current professional insight.

“When your tutor is excited to teach something, that excitement carries through to the students,” says Jaimie.

“As tutors, we lend our experiences and knowledge to students in any way we can, and all we want is to see our students thrive and flourish.”

Explore Business of Fashion at Portobello Institute

Ready to turn your interest in fashion into a professional career? Discover Portobello Institute’s BA (Hons) Fashion Buying & Merchandising and BA (Hons) Fashion Management programmes and learn from experienced industry professionals like Jaimie.