Charles Favors

Combining Fashion And Merchandising

Charles Favors had his sights on making an impact in the fashion industry back in 1984 while attending Louisiana State University. With this goal in mind, he decided to continue his studies at FIDM, going on to graduate with degrees in Fashion Design and Textile Design.

While at FIDM, Charles began to do freelance textile and fashion design work. In 1992, Charles traveled to the heart of the fashion world, Paris, to study with François Lesage, one of the top textile designers in Europe.

Charles worked briefly as a salesperson for Strouds but it wasn't long before he was moving up and honing his skills in product development as visual merchandiser. With his career on a constant upsweep, Charles eventually became an in-house textile designer for Reflections bed linens. Always moving ahead, Charles next added Robinson's-May to his company credits list, where he created displays as a visual designer.

Charles made a leap from linens to laces, stepping up on the next rung of his career ladder to his current company Reebok. As a visual specialist for Reebok, Charles is in charge of the Reebok shoe displays in stores such as Just 4 Feet and Wharehouse Shoe Sale. Charles is constantly challenged to keep the changing displays fresh and cutting-edge. He loves that his job takes him all over the country to a variety of retail stores.

Charles also travels to events like the Revlon Walk where Reebok sets up booths. It is Charles' job to train the consultants in the booths to make sure they can answer questions asked by people who visit their booth. Charles also oversees the entire look of Reebok at the events and always makes sure that Reebok banners are placed in high traffic areas.

Charles is thankful to the instructors at FIDM for challenging him to always step up to the next level, advice that he has definitely applied in his career. He appreciates the vigorous classes he had at FIDM and credits them for his determination to succeed.

Charles loved the strong sense of camaraderie at FIDM and felt that he could always turn to classmates for help. His advice to people coming up in the fashion industry is to find what you love to do and do it with passion.

Click on the circles to the left to view Reebok displays done by Charles.