Business Management Grad Working at UK-Based Trend Forecasting Service and Magazine
Winnipeg, Manitoba native Samantha Duha grew up in the middle of Canada, where she worked as an assistant buyer for a nationwide women’s contemporary clothing company after high school. "With little to no experience in fashion, I was thrown into a job that I was no where near qualified for, but relied on my profound passion for the industry in hopes that I would find direction," she says. "After two years with the company, I realized there was a cap on my potential of success if I continued to neglect a more concrete education in the field. After some extensive research, I was able to conclude that FIDM had the education, culture, and opportunities that I was looking for. The entrepreneurial environment at FIDM is transcendent and inspirational, with a student body filled with visionaries and dreamers." We recently caught up with Samantha, who is now working for Colour Hive, a U.K.-based creative agency and trend forecasting company, to learn more about what she's doing now.
What was your FIDM major? My first degree was my AA in Merchandise Marketing in 2013, and then I continued on to get my Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management in 2015.
Tell us about your new role at Colour Hive. Colour Hive/MIX Magazine was a very recent acquisition by the Duha Group. DG is a Winnipeg-based, family-owned third generation business operating since 1949. Today, they are in the business of the industry of color, including: trend forecasting, graphic design, color consultancy, color palette development, and the manufacturing of innovative printed color collateral for the global paint, automotive, fashion, and cosmetic markets. I myself belong to the fourth generation of the Duha Group, and was thrilled to learn that the management team had extended the business into trend forecasting.
At FIDM, I was given the tools to learn how to detect, decipher, and integrate micro and macro trends. In my B.S. Program, I used these skills to apply it to real-life material when preparing company-based case studies and reports. This foundation enabled me to realize my interest and talent in such an area, and when Colour Hive/MIX Magazine was acquired, I quickly packed my bags and moved back to base camp (Winnipeg) where I will spend my time preparing and enhancing my education in color science and the industry before moving to the headquarters in London.
What is your title/day-to-day responsibilities? My current title is Colour Hive Development. Since Colour Hive operates out of the UK, their North American presence is not quite as significant as their brand in the European market. My job includes both the development of the company and MIX Magazine into the North American market. I’m also integrating Colour Hive into the Duha Group network and services, which includes Salesforce. I am also involved with our Trend Academy program, which is a major part of our business model that centers around the education of trend forecasting, trend analyzation, colour science, and colour emotion. This is a multi-faceted program, that is ran at design conventions, specialized conferences for Colour Professionals, as well as certified courses at select universities. I am currently working on a bi-annual course that will be offered through our website (AIA & IDCEC certified) which will teach the current trends of the year and season we are operating in. The purpose of this is so that students and professionals have a concrete understanding and validation of the present state we are in, and apply it to their current projects, whilst using it as a benchmark to understand the direction we are headed.
I am also working on a worldwide Millennial Panel. This will consist of 20 millennial-aged professionals across the globe who will discuss current products and services and incoming trends, and their findings will be published in MIX Magazine. Since there is a major disconnect between the modern workforce and incoming millennials, we will use this opportunity for our clients so that they can test their new products and goals directly with the generation they are attempting to target.
What are your ultimate career goals? My ultimate career goal is to expand Colour Hive to have representation in almost every region of the world (North America/South America/Europe/Middle East/Africa/Asia Pacific/Pacific Islands). Utilizing the current offices already based in these regions via the Duha Group Partners, we hope to have this goal in place within the next five years. Once a team is established in each region, we will be able to tailor the forecasted trends to each country and expand our clientele base by working with the customers specifically in the regions. Finally, I’d like for the Colour Hive Trend Academy to grow and develop overtime to be implemented into each future designer’s education. Whether they are reached through universities or conferences, the information attained would be in invaluable to their professional lives. Ultimately, the Trend Academy’s goal is to help create the designer’s toolbox for trend forecasting and analyzation.
Categories: Business Management
