Karen Collier
Director / Client Manager
After leaving Colchester Institute and gaining a Diploma in Clothing & Distributive Trades in 1987, Karen embarked on a long career in the fashion industry. Karen worked her way up from a local clothing factory as a sample machinist, onto the supplier side and then in buying offices for some well-known fashion brands based in London. She travelled extensively all over Europe and Asia, to carry out factory audits and to approve the brand's production, ensuring high-quality garments were achieved.
In 2009 Karen was made redundant from her Technical Managers role at Jacques Vert, and due to the recession and there being very few Technical Managers roles available within the industry, she decided to work on a freelance basis. Being highly experienced, Karen was inundated with work, so she started to contract her work out to experienced garment technologist who she had worked with within the industry. Then before she knew it, she had fifteen garment technologists working through her and so she decided to set up a fashion recruitment business which was founded in 2010. Karen knows only too well that you don’t go into recruitment unless you love helping people, and to be able to do this within the fashion industry was her dream come true.
Karen keeps fit by walking and cycling. She enjoys living on a smallholding with her husband Richard, alpacas, and pigmy goats.