When it comes to being a freelance fashion designer, you want to make sure you protect yourself and get paid. Luckily, there are some really easy things you can do (without hiring a lawyer) in your invoices and contracts to cover your butt.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer or legal expert. Everything in this post is my opinion, not legal advice. While a lot of tips here are from a lawyer I interviewed on the Fashion Designers Get Paid podcast, I cannot be held legally responsible. Use your best judgment (and listen to that episode for more tips on contracts and protecting yourself as a freelance fashion designer)!
The good news is that you don’t need anything complicated for your contract. If you google “freelance fashion designer contract template,” there are a lot of legal jargon-y options out there. They may look good, but when you’re first getting started, and your projects are likely on the smaller side, these contracts can actually scare clients away!
Yes, more formal contracts for freelance fashion designers can and do become important, especially as the price of the project grows. But to start, there’s a really simple tool you can use to protect yourself when you’re first starting out:
I have cleared it with a lawyer, Andrea Sager (who specializes in legal support for creatives, including fashion designers). She came on my Fashion Designers Get Paid podcast and confirmed that a written email including deliverables, timelines and payment terms is sufficient to act as a contract and protect you. You will want to include a clear CTA (call to action) asking confirmation. It can be as simple as, “Does that sound ok?” and getting a reply of, “Yes.”
You are also specifically asking for their confirmation and agreement at the end of the email and you get their response in writing.
All you need is a “yes” in writing.
(Yep. Remember, I cleared it with a lawyer, Andrea Sager. She confirmed that an email contract like this can hold up in court in the unlikely case you don’t get paid.)
Now, I know you may feel REALLY worried about not getting paid. And maybe you’ve heard horror stories.
But here’s the thing…
In my 10+ years as a freelance fashion designer earning $100k+ a year, I never once got stiffed on a project. There were times I had to fight for payment, but I always collected every dime I earned.
And of the ~800 students inside Freelance Accelerator: from Surviving to Thriving (FAST), I only know of one student who didn’t get paid on a project after using FAST strategies.
The fashion industry has a bad rap for being cutthroat and toxic. While yes, that does exist, most people are not out to scam you.
“Ownership of work transfers to [brand name] once invoice has been paid in full.”
Meaning you own the work until they pay you. Andrea Sager says this can hold up in court, and I’ve personally heard a story about a woman who was able to collect her payment because the brand realized they needed ownership.
No one wants to go to court, and there are slim chances you’ll get scammed on a payment, but this one line could save your butt just in case!
Email contracts are great, but as projects get larger (anything over $1k+ is a good benchmark) is when you may want to think about a formal contract…
You can consult a professional (I like UpCounsel) or pay for a template from a legit source like LegalZoom.
Once I built my freelance career up and was charging more sizable rates ($5,000-$10,000+ projects), I paid to have a contract created. But before that, I just had a simple doc with the basic stuff that I’ve outlined here. It wasn’t perfect, but it would have held up in court (which I never got close to).
There are other tools out there that can help you with contracts, invoices, and proposals all in one spot, like Honeybook. Many of my FAST students use and like Honeybook, and I’ve hired freelancers who use it and had a good experience as the client.
(Psst! Yes, of course, we have all the freelance business templates you need like contracts, proposals, invoices, etc. inside FAST.)
At a certain price point, you do want to get a deposit. 50% is due at the start of the project, 50% due at completion is pretty standard and enough to protect you if anything goes wrong.
If the project is bigger, you can break it into 3 even payments, or for a 5 month project, you can do 5 monthly payments.
Figure out something that feels fair to both you and the client.
Just make sure you don’t start any work until the money comes through!
Don’t overthink it or get hung up on contracts. You don’t need anything super fancy to protect yourself as a freelance fashion designer.
Be clear, specific, and put it in writing (email works great). That will cover you for most situations.
I have an entire podcast dedicated to freelancing in fashion called Fashion Designers Get Paid. I also wrote an entire step-by-step guide, The Ultimate Guide to Being A Freelance Fashion Designer. A lot of the content on my site is dedicated to freelancing, so dig around!
