Attention All Clothes-Horses....
By Mary Chin

If you live for fashion and love to “shop til you drop” meet an SMSU alum that caters to your passion – Amie Shelton Hessemyer.

What’s it like to work for the most recognized name in television home shopping? Ask SMSU alumnus Amie Shelton Hessemyer. She’s the Assistant Buyer for Ladies’ Ready-to-Wear for Home Shopping Network (HSN). As part of her job, Hessemyer collaborates with world-renowned fashion designers and famous celebrities like Emmy award winner soap-diva Susan Lucci – all in a day’s work. If you’ve ever wondered what happens behind the scenes to make television home shopping appear effortless, stay tuned. Hessemyer reports that no day is typical when selling trend-setting fashion on live TV.

What path led an SMSU Retail Merchandising major from Willard, Missouri to one of the largest television retailers in the world? Hessemyer confesses that it was quite by accident. Her fiancé (now husband), Nathan, graduated May 2001, two semesters earlier than Hessemyer’s December 2001 date, and moved to Florida. Hessemyer traveled to Tampa the summer prior to graduation to investigate her future hometown and noted an HSN sign along the way. It was fate when Hessemyer thought to herself, “I’m going to work there one day,” not really knowing anything about HSN.

A research project her final semester led Hessemyer to investigate the Home Shopping Network. Upon moving to Tampa, Hessemyer applied for the position of Merchandise Assistant posted on the HSN website. She was hired and promoted to Assistant Buyer, Ready-to-Wear after only five months. Hessemyer comments, “This is a dream life – a fabulous position with an international retailer. HSN is an extraordinary company to work for and I enjoy all the people here.”

What exactly does an Assistant Buyer’s job entail? Hessemyer says, “By its very nature, anything involving the fashion industry is trendy and invokes glamour. But, don’t let the glamour, designers, and celebrities overshadow the amount of work involved. We recently finished buying clothing for fall 2004 and are now preparing for the ’04 holiday season. We are thinking six months out and looking at apparel with universal appeal.” Hessemyer deals in the contemporary collections area, higher-end clothing, which includes many brands including those of some noted celebrities. Hessemyer reveals, “Susan Lucci [noted bad girl of the soaps] is one of the nicest people you could ever meet. I have learned so much from her – she is high fashion, cutting edge, and a trend-spotter.”

Hessemyer also works with many renowned designers such as Stephen Yearick, known for his eveningwear and gowns worn in the Miss America Pageant, and Sully Bonnelly, a famous Latin American designer.

Fashion buying is synonymous with market trips to New York and Los Angeles, another “glamorous” part of the demanding industry. “Going to market is exciting, but travel weeks can be exhausting because we work such long days,” reveals Hessemyer. “We attend fashion shows, meet with designers and vendors, go to design trend forecasting seminars, textile shows, color shows – all very fast paced.”

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And the payoff? “Seeing my purchases presented on air and then selling-out,” says the alum. “That is immediate gratification because I know when I have a hit. I don’t have to wait until the end of a season as traditional retailers do. That’s one of the primary differences with television retail versus traditional retailing. I can watch it sell!”

Television retail presents more hurdles than traditional retailing. Hessemyer says, “In the television home shopping industry, the public doesn’t realize what goes on behind the scenes to get a product on air – FCC regulations, broadcast requirements, meeting legal guidelines. HSN’s standards are among the highest in the industry.”

Hessemyer meets with the Quality Assurance department twice weekly. Every article is tested to ensure that it meets HSN’s stringent criteria. She continues, “Sizing must run true, sleeve length is measured, fabrics and elastics are tested, seams are inspected, and garments must withstand laundering instructions – no fading or shrinking. We are responsible for so much more than just sales.” Another consideration is that the television consumer is unable to try on the clothes. Selling apparel on-air is different from selling earrings, skincare, or electronics because of the fit consideration. Part of her work also includes making sure the show hosts and designers are well versed on each item.

For Amie Hessemyer, no workday is typical. She explains, “This is live TV twenty-four/seven and we do have some high-maintenance shows. It is crazy, hectic, exciting, and rewarding.”

Her workday begins early and runs long. “I can get a good amount of work crammed in from 7:30 to 8:00 a.m. and then after 5:30. The frenzy belongs to the eight hours in between.” It could be that her clothing appears on a 2:00 a.m. show. Hessemyer admits, “I enjoy staying to see my purchases presented on-air by the designers and show hosts. In the studio we can watch the screen light up that indicates the number of callers on the phone placing orders. When the board switches from green to red, excitement builds because all operators are busy and I know I have a winner. Nothing is more rewarding this!”

For a better view of the company where this SMSU alumnus works or to enjoy shopping HSN online, visit their website at http://www.hsn.com.

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