What really goes on behind the scenes? Industry experts share their knowledge.

When designer, Alexander Lewis creates a collection, he doesn't just think about how the clothes will look, but who the girl that will wear them is. So, when cooking up his Asia-meets-Southern-California inspired surfer-girl resort 2014 collection, early No Doubt was on the stereo and Korean food-trucks, a staple of California's roving restaurant scene, were on his mind. 

We spoke to him recently about what else has been inspiring him lately, and how he got started in the fashion game...

What is the most stylish thing a girl can do?
I love girls that wear men's watches, it's really chic and sexy and it's not expected normally. A lot of the times that girls that I see wearing men's watches are not even the kind of girls I would imagine to wear it. 

What's your favourite era in fashion?
The '70s. It must be everybody's favourite era in fashion. I just think that people interacted with fashion then the way that they should, which was all about feeling good about yourself. It was really about bringing the clothing into your life the way you want it to be there, as opposed to letting ti dominate your life. You would wear the clothing, it wouldn't wear you. That was something I liked about the designers from that era – there was like, a positive energy. 

What else from that era do you find inspiring?
I watched a film called  Versailles 73 – it's phenomenal. It's about this competition between a French couturier and American designers in the 70s staged at Versailles. Each country was allowed to pick five designers to compete. The French took it like it was really nothing and the Americans took it extremely seriously and sent over, like 90% black models, which had never been seen before in Paris, so it was super revolutionary.

Who are the most stylish people around right now?
Carey Mulligan always looks really great. She dresses with the times but she's not going beyond where she feels comfortable. She wears things that she obviously likes so she never looks like her stylist sewed her into her dress against her will, and some girls on the red carpet can look like that.

What never goes out of fashion?
Grooming. Taking care of yourself and being presented well never goes out of style. Having a good wash – for men or women.

What made you want to work in fashion?
It's something that's always been around me – my parents both have passions for clothing. It just grew on me. I was reading The Face religiously in my teens and that really got me going.

How did you get started?
I became a member of the Fashion Industry Association at university and that was all about the business side of fashion. We produced fashion shows and so I started to produce a collection because I had somewhere to show it. A business background has been very helpful to launching my label. It's one thing to have a creative side, but if you don't know how to manage it, it just becomes obsolete.

What do you do to get inspired?
I take whatever the initial concept for the collection is, and then create an entire world for the woman I see it on. So I watch as many movies as possible to do with that topic, I look at where the collection would come from, and then the people and architecture of that place, its culture, fashion, music. I play music I'd associate with the collection the whole time I'm designing it.