Fashion styling is also marketing.

This is one thing that Gee Jocson, 29, has learned throughout her career as a fashion stylist and entrepreneur. 

Since college, it has been her dream to style and arrange clothes that would create a look that is aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

After graduating with a business administration degree in 2017, Gee immediately started her internship with a known fashion stylist in the country. 

Three months of internship would make her realize that she could also build a fashion styling company of her own. 

“Sabi ko, ‘okay I can do it on my own’ kasi I want to see what’s lacking kasi ‘di ba, they are creative people, they are not business people; I graduated with a business degree so tinitingnan ko ano ‘yung kulang para I can apply it to my [future] team,” she said.  

At 23, she officially became an entrepreneur and a fashion stylist after establishing Gee Jocson Studio. 

Now in its sixth year, her company continues to get bigger and stronger, offering one of the best fashion styling services in the country. 

And the key ingredient to her success seems to be found in her excellent way of fusing the elegance of fashion with the art of business. 

A dream worth fighting for 

Before she pursued the path of fashion styling, Gee had once dreamed of becoming a doctor. 

“When I stepped into high school, parang I wanted to be a doctor because I like playing with kids, so parang sabi ko, what if maging pediatrician ako,” she said. 

When she entered college, Gee took up a pre-medicine course (BS Physical Therapy) to achieve what she thought that time would be her calling in life.

One semester later, she realized that being in the medical field was not really for her. Growing up in a family of business people, she decided to shift to a business course at Enderun Colleges.

It was the time when she took a liking to fashion styling after seeing the works of fashion designers like Rachel Zoe. Later on, she would eventually look for fashion styling opportunities to finally pursue her newfound dream. 

But her decision to be in a creative industry was something that she had to fight for and do on her own given her family background in business. 

“I think the struggle that I had was finding a support system. Money-wise, there’s support but emotionally, the people you think na [would] support you say things like ‘wala ka naman matutunan diyan’ pero kase they don’t know so I can’t fault them for it,” Gee shared.

It was the lack of emotional support that taught her how to celebrate and appreciate even her smallest wins in her career.

“It’s a learning process and also a self-love in a way, parang why would I depend on anyone’s support when I am already here trying to win it,” she added. 

Humble beginnings, rewarding results 

Taking a pause seems to be not in Gee’s vocabulary as she wasted no time building up her image in the fashion industry. 

Right after she founded Gee Jocson Studio, she pulled out all the stops working and collaborating with different brands and clients for months. 

All her efforts would eventually paid off when she was recognized and tapped by Korina Sanchez-Roxas and got her first-ever billboard with Belo on the busy road of EDSA. 

“After that, I like the feeling of a win, but at the same time, I don’t like to stay with that feeling kasi okay I’m done with this, [but] more,” Gee shared.   

With her exceptional marketing skills and artistic vision on top of her extreme thirst to be successful, it was no longer shocking that she got the rarest chance to work with some of the biggest stars in the country such as James Reid, Catriona Gray, Manila Luzon, Katarina Rodriguez, and Alodia Gosiengfiao to name a few.

When asked what’s the secret behind the many successful projects of Gee Jocson Studio, Gee said it’s all about creating good relationships with brands and designers—a skill that she acquired for having a business background.

“Kasi without them, we couldn’t actually do our jobs. Kasi pwede ka naman maging magaling na stylist pero kung hindi ka marunong makipag-usap sa tao, wala kang good relationship with anyone, wala rin,” she said.  

She also added that being versatile has allowed her styling team to cater to all the needs of their clients. 

“Gee Jocson Studio kase is very versatile, we can do every aesthetic with the right amount of research. I think that’s how I stay committed to my team na parang we do the research, we do the studies, we go to different locations para lang ma-feel namin kung paano dadamitan ‘yung client.” 

Fashion advocacies 

Fashion styling is not just about dressing up people, it also entails ethical responsibilities. 

In the fashion industry, fast fashion has become the norm where cheap, trendy clothing copied from catwalk styles or celebrity outfits is produced in a fast, massive manner to meet customer demand. 

Gee said that she has reservations about employing fast fashion due to its environmental and ethical issues. While it makes clothes more accessible to many, it also promotes harmful and irresponsible production and consumption of clothes just to be in line with the current trends. 

She also said that clients must always pay designers with the right compensation.

“We’re all just trying to live, we’re trying to pay our bills. When I was starting, kahit ‘yung buong talent fee ko e binibigay ko sa designers kase I want them to feel na I respect them,” she said.

For Gee, taking advantage of people in the industry is a red flag that we should not tolerate.

The business of fashion, the fashion of business

If there is one advice that Gee could give to all aspiring and practicing stylists, it is to equip themselves with business knowledge. It may sound strange but for her, it will really help someone to survive in an extremely competitive industry like fashion.

​​“[In] fashion styling kasi, you are providing a service e; so it’s really marketing, talking to people, creating connections,” shared Gee. 

She believes that having a business degree is an edge when entering into the world of fashion styling because setting aside creativity, fashion requires an effective marketing tactic when collaborating with brands and presenting clothing to your target audience.

And to be a business-minded person, one must never forget to do research. 

“Na-a-apply ko lahat ng natutunan ko sa [business] marketing na gusto ko makita rin ng other fashion stylist na we are not just dressing up people, [we] also do research and study history,” she said. 

Integrating her marketing background into fashion styling has helped her to never forget some things that most fashion people often brush off—managing taxes, company collaterals, and logistics. 

Gee Jocson is currently styling for a show called Drag Den.