Gena Franco

Hello, my name is Gena Franco. I graduated in May of 2021 with my Bachelor's Degree in Apparel, Merchandising, Design & Textiles from Washington State University. Through this program, I was able to gain a deeper understanding of garment design & construction, fashion illustration, and a variety of merchandising skills alongside developing my photography and styling experience in my spare time. 

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Fashion has played an integral part of my life since the moment I could pick up a crayon. I dove into drawing from a very young age, and spent many hours drawing clothes. Since then, I dreamed of bringing my creations to life and officially took up sewing in middle school after I got my first sewing machine. Now that I have completed my education, I could not be more excited to enter the fashion industry as I feel that my wide range of skills could put me truly anywhere.

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To tell you more about my work, over the course of my college career I was able to complete and edit over 20 official photoshoots, ranging from portrait work to fashion editorial. Thanks to WSU, I also had the opportunity each year to participate in our annual fashion show in order to learn the ins and outs of how an event is put on in the industry. By my senior year, I completed a nine-garment collection for spring/summer 2021 by the name of "UTOPIA". This is so far, my proudest accomplishment. I also had the opportunity in August of 2020 to design a WSU-themed outfit for rapper and artist Rico Nasty to wear during her virtual concert for our Student Entertainment Board, which sparked my interest for celebrity styling. 

 

I am incredibly passionate regarding environmental and social issues, which is why I want to use my creativity to make a difference in the fashion world. In fact, my collection was directly inspired by what I envision the future of fashion will have to be if we are to continue living in a world where we get to express ourselves. My goals are to advance the fashion industry into the next era through innovative design and sustainable practices with the hopes that perhaps one day, our love for style won't have to conflict with our personal morals.