FORBES . . . Accounting For Entertainment: Making It Happen: Atlanta International Fashion Week

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Atlanta International Fashion Week (AIFW) appeared on the scene in 2007 as a result of Paula Whittle’s efforts. She is the Founder and Director of the annual event that has become a major staple to Atlanta, Georgia’s Arts and Culture community. Paula started her career as a radio personality and quickly moved through the ranks in different areas of the entertainment industry. She has gone from entertainment executive, to fashion mogul, to PR maven, to event extraordinaire, to marketing guru, to mother, teacher, visionary, and community leader and her clientele has included the likes of Sony, BET, VIBE, VH1, Virgin Records, SoSo Def, Rockmond Dunbar, R. Kelly, RHWOA Husband Peter Thomas and many more.

Paula came on the fashion scene initially as a modeling agent. She saw a void in the fashion community in Atlanta and wanted to create a platform for independent designers and independent models to showcase their talent and advance their careers. This is a platform that she sought to have on the same level as New York Fashion Week. Now that AIFW is in its 9^th year, that dream is becoming a reality. She has since been featured in both the Atlanta Tribune magazine and Encore HD magazine for her efforts.

FORBES Accounting & Consulting, Inc. CEO/President, Jeri M. Forbes, CPA CGMA sat down with Paula Whittle to discuss how she makes things happen for Atlanta International Fashion Week when it comes to negotiating deals with potential sponsors and strategic partners.

In the Roger Fisher and William Ury book “Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In”, methods of negotiation are judged fairly by their ability to meet three criteria:

To produce a wise agreement if agreement is possible whereby a wise agreement is one that meets the legitimate interests of each side to the extent possible, resolves conflicting interests fairly, is durable, and takes community interests into account;
To be efficient
To improve or at least not damage the relationship between the parties

We all know that sometimes we encounter difficult people when we are trying to get things done. Some of those people can be quite annoying or disrespectful when it comes to getting what they want. We asked Paula how she is able to separate the people from the problem when she is negotiating and what tips she has for new negotiators who are trying to do this. Her response was that she reminds people about her value. She sometimes has to tell them her story to help them understand where she is coming from, and then she repositions herself to get the conversation back on track and the focus away from them as individuals but on the task at hand. Her tips for new negotiators are that they do the same. They must understand their value and what they are bringing to the table and have the confidence that they are worth whatever it is that they are asking for.

In negotiations, many resort to using positional bargaining tactics where they hold on to a fixed idea of what they want and argue for that and that alone, regardless of any underlying interests. The ego becomes involved and the parties now become fixated on “saving face”. When we asked Paula Whittle about how she handles positional bargaining tactics, she again went back to the concept of knowing the value of the products and services that you’re providing.

When looking to secure a particular property for her events or to get a specific corporate sponsor, Paula states that researching the property or the sponsor are extremely important to her negotiation tactics. She conducts thorough market research and analysis looking at the goals, programs, and interests of the potential sponsor or owner of the property. She then comes up with concepts and ideas and applies those to her strategy to add to her presentation pitch to express to them the benefits of being a part of Atlanta International Fashion Week. She is not locked into a particular position where she is fighting will against will. She instead sells her vision to the other party in the negotiation by explaining everything that they will get out of the deal from working with her. She was proud to say that using that approach usually lands her with everything that she wants 100% of the time.

The last thing that we asked for from Paula was for an example of how she works toward mutual benefit when she’s negotiating a deal. The example that she gave us was when she was working on securing the support of the City of Atlanta in her efforts. She said that she stressed that AIFW would enhance the Arts & Culture community in the city and bring more people to partake in the city’s attractions. She said that she mentioned the array of talented artists that are in located in Atlanta that obtain minimum exposure, and she expressed her desire to put Atlanta on the same level as New York City with their Fashion Week events. She stressed the economic development and tourism boosts that come with AIFW. One such portion is her ShopATL aspect where she does partnerships with different boutiques and venues in the city to encourage the patrons of AIFW to shop at those locations. Paula has also sought to add an educational platform to Atlanta International Fashion Week through the efforts of her nonprofit company’s program, The Fashion Apprentice, which is a mentorship program for young girls in the fashion industry. Pointing out all of these factors gained Paula with not only a proclamation from Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed but also one from Georgia Governor Nathan Deal.