'Take a Leap of Faith': Gillian Paige on Creativity, Career Pivots and Confidence

Gillian Paige’s (M.F.A. '17) three years in the Design & Production graduate program at UNCSA were intense — marked by long hours, constant deadlines and an ever-evolving workload — but the experience was invaluable.

“I don't think I've ever worked as hard in my life as I did during my three years at UNCSA,” says Paige, “but I was more than prepared for a career in both theatre and fashion after graduating with my M.F.A.” Between hands-on courses and cross-department collaborations, she gained the skills that enabled her to first launch a career in theatre, then totally pivot.  

Now at Nike’s world headquarters as a Senior Technical Designer for Energy RNWY, Paige credits those very skills — from communication to creative problem-solving — as key to her success in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment. “Working with actresses, musicians and opera singers inspired me and gave me an appreciation for the human elements of costume and apparel making,” she explains. “Working directly with these artists helped me to create pieces that were able to enhance their performances. These types of soft skills have become crucial to my career.” 

A creative start in Winston-Salem 

Paige grew up in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where creativity was woven into her childhood. Dance classes, Broadway shows with her grandmother, and inspiration from her art-teacher mother sparked her love for performance and design. “From an early age all the way to my time at UNCSA, my parents and grandparents gave me every opportunity to explore the arts and expand my creativity,” she recalls. 

For college, Paige chose NC State University in Raleigh, focusing on design thinking and the arts. There, she discovered the NC State Theatre costume department and began working part-time as a stitcher in the costume shop. This hands-on experience ignited a passion for garment construction and pattern making, leading her to pursue deeper expertise in the field.  

Discovering passions at UNCSA 

Seeking more than just a broad design education, Paige turned to UNCSA’s School of Design & Production, where she found her true passion, costume technology. She loved the tactile process of building garments, bringing pieces to life with her hands rather than just her pencil. 

After earning her master’s at UNCSA, Paige dove into the theatrical world, working at the renowned Williamstown Theatre Festival in the Berkshires and running a costume shop in Charleston, South Carolina. These roles honed her versatility but also left her craving a more structured schedule and greater stability. Looking for a new path, she returned to Winston-Salem, where she joined Kontoor Brands as a pattern maker for Wrangler Jeans. There, Paige applied her garment-making expertise in a corporate setting, helping to bridge her skills between the worlds of fashion and entertainment.  

"Stranger Things" and the corporate world 

At Wrangler, Paige worked on a unique collaboration with the costume designers for the Netflix hit, “Stranger Things.” As part of the project, she created custom Wrangler jeans for one of the actresses featured in the show’s fourth season — utilizing 3D apparel design software to visualize silhouettes, fabric choices and graphic placements. This digital collaboration made it easy to align visions across teams, marking a thrilling fusion of her technical design, costume construction and fashion skills. 

While the project was a highlight, Paige soon felt the pull for her next chapter. She decided to take a leap and move to Oregon to work for Nike. In September 2024, she was hired as a technical designer and relocated to Portland, sight unseen.  

Embracing new challenges at Nike 

Paige’s role at Nike is unique: she works in partnership with external designers and collaborators to create specialty pieces outside of Nike’s traditional product offerings. “I think my experience in theater and working with production designers and actors — all the cross-functioning elements — was interesting to the hiring manager,” she says. 

Though navigating a new role and learning the systems at Nike presents a challenge, Paige feels confident in her UNCSA technical design training. Between her love for her craft and Nike’s support, she’s able to continue pushing her abilities — she’s now enhancing her skill set with a certification on a 3D pattern-making design software through FIT. “To be able to take the physical construction skills I learned at UNCSA and marry those with innovative tech is incredible,” she says. 

"Take a leap of faith"

When Paige reflects on her time at UNCSA, she credits D&P Dean Michael Kelly for expanding her understanding of the wide array of opportunities available to graduates. “We can do so much with what we’ve learned,” she says. Today, at Nike, she sees endless possibilities. “There are so many learning opportunities, always something new, chances to travel. If I ever want to pivot, there's room to explore different areas — whether it's new product categories or sport-specific technical design.” 

Paige offers this advice to current and future students: “Take every opportunity and don’t discount yourself from an opportunity if you don’t meet all the requirements. Take a leap of faith even if it's not your exact skill set. I never thought that I would be sitting where I am today.” 

by Rebecca Burkeen

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