Hometown: Grand Rapids, Michigan
Major and class standing: Apparel and Textile Design, Senior
Where you interned: Voz, New York City, New York

What was your internship title and role/responsibilities?
The internship title I held was the Sales and Marketing Intern position where I assisted in generating sales and supporting the sales floor by providing an excellent customer experience. I assisted in the visual merchandising of the store and off-site duties like running to the post office or grabbing coffee for a meeting. I completed daily sales floor tasks and monthly projects that dealt with research in terms of the company and partnerships to expand and generate profit.

How did you obtain your internship? What resources did you utilize to secure your internship?
I have had previous sales experience working in Hollister and Old Navy. I also obtained a fashion relations position for an on-campus fashion magazine.

What did your daily routine include?
I would arrive at the store at about 11 am and complete opening tasks. The tasks included the following: wiping windows, refilling water, playing music, burning sage, putting away putbacks, and making sure the sales floor was ready for customers to enter. After completing the opening tasks, I would continue to work on a research project assigned to me or run out of the store to complete tasks like going to the Apple store, running to Trader Joe’s to get flowers, running to get coffee for other employees, running to the post office, etc. I would also complete any sales floor responsibilities like steaming and putting away new inventory, completing and delivering commerce orders, etc. Each day was different than before depending on which manager was there and what tasks had priority.

Your favorite experience from the internship?
My favorite experience from the internship was learning all of the details and hard work that goes into owning a small business or fashion brand. There were so many aspects to it that I overlooked.

What was your least favorite part of the internship?
My least favorite part of the internship was being expected to complete tasks at 120% being an unpaid intern. I was often micromanaged by the head designer and she came in a month into my internship, so my expectations were changed. The entire internship in itself wasn’t something I was looking forward to going to New York to do. Being that I am a fashion designer, I wanted to design and/ or assist in that process. Because the fashion brand was smaller, there weren’t many networking connections made either.

What skills did you learn and/or build upon during your internship?
I learned skills on how to run a fashion business and the emphasis here is on smaller business and their visual merchandising. I learned the importance of ethos in a brand and how to attract customers and generate sales. I also learned various research approaches to generate customer sales.

What did you learn about the industry or your career path as a result of the internship? What are your future plans?
I learned that within the fashion industry, you have to learn to accommodate different managerial styles. You also have to learn to communicate with your supervisors about what’s working for you and what could be improved to better improve your work relationship. My future career plans are still to become a fashion designer.