Events: Prepare and Plan for Failure

During my time at Colosoul I have been privileged to be able to see and help out at three events. I haven't played a major part in these events, but I am still happy to say quite confidently that I have learnt a lot! I have seen how what sort of preparation goes into events, how they can go right, and of course, like it or not, how they can go wrong. I remember being told in a PR lecture to "plan as if everything would go wrong, because it probably will". Quite startled at this melancholy statement during the lecture, I can actually agree that it is the best advice to give for an event. Because there is nothing like not having a back-up plan in the middle of the night when something does go wrong! At all three events that I've helped out at, at least one thing has gone wrong at each. At least five things went wrong at one! But that's not to say it was poorly organised, just the slightest things had obviously not been considered, or forgotten during the lengthy preparation process. Things that I am lucky to remember for any events I should one day organise.

Friday night I helped out at the latest event by Colosoul. It was a fashion event run at City Farm for the website launch of Colosoul's fashion agency, FoxFeet. It turned out to be a great event, with six runway shows throughout the night, as well as market stalls, and great local bands playing sets in between the runway shows. I am so proud of the girl that organised it, because looking back, the night was so full on and entertaining, she would have just had so much to consider.

When thinking back to my responsibilities for the night, the list is quite long! I didn't have one set job, but was bouncing about here and there filling gaps that were needed throughout the night. I liked it this way. I kept busy and the night went quicker. It was also practically 4 degrees, and the event was entirely outside! I shouldn't be complaining though, because the poor models had to do a swimwear show! My jobs included: unloading car loads of stuff for the night and setting it up (my poor neck is still paying for this two days later), dressing models, minding a stall, driving to get $40 worth of ice, chasing down a spare run sheet, welcoming guests, driving to BP to get extra change, getting ten pizzas at Dominos for the models and staff, taping the soles of shoes, taping models boobs in! Not to mention packing away the remnants of the night at 12.30! I'm pleased to say that my efforts were little but many, and didn't go by unnoticed! Both my supervisor and the Colosoul director noticed my hard work and both made a note of it and thanked me the next day. I was stoked, to say the least.

Helping at events have really been my most valuable experience at Colosoul. While I'm not entirely sure if events are the path I want to take when I graduate, at least I can go into the area with some knowledge of how they work and things to remember. I know I can definitely take the idea to plan for failure... as morbid as that sounds! Anyway, here are a few snaps I managed to take from the night!

Bye for now,

Holly

Dreaming big

Due to my placement opportunity at Shine Communications I have had an incredible introduction into the basis of public relations and even after only completing 13 days of my placement I, now have a better understanding of where I see myself in the world of PR. Shine Communications is a consultancy based public relations practice, so there’s no one subject to focus on. You don’t know each client inside and out because the work load may only be seasonal or you may only have little projects to work on for them throughout the year. I have found that many of the clients use us as a plug-in resource. Basically when they are understaffed or have projects well beyond their means, in the little time they have to complete it, they turn to Shine to assist.

As interesting as consultancy is, it simply is just not for me – I want to know a company inside and out. The constant juggling of clients and necessity to learn at least a small portion of what the company is about when taking on someone new (which is a lot more often than you may think) is just not where I see myself in the not so far away future. This incredible experience has really confirmed for me my desire to be a part of in-house public relations practice. Which leads me to my next topic of debate - the field of business I see myself in.

Shines main clients consist of aged care organisations, health organisations, mining companies and not-for-profit organisations, all of which carry out admirable roles within society and are great business sectors to practice public relations - it's a great feeling knowing the work you are doing is for a good cause. 

I have a part time job at Silver Chain Nursing Association, so I am very much accustom to the kind of work Shine are involved with and I do love the feeling I get knowing I'm indirectly helping those in need; whether that be at Shine or at Silver Chain. Due to the love I encompass for my job at Silver Chain and the comfort in knowing I can easily move around the organisation, or any health or not-for-profit organisation for that matter due to my experience, I always thought I would take out a professional career in this area. However, after being given the opportunity to practice my chosen career in this area of work, I think I am after a business sector with a bit more flare and up-and-go when it comes to public relations. Something that is forever changing and will keep me on my toes. 

Ever since I can remember I have had a massive and what some would say (mainly my mum) a 'ridiculous' obsession with fashion - clothes, accessories, shoes, you name it... I love it! Which, along side my internship at Shine, has helped me discover where I would ultimately like to end up in the world of PR - Fashion!

I could not think of anything better than being able to work for an in-house fashion company. Co-ordinating the big fashion events, writing stories on the latest trends and brands and maybe even getting to meet some of the big fashion icons! My ultimate dream would be to work for Vogue fashion magazine in London where I think partaking in all of what I just mentioned (plus some) would become a very exciting reality.

I know what you're thinking - how could she go from wanting to undertake PR in something so worthwhile to then going the total opposite direction and entering the 'materialistic' world of fashion? And believe me, my change of mind baffles me too and I'm not saying that I have lost total interest in working for a not-for-profit organisation but through this incredible work experience at Shine, I've realised that I don't have to just 'settle' in a job because I think it's all I can get or it's an 'easy' choice. I have realised that it is possible to work in whatever field I desire. I am a firm believer in dreaming big and doing whatever you can to achieve that dream. After-all if you don't dream, you don't aim higher and if you don't aim higher you never give yourself the chance to do and be better.

I know I'm not going to end up at Vogue right away, I'm going to have to really work to get there and it will take me YEARS! But, I'm going to do whatever I can NOW, while I still have the zest for life and the desire to make my goals a reality. I'm going to work my way up the PR in fashion ladder and prove that I can meet the expectations I have put on myself, because I know if I don't push myself and I don't at least endeavour to reach my goals, I'll be 40 and kicking myself for not giving it a go. 

Who knows where I'll end up but right now...in my head, the future's looking pretty good.

Life after my PR Placement...

So it has been a week since I finished my PR placement in Melbourne and I am ready to finish my degree so i can enter the workforce! I learnt a lot at my placement and met some really valuable contacts that I am definitely going to keep in touch with over the next few months. Now that I have seen what it will be like once working in the PR industry, there are a few measures that I am going to take before seeking a job;

• Updating my resume with my placement details. 
• Collect and store any PR coverage that I helped to gain while at the placement e.g. Magazine clippings, press releases, PR documents etc.   
• Do a short graphics design course - i think this will be very useful on the job. 
• Keep in contact with my supervisor. 
• Pass all my remaining units so I can join the workforce!

I feel very lucky to have been able to go to Melbourne to complete my placement in a big organisation like The Just Group and now know that this is the kind of company that I want to find a job with. I hope everyone else doing the PR Placement unit enjoys the experience and learns as much as I did. I look forward to reading everyones experiences!

Lessons learnt so far...

After almost completing my placement there are a couple of lessons that I have learnt about working in the fashion PR/Marketing industry.

The communication doesn't stop - Everyone I work with has a work phone that they have with them all the time constantly checking emails, answering phone calls and updating social media platforms.

You must proof read everything - I have been triple checking every email that I write not only for the sake of spelling and grammar errors but to ensure that the content is written in a professional manner and has clarity.

Time management is crucial - I have found that time management skills are crucial in this industry and prioritising tasks is so important.

Using initiative when in doubt - In situations where i have been in doubt, using my initiative has proven to be the best option and has worked out well for me so far.

Working hard leads to good things – A lot of the ladies I work with have done a lot of overseas travel with the company and when I ask them how they got to that point they all say 'a lot of early starts and late nights!'

Of course I could write a huge list of exactly everything I have learnt but I feel as though these points are the most important in my journey so far. I have had an amazing time at my placement and made a lot of friends. I am not looking forward to having my last day tomorrow!

Benefits of Internal PR

Benefits of Internal PR

I am now well into my third week of my placement at the Just Group head office and have learnt so many skills that I know will be invaluable once I secure my first PR job. One of the projects I am currently working on is an internal PR document that will be distributed to staff at conferences that will be held all over the country. Each state has their own conference where head office gets a chance to communicate the goals and values of the brand, the direction that will be taken for the next season and get feedback from staff about how things are going in stores. So I am now learning how valuable internal PR is in keeping the brand aligned with its core values and goals. When the head office is so far from some of the stores it can be hard to maintain these aspects and assure that team members are aware of the direction that the brand is taking. So the conference is a great way to keep everyone up to date on the latest happenings of the brand.

The document I am producing is a guide for the staff in store that focuses on trends for next season, inspiration for the upcoming summer collections, direction for the brand and any other message that head office would like to express to the staff. This document helps the girls to understand what is going on at head office and why certain choices have been made. So I have put together a few reasons as to why internal PR is so important.

Benefits

• Internal PR helps to drive the long term and short term goals of the organisation.
• This process ensures that communication objectives are clear and are shared all over the organisation contributing to transperancy.
• Internal PR can help motivate staff. If all staff are communicated with regularly on matters in the company then they feel valued and like their opinion is considered, therefore improving the morale.
• This document can help to ensure that objectives are acheived in unison all over the organisation.
• Internal PR helps dramatically with knowledge sharing.

With all these aspects in mind it makes it alot easier to produce an internal PR document that will add value to the existing internal PR system. I have made a start to the document and everyone seems impressed with my success so far. I look forward to completing the document and hopefully seeing how it will be implemented with staff.

My first day in the fast paced fashion world....

I have just completed the first week of my placement at The Just Group in Melbourne and so far it has been such a great experience! I am working alongside the marketing manager for both Portmans and Dotti.

On my first day I was asked to put together an inspirational pin-up board for some upcoming spring/summer 2012 collections. The purpose of the board is to help everyone working on the campagin to understand the message and image of the new collections. It also helps them to understand the reasoning behind the clothing, promotions and merchandising. This was alot of fun, as I spent the day browsing through blogs, websites, Tumblr, Pinterest and Facebook searching for images to suit the campaign.

On my second day I was given a couple of research tasks. My job was to research our competitors to understand how they operate online and on social media platforms. Another task I was given was to research media outlets in New Zealand to get a better understanding of the media coverage that fashion receives. I have also been asked to do some research on the Mercedes Benz Fashion Festival in Sydney.

I have been super busy completing all my tasks and am thoroughly enjoying my time here at The Just Group in Melbourne!

Fashion Festival Week

Last week was extremely busy as the Fashion Icon High Tea finally arrived on Friday 23rd September, so there has been a lot to do in the Networking WA office over the past two weeks. The event was a great success, in preparation, the week prior to the event was a little stressful with a few small dilemmas though nothing that jeopardised the event in the end thankfully.

Receiving all the products and vouchers from companies around Perth for the gift bags and then preparing over 250 bags was very time consuming, then transporting all the bags and decorations to the venue became an eventful few hours!
When it came to decorating the venue we used decorations from Empire furniture which consisted of large black vintage looking bird cages filled with flowers, and tall crystal vases with sand and candles in them. The room was the grand ballroom at Pan Pacific looking out over the swan river set a magnificent atmosphere; the tables in which the guests were seated didn’t have much decoration as it was a high tea so there was beautiful food stands covering the tables with a range of gourmet sweet and savoury foods.

The event ran very smoothly guests arriving at 3-3.30 with a glass of champagne on arrival and then being seated at 3.30 with a performance of Sara MacLiver to commence the afternoon, the five Icons; Liz Davenport, Maurice Meade, Liz Carberry, Nannette Carnachan and Lisa Scaffidi were all very intriguing to listen to and hear about their success stories as well as the times where it become hard for their business.

The food was delicious, a selections of cakes, slices, sandwiches, quiches and many other treats as well as tea, coffee and champagne throughout the afternoon. There was a photographer set up on one side of the room taking photos of all the guests wearing Atlas South Pearls for a bit of fun, as Atlas South Pearls were a major sponsor of the event.

We were luckier enough to be able to receive so many vouchers and prizes for the raffle which was great as so many of the guests were able to win prizes, there was also a $10,000 pearl necklace up for a prize which one very lucky lady got to walk away with. Overall Networking WA were very happy with how the afternoon went.

The other two Perth Fashion Festival events that I got to attend with the other staff at Networking WA was the Myer Luncheon that was at the convention Centre on the 21st September and the Wheels and Dollbaby 25th anniversary on the 27th of September at His Majesty’s Theatre which was fantastic to watch.
I’ve been very lucky to have the opportunity to go to these events and have made so many connections that I will be able to use once I have finished my degree, its great being able to get this hands on experience especially in a great company like Networking WA.

Tess Edwards
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Job Opportunity

Hello Everyone,

Hope everyone is travelling along well at their placements.

The company I’m completing my placement with recently gave me a job opportunity and last Wednesday Rebecca Cole director of Networking WA took me out to lunch to discuss the particular roles I would be suited to in the organisation.

Firstly I’m going to discuss some of the issues presented throughout the company, and show how my new position will influence these issues becoming minimised. The structure of staff is a significant issue in the company; staff take up responsibilities and duties that are not specified in their role as there is always so much to do in the organisation, though this causes tasks to become hard to manage or forgotten about due to staff having so much on their plate their priorities become mixed up and mismanaged. The other major issue is time management, when aspects of the events or other tasks needing to be completed are left to last minute it causes stress to the staff and pressure to rush duties that need more time spent on them, this issue happens a lot in regards to events everyone in the office will be working so hard on one event that others are left to last minute and then rushed and not organised as best they should be.

As Rebecca and I both notice these issues she believed I would do a great job as project manager of the company and personal assistant to her as she believes that I am very organised and “bossy” when it comes to things needing to be done. Therefore I would be responsible for delegation of tasks to employees, making sure employees completed the tasks on time and followed up if necessary, this way things wont have been forgotten about or left to last minute and priorities will be in correct order as I will stay on top of everything. As well as this role I will also assist in the marketing and PR of events that the company organises.

In regards to the personal assistant role, I will assist Rebecca with her time management and help with correspondence to clients and customers with regards to email, telephone and meetings.

I am really looking forward to this position at the company; I will be working three days a week while finishing my uni degree.

I am also looking forward to the Fashion Icon High Tea that Networking WA is organising and the fashion festival opening launch luncheon (that Rebecca has kindly purchased a ticket for me) both events held next week during the fashion festival, both events are going to be so much fun and I look forward to sharing them with you all soon.

Tess Edwards

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Manikinn Me

Hi Everyone,

I apologise, this is such a late blog, time flies so quickly and so many times I've reminded myself, then the next assignment takes over! Anyway here I am....

My names Jessica Geach and I am working at a high end fashion label, Manikinn. Manikinn is owned by a beautiful young woman, Shereen Huber which other than being hectic most days, she creates such a relaxed and friendly working environment which I thoroughly enjoy and is the reason why I've continued to working for her.

Manikinn is a woman's commerical online fashion label which is distributed, sold and recognised internationally, even good friend Mel B is a huge supporter seen sporting some of the classic Manikinn tees and tanks. Established in Sydney 2 years ago, the start of the year brought Shereen and her husband Jamie relocating back to Perth where they both originally grew up.

I began working at Manikinn last semester for 2 months which was when they first offered placements for an intership were I joined 7 other girls. We were warmly welcomed and given a particular day and job description to fulfil throughout our placement, though even with individual job titles, we all merged in and out of each others depending on the duties of the day.

My job description was the social media co-ordinator which looked into their website; writing weekly blogs either about Manikinn or the latest fashion goss. I also was producing Manikinn TV where I would head on to the street to interview people shopping along Beaufort st and ask questions about their fashion styles or the possibility of styling them within the shop, in Manikinn clothing.

There was also the subject of facebook/ twitter updates/ posts and events to create and invite people to. As I said before we weren't limited only to our area's were I also blended into other aspects which included working on PR/ Marketing plans and brainstorms into further promotion and upcoming event management.

At present Manikinn is relocating which is a bit hectic, though will be great being closer to where I live and also in a more open and available location. This time around I am working closer with the PR/ media liaison within Manikinn's media representation, looking more indepth to the out sourcing and promotion of Manikinn outside of the online arena. This also looks into further involvement into upcoming and future events which I am very excited about.

I started this degree with the interest and outlook of mixing it together with my Fashion and Design diploma that I studied at TAFE for 3 years prior which therefore Manikinn is exactly why I am at Manikinn. My future plan has also been to set up, similar to Manikinn, an online fashion store where I can wholesale my own line of clothing and other labels as well.

This experience is very beneficial as it gives me direct outlook of what it all entails and what I have to do, to get to where I want to be. Not only am I gaining experience, I am also meeting and working with great people who respect, encourage and appreciate everything you are doing and throughout that, I have been lucky enough for so many further options of work through Manikinn and look forward to what the future may bring.

Until my next blog....

Jessicaxx

Fashion Icon High Tea

Hi again PR students!

I have been at my placement for almost three months now, I get along with the other women well and have lots of fun when I’m working there, so it was very exciting to hear that the company wants me to work for them when my placement finishes!

At the moment we are still working on the Fashion Icon High Tea that Networking WA and Perth Fashion Festival are partnering together for, which is happening this September, I have been given the job to find companies that are interested in placing products in the gift bags that will be given to all attendees of the event and also finding prizes for the raffles and door prizes, in which all proceeds go the the Starlight Children's Foundation. So far I have contacted a number of companies that were more than happy to offer some sort of product, voucher or gift.

For our gift bags we have products from companies such as Nudie drinks, Muzz Buzz, Lorna Jane, Elmstock tea, Simply Fabulous to name a few and more to be confirmed soon! And for raffle prizes we have vouchers for Seashells Resort and Marie Claire Shoes and a huge gift basket from Jurlique.

We have also been working on sponsor opportunities for the High Tea, which gives only five organisations some great sponsorship benefits, in regards to promotional activities on the day and prior the event.

Networking WA is very happy how the event is going so far, though still so much to do it’s lucky we still have a month till the event so we have plenty of time to get organised. I am really looking forward to the event, as fashion Icons such as Liz Davenport, Maurice Meade, Liz Carberry will be attending the event, and Lisa Fernandez will be hosting the afternoon.

The event is being held at Pan Pacific on Friday the 23^rd September from 3.30-5.30 its sure to be lots of fun, with entertainment from Sara MacLiver, take a look at www.networkingwa.com.au and if any one is interested in coming to the event get a group of friends together and get your tickets before they go!

Take care

Tess Edwards

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Meeting the US Ambassador

Hi Guys!

On Tuesday the organisation Via Appia Networking WA where I am completing my placement held the event where United States Ambassador to Australia Jeffrey L. Bleich spoke about visionary leadership and overcoming today’s challenges.

The event was a great success with over 100 people attending the event at the Parmelia Hilton.

Leading up to the event was getting pretty stressful, with all of us working hard in the office to make sure the Ambassador enjoyed himself at the event, and the people attending were going to think the event was worth while, a lot of time and effort went into the planning and marketing of the function as well as many aspects of PR and of course a lot of Social Media.

On the day we were there early to set up and decorate the function room with American decorations as well as set out name badges and get the place organised. Mr Bleich wanted the event to be very interactive so we had a twitter wall, where people could ask questions and make comments or opinions on for the Ambassador to answer. This was very effective and successful as it gave individuals who could not attend the event a chance to be involved.

Mr Bleich himself was very interesting and down to earth, bringing his family into topics talking about looking forward to heading down to Margret River this weekend to relax with his family, as well as discussing the major points in today’s society including interesting aspects of political issues and the economy.

The attendees of the event were very impressed with Mr Bleich’s words of wisdom and they all believed they got something out of attending the event, which from an organisations view was very pleasing to hear. I was very fortunate to be able to sit on the same table as the Ambassador, which gave me the chance to meet him, which was very exciting (and a little nerve racking)

So now that, that big event has finished we have already started working on our next big function, I am very excited because we are partnering with Perth Fashion Festival in a Fashion Icon High Tea.

I have already stated contacting companies for opportunities for them to have their products in our gift bags that attendees will receive, or give vouchers or products as door prizes and raffles. It’s great to see so many companies interested and wanting to get involved with the event. I’ll be sure to keep you all up to date with what happening with the event.

I hope everyone’s enjoying their placements as much as I am!

Tess

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An Insight to the Japanese Fashion Magazine Industry

Hi again guys!

Today I would like to talk more about fashion and share with you a video I have found online.

Link here!

The video talks about the Japanese fashion magazine industry and how freebies plays a big role nowadays as not only to promote the magazine but also the brands.

The video is in Japanese but Kirin (the lady that owns the blog) has kindly wrote a translation for non-Japanese speaking readers! So please do have a watch, especially if you love Japanese fashion (like me!).

I'm actually a huge fan of Japanese fashion magazines myself, so I understand the situation of the readers that are featured in the beginning of the video. I think collaboration with famous brands is a good way to promote your magazine as well as create good relationships with industry leaders in the fashion world.

Cintya

Cool Kids in Japan

Hi again guys! How are your reports going?

I hope all is well and ready to hand in on Friday!! I'm still working hard on mine.

Tonight I would like to share some more of my experiences in Japan.

This time I hope to be more interesting than my previous post because the topic is Fashion!

For those who didn't read my previous posts, I was working in Japan for my practical on my own but have support from my supervisor and colleagues in Colosoul Japan through email and Windows Live Messenger. I was also given a guideline of what to do while I was there. Although it was stressful because I was on my own, I also had the opportunity to create connections for both myself and the company.

One of the assignments I had while I was in Japan is making connections with fashionable young people in Sendai and also collecting fashion street snaps. The street snaps will be featured on the upcoming Colosoul Japan website, while the connections will be kept for future reference and for when the company is ready for their grand opening in Japan.

One connection I'm hoping to keep strong is with JOINT SNAP. JOINT SNAP is a fashion blog in Sendai. It also features street snaps as well as event snaps. I actually was introduced to some of the team members while I was taking street snaps for Colosoul Japan.

Also, another valuable connection is Ms Shiho Hayasaka. She is the owner of some of the boutiques I approached. Her fashion taste is amazing!

Although my Japanese isn't perfect yet and I do stumble in my use of Keigo(honorific form), I appreciated how patient and helpful everyone was. I also appreciated the help of my friend, Masami, whom I met through my first connection in Sendai, Siobhan (she's a fellow foreigner). Both Masami and Siobhan have introduced me to many valuable contacts and helped me explained to them what it is I am doing in Japan and why they should affiliate with Colosoul Japan. They also made me realise the importance of connecting with people in, not only a PR perspective, but also in a social perspective.

I shall end my post with a bonus shot of some fashionable customers!

Unfortunately I didn't have the opportunity to get their names, but I hope to see them again next time I visit Sendai!

Good luck with your reports everyone!

Cintya

“When you're young, your whole life is about the pursuit of fun.” – Carrie Bradshaw

Hi Bloggers!

I am in the midst of my third week at Raw Fashion Agency in Sydney and it has gone so fast! Anybody that says nine to five can’t be fun is obviously in the wrong profession; I can genuinely say without any sarcastic undertones that “I love my (temporary) job”. During the first two weeks at work things were quite settled but as of this week it has been crazy in the office with clothes going out to NW, Cosmopolitan, Shop Til You Drop and Nine to Five (in just two hours). This is great for our clients and as I have learnt through watching the new PR Manager, it is all about the relationships.

Raw Fashion is sent so many briefs from publications because the editors/stylists/journalists know that we take the brief into consideration meticulously, and rather than sending pieces that head off on a tangent; send clothing we know is right for the specific occasion. I think this is vital to maintaining a sterling reputation, especially in the PR industry where as one very thorough lecturer taught us, “The worst thing that can happen to a man is lose his reputation.”
During this week my university learning of new social media came into the mix as my blog presentation went successfully in my last staff meeting and I was asked to get into contact with the writers and create a window of opportunity for our clients to be featured on their blogs. I had a success with blog website “Mecho” as they have a previous connection with Raw Fashion. I never realised how many people follow certain blogs religiously and now I can actually understand why we get taught about this emerging engine of communication.
Another aspect from university that has helped me is my knowledge from the PR Techniques unit as I do a lot of the layouts/design for various newsletters and weekly items at Raw. Today I was asked to completely re-vamp the service pack (which is what the Director uses when presenting to potential clients), which is quite a large task for me, but it will look fab in my final report!

I am on the lookout for publications that print the items that I sent them however most of the monthlies (i.e. Cosmo) shoot for stories in the publications at least month or two in advance – so hopefully once I leave my internship I remember to keep tabs on this! BUT, yesterday we received a hard copy of a publication that did use an item of our clients that I helped select.






I can’t believe I have to go home after next week, I’m settled in really comfortably and I have to pack my bags soon!

This really is my pursuit of fun – new city, new office, new shops to conquer!

xoxo Sydney Girl

Week 1 at Raw Fashion Agency

Hi Bloggers!

Last week I completed my first week interning at Raw Fashion Agency in Sydney. I have moved to Sydney for the next three weeks to complete my internship over the winter break. It has been hard being away from home however Sydney is fantastic, cold but fantastic!

On Friday the 25^th of June I had my induction with Faith, the Director of the company and I was introduced with all of the administrative duties and told what would be required of me regarding daily responsibilities. The next Monday, a new PR Manager started with the company so there was a lot of everyone getting settled into their work and still going through administrative tasks.

Raw Fashion has three other interns currently, one who is in on Wednesdays who has been here for the past 6 months, another on Thursdays and Fridays who is also from Perth (it’s great having someone here in the same position as myself), and another girl who will be starting when I leave.

I did not expect to be given the responsibilities that I had, rather than being given small tasks which are very irrelevant to PR practises, I had helped the Director to write a press release for a charity that the company supports, pulled clothing for magazines including “Shop Till You Drop”, “NW” and “Nine to Five” (a Sydney based publication) which I also sent to them. Also, I created weekly newsletters that we send out to our clients and are at the bottom of emails in the signature every time we send out emails. The majority of my tasks require Photoshop experience which is great because I can get really creative with the layouts.

Another task I have been given is researching what certain celebrities are wearing so we can pitch out current designs to them. I found out that Natalie Bassingthwaite from “So You Think You Can Dance” has worn a dress from one of our client’s collection. Currently we are working on getting our clothes on “Dancing with the Stars” presenter, Sonia Kruger.

Other research I have done involves finding freelance writers we can create relationships with, current celebrity clothing trends and what KStew and RPatz wore to the LA Premier of “Twilight Saga: Eclipse”.

My major task for this week was to research into Sydney based blogs that we could contact and possibly have our designers featured in a blog post. This is where my university learning came into help me, I had to create a profile on each, create a SWOT on each and make some recommendations on whether we should pursue them or not and I need to present this to the rest of my colleagues in tomorrow’s staff meeting.

I love working for Raw and this is definitely the path I want to follow once I have graduated and I am looking forward to the next three weeks of great, challenging work.

I will keep you posted on my success with the blog presentation!

xoxo Sydney girl.

PR People = Vultures + Opportunists?

Just thought I should share an interesting article I found in The Star which gives a fascinating account of PR people in the beauty industry.

The article, penned by former beauty editor Elaine Dong, is a review of two memoirs from Lucky and Allure magazines' editors. The first book is authored by Lucky beauty editor Jean Godfrey-June who wrote:

Behind just about every product is a public relations (PR) person. When you're in a position of power, which basically means you have the ability to tell the world to go out and buy a product, you will have many PR people and brand executives pandering to your every whim and fancy.

After her promotion to editor, she noticed that:

My phone rang off the hook with PR and marketing people, previously uninterested in me, now all desperate to take me to lunch.

You can read the full article here. Hope this gives you food for thought!

Happy holidays,
John.