My fashion internship experience: A years review

When an internship goes right

Part of the fashion student experience is interning. Many have horror stories, I was lucky enough to experience a tale of excitement, encouragement and insight. I interned with the leading luxury brand building agency Karla Otto where I spent 2 months working closely with the fabulous insights team. This was from the end of January to the beginning of April. A year later, it’s time for a reflection of my experience.

Where I interned:

Karla Otto is the organisation you may not have heard of, but you have definitely seen their work. Remember the Gucci Cosmos exhibition, yep that was them. The London office is a beautiful building by 180 Studios, and they boast over a dozen offices worldwide. They have different departments such as PR and comms as well as Insights where I worked. The Insights department produces in depth reports ranging from the future of fashion marketing in luxury spaces to full fashion week debriefs. Words can’t describe how invaluable this experience was for me at such an early stage of my career. Although I am a fashion journalism student and this organisation is predominantly PR, I was still able to exercise skills I have learnt and develop my existing knowledge on the fashion industry. 

How I got this internship:

Something I tell everyone when asked how to get an internship is: Do not wait for an advert. I will have to do a whole separate blog about how to get fashion internships in depth, but for today, I’ll just share what I did. I reached out directly to the company via email and was invited to interview via zoom. In all honesty, I thought I had flopped the interview because my mind froze for one of the questions, but the team was so lovely and didn’t make me feel bad about it. After the interview, I was asked to send over some examples of my written work and a week or two later, I was offered the internship. 

Now, that is the short and sweet version of what happened. I don’t have the word count to include all the emotional stress wondering if I would get an internship in the tight time frame I was working with or if I just blacklisted myself. The important part is that I got it and now I live to tell the tale (pause for dramatic effect).

What I did:

I have to start by appreciating the structure and organisation I experienced in this workplace. Before starting, I had been sent a bunch of calendar invites, scheduling me in for meetings with different team members as introductions as well as wider global team meetings. The working hours were hybrid so some days were in the office and others at home (WFH). That however doesn’t mean that WFH days were chill - not at all. And I loved that. Mornings would usually start with a meeting on teams, even if we were in the office to connect with the Europe team to update everyone on our to-do lists and see if there were any ways to help each other out. 

This was one of my WFH days where I watched a BOF summit and made notes for the team.

I was so glad to actually feel like a part of the team with real tasks from editorial to content and data analysis. The time I was there was around fashion month so we were booked and I was so glad to actually feel like a part of the team with real tasks from editorial to content and data analysis. The time I was there was around fashion month so we were booked and busy to say the least. From prepping for the big fashion weeks report to working on a separate social media marketing report, I had the opportunity to see every team member display their skills. The team was small and efficient, each member specialising in their role to such high standards. I felt so included and valued which of course pushed me to want to perform and work even harder. 

Check out my day in the life as a fashion intern on my TikTok page

Besides work, office days included regular trips to the kitchen for a cup of tea, which I absolutely loved. I felt so at home when I saw a drawer full of herbal teas. Some lunch breaks were taken as a team unless I was taking a walk around the park recommended to me where I would often just sit and try to savour the moment. I really romanticised my experience which is why I remember it so vividly and fondly. Even though my colleagues may be working on serious projects, there was always a moment to smile and laugh around the office; A high pressure environment with caring colleagues was a recipe for productive work.

My tasks included:

• Writing summaries of the reports for their LinkedIn

• Created social media content for their TikTok account

• Attended Fashion Week on behalf of insights to capture social media content

• Analysed social media trends and had my findings published in their official AW24 Report

• Assisted with interviews for 2024 “Marketing In a World of Paradox” Insights Report

• Sourced and requested images for internal and external reports

• Participated in Global meetings

• Quantified data on current trends working alongside data analyst

• Attended events to learn about trend forecasting, social media and luxury fashion brands

What I learned:

I kept a bullet journal of everything I learnt that I would fill in throughout the day. This was also done because I had to write a reflective essay on my time at this internship as part of my uni assignment. Fun fact, I extended my internship into my holiday so I only had a weekend to do this assignment; Keeping track of what I learned everyday made that quite easy for me to do and I got an A!

Biggest takeaways: 

• The need to dedicate time daily to increasing my knowledge on the fashion industry of past and present 

• The power of social media for brands, organisations and creators

• The rise of nano influencers, leveraging small communities and quantifying social media impact

• The evolving nature of fashion shows as a result of economic benefits of social media

• The need to constantly be networking and have at least one contact in every industry as fashion has a lot of crossover 

As a result, I can now confidently and critically analyse social media content and trends to understand the role it plays in a wider social media context. I have a greater understanding on the ways in which brands in the luxury space use data from Insights to improve their marketing strategy. I can identify alternative aspects of fashion shows, besides the clothes, that can contribute towards a brands message and identity. My mind has been open to other ways I can explore my love for fashion and writing in a luxury marketing environment.

I have an equal affinity towards content creation as I do fashion writing and from this internship, I know now that I don’t have to choose. My talents were spread across digital and editorial which is not where I felt necessarily comfortable but where I was able to grow and develop. Perhaps as I progress in this career I will identify a more specific niche, but presently I am reassured that this degree and career path is the correct breeding ground for my interests and skills.

My Highlights:

My highlight was attending London Fashion Week Shows. For Yuhan Wang I had the pleasure of sitting in the front row, however I came alive at Saul Nash when positioned in the press pit to capture runway content among other established videographers and photographers. I particularly loved being backstage to not just experience the organised chaos but to capture it and create over a dozen TikTok videos for Karla Otto. (I still have my backstage wristband pass in my memory box)

Having my name and picture published in two reports is evidence of my efforts being appreciated which I will always be grateful for. I made an effort to ask questions and try to overcome the fear of getting things wrong. The team leader Anna reminded me of Jacqueline from the Bold Type - both firm and gracious - a true inspiration. While the other team members, Nerys, Nadine and Rui were so supportive and patient - I learnt about what each does and was encouraged to continue pursuing this career. I was also given a “buddy” from another department who I could go to for any help or questions I might have had. 

I also loved the workplace culture at Karla Otto. Every person was valued, as I know I was. I was able to participate in many celebrations such as birthdays and wedding engagements which was refreshing to see an active balance between work and play. At the end of my time there, they did a celebration with me to see me off with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers and a box of tea from my favourite brand. 

I can confess that I spent the whole two months believing this experience was too good to be true. Waiting for the AHA moment. But it never came. I genuinely had the best possible internship experience. I was really challenged and pushed intellectually to elevate my skills by a team who actually care and love their work. A year later, I still smile and have nothing negative to say as I remember my time there. I wish every fashion student experiences an internship as beautiful as this was.