Why you don’t have to be too selective with your First Fashion Internship

When we imagine our first job in fashion, we always dream of the biggest companies and the most prestigious roles. Working at Vogue, Gucci, Dior … seems like the most exciting opportunity. If it is true that you have to dream big and do everything to achieve your goal, it doesn’t mean that you must take for granted that working at startups or new companies is useless.

Just because your career path doesn’t start as you imagined, it doesn’t mean that you will not be able to change and get an opportunity in the company of your dreams later. The fashion industry offers many opportunities, but it is also very competitive, so if you dream about working at recognized brands, know that there are many other guys who are thinking of the same company like you.
When it comes to the first internships and therefore your first experiences in the fashion industry, everything is precious, because being at the beginning of your career you will surely learn whatever job: be it part-time, only for 10 days as for example during fashion week, only on weekends or full-time.

Internships represent your ticket to the fashion industry and even when working at a new startup you can learn a lot, and sometimes even more, than an established company.

Don’t be too selective with the brands and a specific job position. If you want your first internship to be in communication but you can’t find anything, try something similar in the same department or in a relative one such as marketing. The same is true with the company for which you would like to work, don’t just consider large established companies. Open your horizons. Every work experience, even the negative ones, will teach you something not only on a practical level, but also to help you clarify and distinguish what you want to do from what you thought you wanted to do.

In fashion, everyone often changes company or position, on average every 2-3 years or so, so the place you start will not be the definitive job of your life. Recruiters have admitted that the experiences count more than the school you attended, so try to do as many experiences as possible. Only by not excluding any opportunity will you have access to so many experiences. This does not mean that you will have to accept anything or apply for jobs that have nothing to do with what you would like to do but don’t just tighten the circle to your favorite companies and your dream job, because everything can take you one step further close to your end goal. And then in fashion, once you’re in, you’re in. It will be easier to change roles within the company once you’re inside.

Whenever you have a job opportunity, make the most of it, absorb as much as possible from everyone, be curious and ask questions. You can continue to monitor job offers if you don’t like your job. It’s always better to do something in the meantime that you get your dream opportunity, so if your favorite company doesn’t have new opportunities at the moment, try with a self-application, or do some other experience that will bring value to your CV that will then be stronger when your favorite position finally comes out.
Furthermore, nowadays there are many new brands born on social media that are just as interesting as well known companies. Don’t just think about the most established fashion companies, have a look on Instagram and you will discover many other interesting brands to work with that you hadn’t considered.

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