Year in Industry Report

Lauren Campbell C3494170 A Year In Indsustry Report 2018/2019 END CLOTHING

Contents 1 . 0 Introduction- 2 2 . 0 Insights into the company- 3 3 . 0 Planning and challenges within4/5 3 . 1 Challenges Overcame- 6/7 4 . 0 Reflections- 9 5. 0 Works Cited- 17

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1.0

Introduction

Over the past 12 months I have had the pleasure of interning as a studio assistant at END. Clothing, a global menswear brand situated in the heart of Newcastle. As a studio assistant my responsibilities changed on a weekly basis and I was lucky enough to be a part of some amazing projects and editorials during my time. Interning at End was an amazing opportunity at such a young age, I have gathered a much deeper insight into the marketing tactics behind a multi-million-pound global fashion company, the production behind editorial e-commerce shoots, the background running of a large-scale company within the industry and whilst being there I personally increased my brand awareness.

My internship benefitted me in many ways ranging from professional to personal levels, I met a lot of amazing people and I cannot wait to see what the rest of my time at Leeds Beckett University has to offer in my final year commencing this September.

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2.0

Insights into the company.

End Clothing was established in 2005 by John Parker and Christiaan Ashworth who I know, due to their close relationship to their employee’s, were friends at university and set up the business shortly afterward, following a common interest in fashion, despite neither studying fashion at university. The company was first set up in Newcastle before they branched out to Glasgow in 2016 (Lemola, 2016). Since then they have recently opened their latest store in Soho, London, fashion capital of the United Kingdom. After nearly 15 years, End Clothing is one of the biggest luxury men’s fashion and streetwear retailers globally, a multi-millionaire business that will only continue to grow. According to an article written up by the Chronicle, they are the only business in the North-East to feature in the BDO Profit Track 100 League Table in the Sunday Times. Reportedly reaching profits of 16.2 million with a turnover of 69.7 million in 2017. Due to their coverage, social media, brand collaborations (such as New Balance, Adidas, Nike, Champion) and their famous product releases which see customers queuing outside of their stores, End Clothing have become a household name.

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Photo cred: Hypebeast 2016 artcile

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Planning and challenges within.

Planning for my internship was not an easy or quick process by any means. It took months of applications and quite a lot of rejection before I managed to secure one. During the preparation for my applications it was really important that I created a CV which appropriately highlighted my key ‘selling points’ necessary to the roles in which I was applying for. Luckily, as I started working at the age of fourteen, my CV already extensively listed a range of essential and versatile personal skills that I had developed throughout years of being in the hospitality industry. However, despite having a bar & restaurant job at university, I actually only managed to secure a Christmas temp retail job alongside my second year of university. Therefore, my experience within the fashion industry itself (aside from my degree) was very limited and I really feel as though this was quite a large set-back that I faced when applying for fashion-based internships.

Regardless of this factor that was obstructing my applications, I did have a good understanding of how to promote myself based on my strongest points that an employer would be attracted to, therefore I focused upon these. Although they may not have helped me secure some of the internships that I applied to elsewhere, they were recognised by companies and therefore I did receive constructive feedback from those that liked my application despite having found someone else more suited to, or more qualified for the role at that period in time.

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When planning for the internship, I also had to plan ahead financially which was a huge obstacle for me.

Like myself, most students have to live on a budget and although we receive loans, often they barely cover our rent so we have to take up a part-time job too. I did this and luckily I also listened to my tutors in my first year of university when they told us to plan early if we wished to carry out a year in industry during our time on the course. However financially I had to consider how far I was able to spread my wings.

I was willing to move cities again from Leeds, but I had to weigh up the options on where I would be able to move to. I was interested in moving to London, as it is a hub for the fashion elite, however as I do not have a base there and a lot of the internships I was being offered were three-six month placements (with the potential to carry on) or un-paid/only offering expenses paid for, I was left with very little security here.

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I secured an interview for End in April 2018, preparing for the interview was straight forward, being from Newcastle originally I actually had prior knowledge of the Newcastle-based company and had followed them for years via social media, which benefitted me hugely. I read up on articles which discussed their recent success in the industry and highlighted their awards, this gave me an understanding on the scale the company was working on . . . however nothing could really have prepared me for being there myself.

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Challenges Overcame

The most interesting challenge I faced when first starting at End. Clothing was the fast paced environment. Working in hospitality from the age of fourteen, I had plenty of experience working under pressure but this was a different pace. I joined the company in July, which is peak season for ecommerce when Autumn/Winter stock starts to being flushed into studio. At End this meant that my team, the prep team, were dealing with up to 500 new products a day. Up to 200 of those were being shot on model, whilst the other 200 plus products were being shot on flats (the roll-over image on the website) the same day. Following a rota system my week to week role would differ but if I was placed on the ‘Scoop’ for the week (the station that the model images are shot on) then it would be my responsibility to scan in each new outfit that was styled on the model. Doing this I would use a system called Magento which was basically the back door to the whole website, where all data is imputed that will later be processed onto the website. For instance, the model’s measurements, product descriptions and up-sell’s that had been selected with the new product being shot.

Part of my responsibility on scoop was also to style the new product with the upsells (accessories or other items of clothing) from the website using my brand knowledge and following brand adjacencies.

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Although this gave me a really good chance to show off my brand awareness it was also a huge challenge and very daunting process at first, before joining End I had little knowledge on some of their biggest brands therefore I had to learn fast. With help from my team leaders and other members of the studio I created a make-shift brand adjacencies book which I could revise in order to work quicker, boost my knowledge and increase my confidence. I can still refer to this for future reference in job interviews or even during my studies so it is something that is definitely worthwhile spending some time doing.

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Acne Studios Editorial A/W ‘18

BTS @END ClothingPhotographerMark Salmon StylistJordan Couley AssistantMyself

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4.0

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Reflections

I have definitely benefitted from doing an internship at End Clothing this year, I have gained so many valuable connections within the industry who I can also call my friends and that is something that I am so thankful for.

My personal brand knowledge increased, my confidence and my interest in fashion was generally re-ignited, this passion can sometimes be dimmed by the stresses of university. The past year in Industry has left me feeling much more focused on my future goals and I feel proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone to take on opportunities in such a big company. On the same hand, I am extremely grateful for being allowed to take part in opportunities that I requested and that were offered to me, especially being so included and hands-on with editorials and styling throughout the year, two areas of fashion that I was previously unsure of and lacked confidence in. I do wish that I had the chance to be more involved with copywriting and the marketing offices, however I understand there was a limit to how much I could unravel in my short time at End alongside my own role and responsibilities. Myself and my friend were the first university students to intern at End alongside our studies and I feel privileged to have had that chance, as well as happy to see the new students who started as we left, I hope they benefit from the company as much as we did. The hours were long (9.5 hours a day), the job was physically demanding and the pay could have been better despite the role being an entry-level job. However overall the pro’s of the experience outweigh the con’s. I left my internship feeling accomplished and eager to learn more and flourish further, I really feel like the experience was necessary to my professional development.

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BTS: A-Cold-Wall* Editorial A/W 18’

PhotographerMark Salmon/ Sophie Lobban StylistKatie O’rouke Assisted by Myself

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Woen’s landing page refreshBTS 2018

Photographer; Eleanor Weitzer/ Sophie Lobban Stylist: Katie O’rouke Assisted byMyself

This was actually my favorite editorial to

assist. This was the most hands-on and i got to be a part of the proccess from start

to finish. I was even allowed to go into the content planning office a couple of weeks prior and help to create inspiration behind the shoot, they used my pintrest board to create a concept for the shoothttps://pin.it/bxfr7chtis2pjb

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Stone Isaland Shadow Projects A/W 18’ PhotographerMark Salmon StylistJordan Couley Nemen A/W 18’ PhotographerBen Hughes StylistJordan Couley Assisted by me

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Assisted by me

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BTS Rick Owens A/W 18’ PhotgrapherSophie Lobban/ Mark Salmon StylistKatie O’rouke Assisted by Myself

Noon Goons S/S 19’ BTS @ END Clothing PhotographerAdam Thirtle Senior StylistJack Errington Assited by me

Works Cited Ford, C., 2018. Newcastle fashions retailer END is one of UK’s fastest growing companies. [Online] Available at: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/ business/business-news/newcastle-fashions-retailerend-one-14496023 Ford, C., 2018. Newcastle fashions retailer END is one of UK’s fastest growing companies. [Online] Available at: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/ business/business-news/newcastle-fashions-retailerend-one-14496023 Graham, H., 2019. Police called in to manage crowds outside END Clothing as hundreds queue for new Nike trainers. [Online] Available at: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/ north-east-news/end-clothing-grainger-streetnewcastle-15793781 Lemola, H., 2016. Take a Look Inside END.’s New Glasgow Store. [Online] Available at: https://hypebeast.com/2016/12/endclothing-glasgow-store Smart, E., 2018. END. X CHAMPION ‘UNDIVIDED’ COLLECTION. [Online] Available at: https://www.endclothing.com/gb/ features/end-x-champion-undivided-register-nowon-end-launches https://www.endclothing.com/gb/features/checkout-the-latest-a-cold-wall-aw18-editorial-at-end https://www.endclothing.com/gb/features/acnestudios-aw18-editorial-at-end https://www.endclothing.com/gb/features/checkout-the-latest-nemen-aw18-editorial-at-end https://www.endclothing.com/gb/features/acnestudios-aw18-editorial-at-end

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