London Study Abroad, 2015
I had the opportunity to travel abroad and finish my last quarter of undergrad in London, England. There, our cohort took 16 units and held a 20-hour per week internship. I interned for Print A Gift (PAG) Leisurewear, a major London-based distributor and wholesaler. Many of the customers that we fulfilled orders for were major UK-based screen-printers, event organizers, and third-party (middlemen) customers. Below is the list of classes and their descriptions and learning outcomes.
AMM 420: International Apparel Market Research
This course focused on real-world applications and theories that were then applied to the apparel and retail industries. Our first assignment was to analyze the hugely famous retailer, TOPSHOP. The assignment was to analyze each store’s unique hardscapes and softscapes. The three TOPSHOP locations my partner and I chose were Oxford Circus—their flagship store, Sheppard’s Bush Westfield’s, and the Knightsbridge location. We formulated a paper that compared and contrasted the three locations. In the paper, we included suggestions or recommendations, unique aspects of each store, and photos.
The final project that we completed in this course was a market-entry report for the American retailer, Target. We analyzed the demographics and psychographics of Londoners. This project included social media tactics, mass-advertisements on public transport, and other advertising outlets. The objective was to create hype, whatever the cost, so Target would be able to succeed in this market.
This course has given me the ability to analyze major retailers in a global setting. This course provided me the fundamental understanding of globalization and the possibility brands and major corporations have for global success.
Included is a link to the TOPSHOP report and Target Report
/uploads/3/0/5/3/30538570/topshop_analysis.docx
AMM 476: Fast Fashion Retailing
In this class, we were assigned a chapter review and case study. My partner and I discussed the importance of international distribution channels. We presented our finding to our classmates through a Power Point presentation. Through our findings, we concluded that foreign corporations will use middlemen to to establish a distribution channel. Middlemen help foreign corporations become familiar with the local markets. We concluded that the shorter the distribution channel is for a foreign retailer, the more likely success is for that company. This is due to response, marketing tactics, and logistical advantages.
The case study that we analyzed was about the ultra-successful Japanese retailer, Uniqlo. The case study dealt with the logistics behind the success accredited to the fast fashion retailer. ]The case study also talked about Uniqlo's success and failure in China. I thought the case study was interesting, because the way Uniqlo established success was by establishing attraction and entertainment-centered retail stores. This immediately caught the interest of the Chinese consumer, and since then, Uniqlo, H&M, and Zara have prominent market dominance. Below is a link to the PDF case presentation, please click on the underscore.
_
AMM 431: Elective Internship
This course was dedicated to the work we did whilst at our internships. Biweekly we would post “follow-up” reports talking about the work we accomplished, the problems we may have encountered, and the steps we took to solve them or progress. My internship was with PAG Leisurewear. In 1969, Richard Hanrick founded Print A Gift (PAG) and today his son, Michael, runs the company. They are one of largest wholesalers and distributors of leisure-wear apparel garments in the United Kingdom. Their customers consist of screen-printers, individual customers, and major corporations.
My responsibilities consisted of warehouse stock replenishment, pulling and fulfilling Amazon and outbound orders, and updating PAG's e-commerce platform. This internship has given me a better understanding of the apparel supply chain. I enjoy seeing how the garments we provide make it to the final consumer. Some of my favorite tasks were contacting major race (marathon) organizers to establish business to business relationships. Also, I really enjoyed organizing and replenishing the stock we held in the warehouse. Contacting the race organizers was as simple as a Google search of upcoming race events in London and then emailing the race organizer to establish B2B relations. Michael would usually then send the organizer prices of performance shirts and the cost of one, two, or three color print jobs. I was proud of myself going above my boss's expectations and looking up and finding multiple race organizers in the immediate area. I also really enjoyed organizing and replenishing the stock they held in their warehouse. I would replenish the boxes that were low on stock, in the shelves. However, for the stock that we were completely out of, I was in-charge of writing down the style number, color code, size and case quantity. I would then pass that information onto Kurt, our lead logistics employee, and he would order the appropriate cases from the German warehouse.
/uploads/3/0/5/3/30538570/pag.jpg
Early Years
For two consecutive summers during high school, I worked at a family friend's screen printing and embroidery shop. At the time, I did not realize what a huge catalyst this was in my educational and personal career. After graduating from high school, I knew I had a strong desire for retail but did not know where to start. I was accepted into Texas Christian University that Fall Semester for Business.
Texas Christian University (TCU) Neeley's Business School
Fort Worth, TX
While I was at TCU, I took business and general education classes. I really enjoyed the school and my fellow colleagues, but I was not enjoying the subject matter. During Spring Break 2013, my dad and I found a California State University that offered a B.S. in Apparel Merchandising and Management. I decided to apply and move back to California.
California Polytechnic University, Pomona Apparel Merchandising and Management
I applied that summer and by Fall 2013 Quarter, I was a junior-standing in Cal Poly's Apparel Merchandising and Management program. I chose the retailing option within my major. The first day of class I knew I made the right decision transferring schools. Since 2013 I have worked on completing my Bachelors degree. This Spring quarter I will be finished and graduating. Everything I have learned before Cal Poly was building up to a wonderful "hands-on" experience. I am extremely grateful to have studied at Cal Poly.
I had the opportunity to travel abroad and finish my last quarter of undergrad in London, England. There, our cohort took 16 units and held a 20-hour per week internship. I interned for Print A Gift (PAG) Leisurewear, a major London-based distributor and wholesaler. Many of the customers that we fulfilled orders for were major UK-based screen-printers, event organizers, and third-party (middlemen) customers. Below is the list of classes and their descriptions and learning outcomes.
AMM 420: International Apparel Market Research
This course focused on real-world applications and theories that were then applied to the apparel and retail industries. Our first assignment was to analyze the hugely famous retailer, TOPSHOP. The assignment was to analyze each store’s unique hardscapes and softscapes. The three TOPSHOP locations my partner and I chose were Oxford Circus—their flagship store, Sheppard’s Bush Westfield’s, and the Knightsbridge location. We formulated a paper that compared and contrasted the three locations. In the paper, we included suggestions or recommendations, unique aspects of each store, and photos.
The final project that we completed in this course was a market-entry report for the American retailer, Target. We analyzed the demographics and psychographics of Londoners. This project included social media tactics, mass-advertisements on public transport, and other advertising outlets. The objective was to create hype, whatever the cost, so Target would be able to succeed in this market.
This course has given me the ability to analyze major retailers in a global setting. This course provided me the fundamental understanding of globalization and the possibility brands and major corporations have for global success.
Included is a link to the TOPSHOP report and Target Report
/uploads/3/0/5/3/30538570/topshop_analysis.docx
AMM 476: Fast Fashion Retailing
In this class, we were assigned a chapter review and case study. My partner and I discussed the importance of international distribution channels. We presented our finding to our classmates through a Power Point presentation. Through our findings, we concluded that foreign corporations will use middlemen to to establish a distribution channel. Middlemen help foreign corporations become familiar with the local markets. We concluded that the shorter the distribution channel is for a foreign retailer, the more likely success is for that company. This is due to response, marketing tactics, and logistical advantages.
The case study that we analyzed was about the ultra-successful Japanese retailer, Uniqlo. The case study dealt with the logistics behind the success accredited to the fast fashion retailer. ]The case study also talked about Uniqlo's success and failure in China. I thought the case study was interesting, because the way Uniqlo established success was by establishing attraction and entertainment-centered retail stores. This immediately caught the interest of the Chinese consumer, and since then, Uniqlo, H&M, and Zara have prominent market dominance. Below is a link to the PDF case presentation, please click on the underscore.
_
AMM 431: Elective Internship
This course was dedicated to the work we did whilst at our internships. Biweekly we would post “follow-up” reports talking about the work we accomplished, the problems we may have encountered, and the steps we took to solve them or progress. My internship was with PAG Leisurewear. In 1969, Richard Hanrick founded Print A Gift (PAG) and today his son, Michael, runs the company. They are one of largest wholesalers and distributors of leisure-wear apparel garments in the United Kingdom. Their customers consist of screen-printers, individual customers, and major corporations.
My responsibilities consisted of warehouse stock replenishment, pulling and fulfilling Amazon and outbound orders, and updating PAG's e-commerce platform. This internship has given me a better understanding of the apparel supply chain. I enjoy seeing how the garments we provide make it to the final consumer. Some of my favorite tasks were contacting major race (marathon) organizers to establish business to business relationships. Also, I really enjoyed organizing and replenishing the stock we held in the warehouse. Contacting the race organizers was as simple as a Google search of upcoming race events in London and then emailing the race organizer to establish B2B relations. Michael would usually then send the organizer prices of performance shirts and the cost of one, two, or three color print jobs. I was proud of myself going above my boss's expectations and looking up and finding multiple race organizers in the immediate area. I also really enjoyed organizing and replenishing the stock they held in their warehouse. I would replenish the boxes that were low on stock, in the shelves. However, for the stock that we were completely out of, I was in-charge of writing down the style number, color code, size and case quantity. I would then pass that information onto Kurt, our lead logistics employee, and he would order the appropriate cases from the German warehouse.
/uploads/3/0/5/3/30538570/pag.jpg
Early Years
For two consecutive summers during high school, I worked at a family friend's screen printing and embroidery shop. At the time, I did not realize what a huge catalyst this was in my educational and personal career. After graduating from high school, I knew I had a strong desire for retail but did not know where to start. I was accepted into Texas Christian University that Fall Semester for Business.
Texas Christian University (TCU) Neeley's Business School
Fort Worth, TX
While I was at TCU, I took business and general education classes. I really enjoyed the school and my fellow colleagues, but I was not enjoying the subject matter. During Spring Break 2013, my dad and I found a California State University that offered a B.S. in Apparel Merchandising and Management. I decided to apply and move back to California.
California Polytechnic University, Pomona Apparel Merchandising and Management
I applied that summer and by Fall 2013 Quarter, I was a junior-standing in Cal Poly's Apparel Merchandising and Management program. I chose the retailing option within my major. The first day of class I knew I made the right decision transferring schools. Since 2013 I have worked on completing my Bachelors degree. This Spring quarter I will be finished and graduating. Everything I have learned before Cal Poly was building up to a wonderful "hands-on" experience. I am extremely grateful to have studied at Cal Poly.