The Almost Glamorous World of Fashion Internships...
- ashleyraynor1
- Mar 19, 2015
- 2 min read
Note: I have removed some of the photos from this post so that the designer could remain anonymous and not be identified by the work in the photographs.
I found myself snagging an internship with one of the UK's emerging designers. They had NEWGEN sponsorship by the British Fashion Council and were supported by Topshop for their first two seasons. They currently show at London Fashion Week and retail in ten countries worldwide. This was an opportunity I could not miss.
I worked five days a week, eight hours a day. I made clothes for London Fashion Week, clothes from the current season to be shipped off to retailers, I cut patterns from fabric, I did everything and it all sounds perfect right?... Wrong.
My trainfare to get there everyday was £30 and lunch in the centre of London about £10 a day if I was lucky. This was costing me £200 a week on average and I was receiving no pay, no allowances, no contributions towards my travel or anything. Welcome to the almost glamorous world of fashion internships. Enless you are incredibly wealthy and can afford to work a full time job for no pay whilst still maintaining your overheads, an internship is darn near impossible to do.
Especially for a company doing so well and making a half decent income it seemed a little unfair that their interns (10 of us in total, and no other staff besides the designer) were not given a penny. Although, in certain circumstances (find more on UK Government Website) companies arent required to pay interns, it still seems a little heartless to have no staff overheads besides the owners in a company that is doing incredible well and receives funding from the British Fashion Council. I feel as though more could be done here and this could definitely be something to research in the future for my work.
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