This week I began my internship at Michael Kors. I have to say I was very nervous the first day. I was confident that I could get to work on time, but I really had no idea what I was getting myself into. When I went for my interview with Rebecca, an SU Alum, I felt like a little girl in an office of high profile professionals. Unfortunately my commute was rough- it poured. At an angle. Under the umbrella. My awesome teal pants were soaked before I even got to the office, but not to worry, I survived and actually liked it!
I work Monday through Wednesday from 9am-6pm. I actually got very lucky with the way my week is set up. Each day I get the opportunity to work under a different set of supervisors. On Monday's I work for Lauren and Jeannette, who work on woven tops. Tuesday's I work with Ark and he does pants and skirts (including denim stuff). Then on Wednesday's I work for Rebecca who works with woven dresses. Most of the other interns in our department work with the same supervisors each day, so while they will get a lot of experience in a small area, I get the opportunity to dabble a little everywhere.
The office environment is great- it is surprisingly laid back and everyone is very nice. I have yet to be nervous or afraid to ask anyone a question, quite to the contrary of what I thought would be the situation. Thankfully, they appreciate their interns and know that we are there to learn and not to run and get coffee. They get their own coffee!
As soon as I finished with orientation on Monday, I got right to work. Working with Lauren she taught me how to accurately measure tops and records the measurements on the spec sheets. This is done before every fitting to check the factory's work. It took a long time for me to finish one garment. There can be several pages of specs to go over. Just by measuring about a dozen items this week, I already know that in the long run I don't really want to be in tech. Measuring is so tedious, but I have learned more that I ever thought I would in a short 3 days. After the garments are measured they get steamed in preparation for the fittings.
I also learned about how the fitting process works and I have already sat in on 3 different fittings. First the factory sends MK a proto, which is the very first sample. That garment gets measured and fit on a model. MK always uses the same fit models to ensure a consistent size ratio. Changes are made during fittings and then the garment is sent back to the factory to be corrected. I was surprised to learn that during fittings the tech designers will take scissors right to the garment and cut it up to move things. Pieces get taped and pinned back together. I would never dream of cutting up a sample, but I also think that is part of being such a large company. MK has the money to cut up garments in final fabrics and not just muslins or mock ups. The patterns are most often changed in house because written changes often get lost in the multiple language translations between English and Chinese and most likely local dialects. This process continues until the perfect fit is achieved. Then the factory sends MK a PPS, or a pre-production sample. This sample must be approved before the factory can cut the fabric in bulk. Next MK might request a reference sample, which would be for example if a top came in 4 different colors, they would request to receive a sample of the shirt in each color just to make sure it's right. Finally comes the TOP, which at the moment I cannot remember what it stands for. But basically by the time this sample comes in, if there are any mistakes they cannot be changed. At this point MK may be able to get the garment for a discount because it was the factory's mistake.
Tuesday I worked with pants, but there really wasn't much for me to do. This made the day very slow. It was a slow work day for everyone though.
Wednesday is my day with Rebecca, who essentially was the one who hired me. She did the best at being my supervisor this week. Not only did she teach me how to measure dresses properly, but she also then went over the measurements I got with me. It was a good process because I was reassured that I was doing it right. I think it is important for employers with interns to not only show tasks, but work with the interns to make sure it is being done correctly. Otherwise, we will never know if we are actually producing good work.
Overall, I think it is going to be an interesting summer! Hopefully there's a discount coming soon...
ps- pictures to come soon!
