2011 February | PR Couture: Fashion PR, Marketing & Social Media

Getting IN: Life as a Jr. Acct Exec/Campus Rep for Rent the Runway

February 10, 2011 2 Comments written by Lauren

The biggest challenge of [being the Jr. Account Exec for Rent the Runway] is that the campus representatives literally have no budget to work with. Our outreach efforts have to be creative and cost efficient. – Nicole McClellan

Nicole may still be a college student, but she is racking up serious fashion industry experience as a campus representative for Rent the Runway, a position she secured through the local PRSSA student-led PR agency Creative Consultants. Billing itself as “access to the Carrie Bradshaw closet on a budget,” Rent the Runway is a designer dress and accessories rental company that has been covered everywhere from The New York Times to InStyle.

What is your background?

I grew up in a small town called Tifton, Ga. and lived there until I moved to Athens, Ga. to attend college at the University of
Georgia. I applied to UGA as a chemistry major and was destined to be pre-med. I had honestly never considered PR or fashion PR for that matter. The mall in my hometown was fondly bestowed the name “The Tifton Small” so I never had access to or even awareness of the stores and designers I have grown to love through my experiences with Rent the Runway. I changed my major to PR before classes even began because of an activities fair that introduced me to the student organization, Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). After talking with the PRSSA representatives for several minutes in front of a creatively decorated tri-fold display, I had a feeling that PR could be something that I would excel at. I was right.

Why Fashion PR?

It was pure chance that I fell into Fashion PR. Being from a small country town where I didn’t even have internet access until the 10th grade, I was not exposed to high fashion at all unless I went to Atlanta. Even then, I was so unaware of all that was available. I have always loved to read and I developed a love for fashion by reading-–and let’s be honest, lusting over all of the beautiful clothes, jewelry and SHOES within the pages of Vogue, InStyle and whatever other magazines and articles I could get my hands on. I knew I wanted to practice Public Relations and when the opportunity to apply for a fashion PR position came along through PRSSA’s student-run PR agency, Creative Consultants, it was like I had found the Holy Grail.

How did you land your internship?

Landing the internship was definitely a process. First, I had to send in a resume and an application to Creative Consultants that detailed my experiences and qualifications and also what client I would like to work for. It was a situation where they would contact me if they were interested. I received an email about a week or so later requesting a phone interview. I emailed back and the interview was set. I had a 30-minute conversation with an executive board member and she said that she would let me know if they had a position available and that she would be in touch. I received an email about a week later informing me that I had been selected to be the Junior Account Executive for Rent the Runway! I was elated when I got that email!

What is a recent success story that you have been a part of?

My number one job as a representative for Rent the Runway on campus is to create awareness for renttherunway.com by having people sign up, and not only have them sign up for the website, but to actually rent. Anytime that I have the opportunity to hear that a friend or an acquaintance got complements all night long and had an absolutely amazing time at a wedding, formal, semi- formal or date night in one of our dresses is a HUGE success story for me. The fact that I referred them to our fabulous website makes me feel like I had a small part in making their night marvelous and helping them feel stunning and confident in whatever designer they are wearing. I hear stories like that all the time and it brings a smile to my face every time.

What challenges are attached to your job?

The biggest challenge of my job is that the campus representatives literally have no budget to work with. Our outreach efforts have to be creative and cost efficient. We have formed partnerships with several salons in Athens in order to offer incentives to those who rent and to help sponsor the events we host. Needless to say, my negotiating and salesmanship skills are improving every day due to my line of work.

What is exciting about your position?

Being a part of such an awesome company is exciting in and of itself, but I have to say that the most exciting and rewarding part of my job is helping people feel confident and beautiful in designer clothes that they might not have otherwise been able to afford. Every girl deserves to look beautiful and feel good in her clothes and my job helps make that a reality.

What is an example of a typical day in the office?

Since I am still in school at UGA and Rent the Runway’s headquarters are in New York, I do not report to an office every day, but I take my job very seriously and make a conscious effort every day to have a conversation about or make reference to Rent the Runway. I often find that a simple short conversation is
all it takes to get people interested. Who wouldn’t want to rent designer dresses for 10 percent of the cost of buying them retail?

What are your responsibilities?

My responsibilities include helping my Account Executive Christine Wang manage our team, which includes Taylor Henriquez, Hannah Alexander, Mary-Kerstin Lindqvist, and Danielle Ruble, drive sign ups, act as the liaison with our Salon partners, and plan and host events. We also pitch story ideas to
local magazines and newspapers to bring awareness to Rent the Runway locally.

What aspects of the job requirements were a surprise to you?

I haven’t really been surprised by any of the job requirements thus far, but each day presents new and exciting challenges so I’m ready for anything.

In a few words, how would you summarize your agency?

The agency that I work for directly is called Creative Consultants. Creative Consultants is a student-run PR firm within the University of Georgia’s PRSSA chapter. This agency is unique because the students are solely responsible for attracting clients, maintaining clients, hiring and delegating tasks. It is an awesome opportunity offered by PRSSA to help students get “real world” experience. Rent the Runway is one of Creative Consultants’ clients.

Are you a fashion PR intern or entry-level practitioner interested in being featured on PR Couture? Email info-at-prcouture-dot-com for consideration!

Filed Under: Interviews, Jobs & Internships, PR Couture Tagged With: Getting IN, Jobs & Internships

Make Magic With Your Next Fashion/Apparel Tradeshow Exhibit

February 9, 2011 2 Comments written by PR Couture

By Michael McMahon

For those in the apparel industry, participation in trade shows is a key component of marketing efforts – after all, the apparel industry is all about look and feel and what better place to show off your wares than in a stylized exhibit.

There are many steps on the road to bringing your branded environment to that final floor presentation; the journey is well worth the time and expense when the exhibit ultimately brings your story to life and trade show attendees are engaged and motivated to learn more.

Decide why participation in this specific trade show is important to you: Reasons might include brand awareness, building pipeline opportunities to new prospects and supporting your industry and/or other partnering companies.

Determine how to measure success: The number of visitors to your exhibit, educational or interactive participation by prospects and actual sales tied to exhibit participation are all elements to quantify success.

Consider the size and location for your exhibit: Take into account the size of your competitors’ exhibit space and determine its importance in respect to success with your prospects; then evaluate your location and judge its advantages and disadvantages.

Consult with all participants to gain early support: Determine key trade show players, identify those elements that translate into success for them on the show floor and begin to create tactical objectives to support your strategic goals for the event.

Determine or evaluate your budget against the strategic requirements of the show: Budget assessment may lead to a rollback of some expectations; however you can maximize your chances to succeed by utilizing a few well-executed tactics versus under funding a broad effort.

Develop a strong relationship with your exhibit partner: - once preliminary considerations have been taken into account, design elements can begin. Creating a strong partnership with your exhibit provider is the foundation of exhibit triumph, so it’s imperative to find a like-minded exhibit design partner – one who is not only loyal to your vision, but who provides a level of service and attention that best matches the way you like to work.

Your exhibit design partner should provide you with a primary contact – one person through whom every single piece of information passes. Planning for a successful trade show can seem a bit like controlled chaos. There are hundreds of moving parts and they all need to come together smoothly. From design to production, shipping, set up, tear down and storage, nothing can be left to chance.

Building your exhibit: – a number of choices exist when creating an exhibit solution on-brand. Whether selecting a new custom exhibit property or a custom turnkey rental solution, this is the shining opportunity to bring it all together. And remember; leverage your exhibit partner’s experience to help bring your vision to the show floor.

For example, Hill & Partners brought client company SIGG to a recent show with a streamlined custom rental property featuring a diverse use of materials, including an aluminum backdrop, textured panels and illuminated shelving that held rows of SIGG’s signature spun aluminum reusable bottles.

Another “stand-out” method is one that Hill & Partners created for client company Bullhorn. The company’s desire to be prominent among competitors at the show and convey a sense of “living in Bullhorn” gave us a unique opportunity to design an exhibit distinctive to the Bullhorn brand – so we created an internally lit bullhorn made out of fabric as the focal point. The booth not only portrayed the client’s desired concept but was also visible from all areas of the tradeshow floor, glowing high above the other exhibits.

Beyond the exhibit, it’s wise to develop a relationship with the show organizer and evaluate all opportunities they provide to enhance your presence at the show, such as: new apparel line showcase; sponsorship opportunities; potential speaking engagements at conference programs; press room activities.

And don’t lose sight of post show communications: – anything worth doing is worth talking about. Inform your network about the success of the event and follow up with partners and prospects met at the show. And always solicit feedback and record that information for future trade show efforts.

Clear and honest communication of objectives, making best use of available resources and maintaining a strong partnership with your exhibit provider will lead to best results on the show floor.

About Michael

Michael McMahon is CEO of Hill & Partners, a firm that specializes in branded environments and trade show exhibits. 617-471-7990.

Filed Under: PR Couture, Tips & Strategy Tagged With: Fashion Events, Tradeshows

Zandra Rhodes Fashion Show at the Mingei International Museum

February 8, 2011 2 Comments written by Crosby

In the spring of 2000, I spent a semester studying fashion marketing and merchandising at the London College of Fashion. In some class or another, I was assigned a paper topic having something to do with textiles (ha! memory gets a bit foggy after a decade – egads, a decade), and given the names of two designers, Sonia Delaunay and Zandra Rhodes. I enjoyed the abstract geometrics of Delaunay and reading about her artistic exploits with husband Robert (the couple coined the Orphism art movement), but it was Zandra’s zest pink and purple, her use of lipstick bottles as patterns, that really struck my fancy. And, as a former pink-haired girl myself, I have a supreme fondness for any woman over the age of twenty-five that has unabashedly stayed pink.

Zandra splits her time in London and Del Mar (a city just north of San Diego), is also the the founder of the Fashion and Textile Museum and was recently Zandra Rhodes was appointed Chancellor of the University for the Creative Arts. Luckily for San Diego, Zandra allowed another museum, the Mingei (my favorite – best gift shop!), to produce a running exhibition compiling forty years of work. I immediately became a member and attended the opening of the exhibit where after much encouragement from friends (I am really very shy, you see), was able to meet the Jem-haired dame and blab for a moment about my academic introduction while The BFF had her book signed by Mz. Rhodes and splurged on a scarf. I then signed up for a denim workshop, she kindly gave a face to my puffy-paint style golden mermaid. It followed then, that I just had to attend the museum’s fashion show and auction, and the Mingei were lovely enough to oblige.

I can only imagine what it must be like to be the center of such an event, to be celebrated for decades of art, effort and commitment to ones passion and to draw so much appreciation and love for one’s contributions. And yet, to perhaps be also keenly aware of one’s own history, to relive the dresses, caftans and robes and be reminded of the times, the people, the important things, when they were created…I would guess it to be sort of sad sweetness for time passed and quiet pride for the legacy that has been left. But I have a feeling Zandra is far too busy living than to fall too far down that rabbit hole.

The fashion show took place amidst the standard white tables, clinking glasses and sequined attire of most high-brow museum events, but with a slightly psychedelic flair. The backdrop was lit pink (of course) and the wishbone style runway was decorated from above via what were perhaps hundreds of single fabric scarves tied to the ceiling. Zandra curated an enjoyable experience beginning in 1969 and continuing through to today, and set her designs against a musical backdrop that included everything from Abba to Enya. Models carried miniature disco balls, tossed paper petals and danced. Hooray for more activity on the runway than turn, pivot, turn. The hair and make-up was particularly fabulous, big brassy hair, bright lips and tribal eyebrows – delicious.

The final touch? Dessert featuring cookies in the shape of a Z covered in pink sugar crystals. After the show, I caught a young model leaving, feathers in hair and make-up bold as ever, wearing jeans, carrying one of those imposing history textbooks. Fitting, no?

Photos courtesy of the Mingei International Museum. More photos are available on their Facebook Page. The exhibition Zandra Rhodes — A Lifelong Love Affair with Textiles, goes through April 3, 2011.

Filed Under: News & Events, PR Couture Tagged With: Fashion Events