My internship for this summer is with Raven + Lily. R+L is a fashion accessory brand that works with HIV- positive women in Ethiopia, and poverty stricken women in India to combine their sewing skills and their countries’ natural resources with Western designs. For example, one of my favorite R+L pieces is a necklace reconstructed from melted bullet shell casings in Ethiopia. The goal of this brand is to empower women by providing sustainable economic opportunities. R+L is a brand changing lives for women in desperate situations and allowing westerners to be socially conscious consumers, and yet still very fashionable. I am their design intern for this summer.
A couple of days before I started my internship, R+L made a major shift- it went from being a non-profit organization to a socially responsible for-profit brand. It was definitely fun to come into the company during this shift. Everyone I work with is extremely optimistic, because these changes only mean growth for R+L and a chance to offer our international artisans more economic opportunities. I must say that with all the changes being made daily, my job description hasn’t really been the most predictable schedule. Some days I am in the office all day compiling forms and documents, and then there are days like Thursday where I had to conduct a photo shoot and photograph some of R+L’s products to show to our wholesalers. My regular work day consists of the most random tasks and moments! It is such a different energy working with a start-up company compared to an established company. Unlike an established company where employees might have become jaded and stuck in a routine; at R+L everyone is so motivated and excited to be a part of the company that I can’t help but to be enthusiastic about all the odd ball tasks that we undertake, ie. painting our building next week. With the unpredictable moments combined with the positive vibe that I get from my co-workers I know this summer with R+L is going to be a very unique life experience.
A couple of days before I started my internship, R+L made a major shift- it went from being a non-profit organization to a socially responsible for-profit brand. It was definitely fun to come into the company during this shift. Everyone I work with is extremely optimistic, because these changes only mean growth for R+L and a chance to offer our international artisans more economic opportunities. I must say that with all the changes being made daily, my job description hasn’t really been the most predictable schedule. Some days I am in the office all day compiling forms and documents, and then there are days like Thursday where I had to conduct a photo shoot and photograph some of R+L’s products to show to our wholesalers. My regular work day consists of the most random tasks and moments! It is such a different energy working with a start-up company compared to an established company. Unlike an established company where employees might have become jaded and stuck in a routine; at R+L everyone is so motivated and excited to be a part of the company that I can’t help but to be enthusiastic about all the odd ball tasks that we undertake, ie. painting our building next week. With the unpredictable moments combined with the positive vibe that I get from my co-workers I know this summer with R+L is going to be a very unique life experience.
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