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Internships are an essential stage of learning for any career in any industry. Fashion design internships are very much important to understand the actual work of fashion industry. They can provide an amateur the exposure of the practical procedures of the fashion design job/career. Studying something in theory is very different from actually doing it and internships provide an opportunity to every student to implement their learning. Internships in the fashion industry enhance skills like creativity, research, analysis, sketching, using software and other tools etc. Thus, every student must go through this stage of internship before actually climbing the ladder of their career. Internships also give some clarity about your area of interest and acumen. Unless you try different job profiles it is difficult to take the decision of which exact branch of fashion you want to pick from the vast variety of options such as fashion styling, fashion designing, fashion merchandising, blogging, etc.
Irrespective of which line you choose, working at different profiles with different companies will always keep you ahead of the average masses and give you an insight into what you’re best at. So companies like ITC Wills Lifestyle, AND, Pantaloons etc induct students every year and build their marketable skills by a huge extent.
Let us now examine the dynamics of interning at companies of various scales.
Big brands like AND or Global Desi work at large scales. With thousands of employees working like clockwork every hour of the day, this work experience can teach you to work systematically and professionally. This is an advantage which can make you habituated with global scale companies and train you according to the best standards because any brand is highly particular about quality and consumer satisfaction. In spite of these attractions there are certain limitations of working with big names. One of them is that you cannot experiment as much as you would be able to in a smaller company. Such companies are rigid and strict about their procedures. Thus, your raw talent and creativity will become confined to their rules and procedures which you will be compelled to abide by.
Small companies which are yet to attain fame and a name for themselves are more flexible and give more space to hit and try by offering fashion design internships. They also grant you more responsibilities and work that is significant and counts for the company. This can be gratifying for a student and can build his or her confidence immensely. Established companies have higher stakes involved and thus cannot risk to hand their critical work to freshers or interns but small companies do not have the option of a large human resource and thus will give interns unimaginable opportunities and chances that can transform their careers and enhance their portfolios.
Working with individual professionals or fashion designers is also an alternative which can be fruitful for fashion students. The biggest advantage of working with a fashion designer or stylist is that you will get customized attention and mentor-ship. This means that your work will be personally reviewed or examined and given feedback. The fiduciary professional relationship can often become personal and enriching. All the insider information, guidance and advice is like treasure to a student and irreplaceable by the repute of brand.
Thus, a decision of the type of internship must be taken carefully after weighing requirements and the stage at which you are. It is advisable to intern at reputed companies after gaining some expertise and working with smaller enterprises but if you don’t have the penchant of trying out new things then you can right away associate with big names and make a place for yourself there for future. Whichever case it is, no student should skip the stage of internship because that will lead him to land into jabs unprepared and under confident.
