Gemini Work Experience: Phoebe
My name is Phoebe Lawrence and I’m currently a Year 12 student at a local sixth form college, where I was tasked with completing a work experience placement before beginning school in Year 13. For this, Gemini Woman was a clear choice for me, as I have a love for fashion and retail, and an interest in going into fashion design at some point in the future. My goals for the 5-day placement were simply to gain experience in what working in the different aspects of retail was like, and I was especially interested in the social element to the placement, which I did on my third day of the placement.
My experience at Gemini Woman was really insightful and has given me a much better understanding of what goes on behind the scenes of a retail business, in multiple aspects such as marketing, stock, dispatch and social media, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed taking part in.
On the first day of my placement, I began by meeting the online team at Gemini, who were all so friendly and welcoming from the first moment, which made Gemini Woman a nice environment to come into. I was then tasked with completing a website review which was something that I found really useful for getting familiar with the style of the company.
I was then introduced to Google analytics, and I thought it was really interesting to look at all the avenues of the business, alongside Becky who explained everything really well, so it was easy for me to understand.
I also went through content, which included making mood boards and looking at the merchandising aspect, and this was something I really enjoyed as gave me insight on the merchandising strategies used to really appeal to a customer, which is something I think is really important for a business.
On day 2 of my placement, I started by going out and doing some flatlays around Stratford with some of the products on display at Gemini Woman. We started with some flat lays of shoes, and I was able to get behind the camera and take some photos as well, before I was shown how to use different techniques to edit the photos to a professional standard. I especially loved this experience as it allowed me to see the creative side of the business: this department definitely stood out to me.
Then in the afternoon, I was able to get hands-on with labelling and sorting stock from a new delivery, and I found it particularly interesting to see the system of processing and sorting the products into their categories. Everything was clearly explained to me which was super helpful and once I got used to the process it was quite enjoyable learning how to do everything.
Then on the third day at Gemini Woman, I took part in what was probably my favourite activity throughout the placement, which was to create and edit a reel for the Gemini Woman Instagram page, with the help of Paige and Liz on the shop floor. This was really fun to do and also really useful as I learnt the skills needed to create content for a business on social media, which is helpful for businesses to be able to do to promote their products.
I also got to do a review of competitors social media platforms and was tasked with looking out for strategies they use that might be good for Gemini Woman to use to promote different products. I thought it was a really good activity for me to do to learn the different methods businesses can use to promote and boost their company, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
My final task on Day 3 was to write a blog about my experience with doing a placement at Gemini Woman which is another really useful way of drawing attention to a business and attracting a wider range of customers, so I was more than happy to write about my experience as I had a really wonderful time seeing how everything works at Gemini
On Day 4, I worked in Dispatch alongside Poppy and Scarlett, where I was shown the stock room and how each brand is sorted and coded in different ways. At first, I found the stock room quite daunting, but once it was explained to me how everything was sorted and packed, I had a much greater understanding and this was really helpful when it then came to learning how to pick orders. I then moved onto invoicing and packaging each order ready for shipment. This was a very interesting process and I really enjoyed learning what goes on in this area of the business, as it was completely new to me.
This experience was another which particularly stood out to me as it seemed quite different from the other activities I’d taken part in previously, but I thought it was great to see how everything was done as it’s a key part of the online business.
My time on the shop floor on my final day was such an enjoyable experience where I helped prepare for an upcoming sale. My tasks included labelling sale items and sorting new arrivals onto the clothes racks, but what I particularly enjoyed was learning how to serve customers at the till. I found it useful to learn how the till works and how payments are taken, as well as being taught about the loyalty scheme. The team were so welcoming and friendly and being on the shop floor was certainly one of my favourite days in my placement.
Overall, I've really enjoyed my placement at Gemini Woman, and it's been a really insightful experience into what goes on behind the scenes of a small retail business. I have learnt several new skills which will undoubtedly be useful to me in the future, as I have a keen interest in persuing a career in fashion, and this interest has only been heightened since my placement here. I was introduced to so many new processes and methods that I was never aware of before, and I highly recommend the business for future placements due to the welcoming nature of the team at Gemini Woman.
