How to get the most out of your sustainable fashion internship
Meet three women who once worked with me and the advice they have on maximising your intern experience.
If there’s one thing I feel phenomenally grateful for, it’s the incredible interns I have worked with in this industry. I get asked a lot in my sustainable fashion office hours about everything to do with how to make the most out of an internship these days, how to springboard from there to the ideal career, and what all to do to get ahead throughout, as well as following, them.
Given that my own experience interning was now 20 years ago (where I spent time at Vogue, Grazia, The Daily Telegraph, Yves Saint Laurent and Gap, among other places), I turned those questions on three women who have each spent up to six months working alongside me in more recent times to get their views.
Please welcome Savanna Razzaque, now a project manager at the British Fashion Council’s Institute of Positive Fashion, focused on its Low Carbon Transition Programme and IPF Forum; Clara Tomé Colomer, now an environmental legal consultant, advocating for the Rights of Nature and giving talks to youth in schools and universities; and Lissy Bäumler, now a strategy consultant at a global consultancy firm.
Please follow their work and the incredible things they are each doing both professionally and outside of their working day (their Linkedin accounts are each above) - from hosting youth hackathons to organising clothing swaps and creating community-led solutions.
Onto their advice on being an intern then…
1. What do you wish you’d known before starting your internship in sustainable fashion?
Savanna: “Sustainable fashion encompasses policy, human rights, innovation, data, supply chains, communications, materials, design and more; I wish I’d known that you don’t necessarily need to specialise in just one area—being a curious generalist with a holistic perspective is just as valuable.”
Clara: “That the work you're doing might actually matter more than you realise at the time… I was so focused on getting every detail right, meeting deadlines and keeping up with the pace that I didn’t take time to step back and see the bigger picture; that I was contributing to something meaningful. I wish I’d allowed myself to feel that sense of responsibility with a sense of pride, instead of only the pressure of being an intern or not knowing enough.”
Lissy: “It’s in your hands to shape your experience and create opportunities for yourself so actively shape your internship instead of just passively doing tasks.”
2. What advice would you give to others about making the most out of their internship?
Savanna: “Put yourself out there and get involved in as much as you can! Whether that be through networking events or talks your company may organise internally, attending webinars online or seeking out events that are taking place in your city. Meet as many people as possible and ask about their career journeys and backgrounds, this allowed me to understand that no career path is linear, there are so many opportunities to explore and you can always pivot.”
Clara: “Intern like an ethnographer: observe, listen, document, analyse... Be curious. You weren’t hired to be an expert, you are there to learn so ask questions, as many as you need, even if they feel obvious.”
Lissy: “Try to build relationships with your team so that you feel confident to speak up and share your thoughts and ideas. Also, take ownership of tasks and push progress on it - just pretend you’re the key owner of whatever workstream you’re on (as an intern you often don’t feel the responsibility so much, which sometimes puts you in a bit of a passive role).”
3. What tips do you have for using an internship as a springboard to unlock future opportunities?
Savanna: “To my point above, get involved in events and then follow up and stay in touch with the people you meet as you never know how your paths may cross again in the future. I found my first role after my internship by attending a webinar on a topic of interest, I then followed up with the organisers, which led to understanding there was a role in their company that was the right fit for me.”
Clara: “Use your internship as a launchpad to connect, not just with the team you work with, but with a broader network. Reach out to people, stay in touch, and apply to side projects, events or programmes. In my case, that internship opened the door for me to join the first cohort of the Next Gen Assembly by Global Fashion Agenda, which led to attending the Global Fashion Summit and expanding my network in many ways.”
Lissy: “Be proactive and network during the internship - grab coffees, go for lunch, etc. If you’re genuinely interested in the other person and the work they’re doing you can have some great conversations and bond beyond the superficial networking small-talk.”