Undergraduates Jackie Bruni and Annabelle Line spent their last semester at The University of Texas at Austin as interns at The University Co-Op doing visual merchandising and buying, respectively. This was a very successful partnering; the Co-Op recently responded to an Instagram post by the Division of Textiles and Apparel: "We definitely miss Jackie and Annabelle! They were an awesome addition to our team!"
The Division of Textiles and Apparel, primarily through the efforts of faculty member Nancy Prideaux, had developed relationships with dozens of businesses over the last 30 years so that undergraduates in the Merchandising and Consumer Science Program can garner real-word experience.
Annabelle Line learned a lot while at the Co-Op this Spring.
What kinds of projects did you do at the Co-Op?
One of the first projects that I was assigned was to create boards that displayed what products were arriving each month. This was to help better the communication between the buyers and the store managers, merchandiser and sales associates.
After I completed the order boards, my boss Leslie asked me to present them in the manager's meeting that week. Jo Nell, the women's buyer, also asked me to present the new denim cutoffs and bralettes that had just arrived in the managers meeting. This meeting consisted of the CEO, the three VP's, the buyers, store director, warehouse coordinator, and the managers of graphic design, marketing and merchandising.
What do you think of your work experience?
Learning how to present in meetings in front of a large and intimidating crowd of adults is a skill that I am very happy I got to develop at my time at the Co-Op.
