Loughborough graduate Rebecca Griffiths tells us how she found the inspiration and courage to start her own business and some top tips for those of you who want to do the same! Since this is something we can relate to here at RMP we’re delighted to let her tell you her story. Here’s what she had to say…

For me, graduating from Loughborough University was one of the most daunting experiences. Being released into the real world is something that most students dread. It’s even harder still when after three years of study you still haven’t worked out what you want as a career. This was my dilemma.

I would never have imagined starting a business but today, I am writing this blog post following the launch of my new online fashion store wantherdress.com. The website is a family business and was created with my sister, a graduate of Leeds University.

I had never seen myself working in the fashion industry; I had studied drama so it was a very unlikely move. It soon became clear to me that the fashion industry was the way forward, since all my interests were within it and e-commerce, especially in fashion, is continuing to grow making it one of the most popular ways for customers to shop. Now I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else. You don’t have to stick to what you have studied, there are so many opportunities out there and you can adapt your experiences from university to suit the career you love. Charlotte, my sister, knew shortly after graduating that this was her dream career. This made the perfect balance when working together.

The creation of wantherdress.com has taken around five months from the initial idea. Starting a business is extremely difficult, but the most challenging part is having the guts to go for it. We have learnt so much already. As young women and recent graduates, we have found that sometimes it is difficult to be taken seriously by the people we deal with. We have now built more confidence when dealing with suppliers and other partners to ensure that we are receiving the best service from everyone.

The goal for this website is not just to be an online store. As you can see by the name Want Her Dress, it has more of a social context to it. Our eventual aim is for the website to be a social network for girls and women to share their fashion experiences, style tips and photos to encourage others to Want Her Dress.

Tips for students looking to start a business:

• Rather than constantly talking about ideas, take action.
• Don’t be put off by others or talk yourself out of it.
• If you believe you can do it, you’re right. Never give up.
• Never be embarrassed about what you don’t know, never pretend to understand something you don’t, just ask.
• Enjoy it…business should be fun!

Visit our website: www.wantherdress.com. You can also follow Want Her Dress on Facebook: www.facebook.com/wantherdress & Twitter: @WantHerDress for exclusive posts on offers, photos and an insight into the day-to-day workings of the team!

Words by Rebecca Griffiths

Photo by Tomal Price

We are all aware of the high levels of graduate unemployment and the rising costs of attending university.

It’s not all bad though!  An article in Personnel Today discusses how important undergraduate work experience is, both for students and employers. Maria Floud, senior graduate recruitment manager at accountancy firm Grant Thornton, states that the increase in university fees is making employers reflect on their schemes and realise how important it is to attract students from an earlier age.

“The internship model used as a key pipeline to the graduate programme is very successful. We recently won the ‘Best Placement and Internship’ award by Rate My Placement, due to the focus we put on ensuring this programme to find great talent earlier on.”

Congratulations to Grant Thornton and thanks for our mention – hopefully this will give employers and students the oomph and encouragement to undertake a placement or internship scheme  :)

If you’re a student there is still time to grab a placement or internship this summer so check out the opportunities on http://www.ratemyplacement.co.uk/search

We are also interested to hear your thoughts so drop us a line with your comments below.

Thanks,

The RateMyPlacement Team

Always looking to offer our users the latest scoop; I recently came across this competition and thought it might be of interest to those still looking for some work experience this summer within the Fashion and Retail sector. The only problem is that it is unpaid and based in London, so it won’t be for everyone – but if you are in the lucky position to be able to work for free for a few weeks take a look and go pick up your entry card!

Armani Exchange is teaming up with Grazia magazine and MTV to offer one reader the opportunity to win a three week internship in London. The judges are looking for someone with a passion for fashion – as well as amazing communication skills and self-confidence.

The winner will enjoy one week at Grazia magazine, shadowing the fashion team and seeing how a magazine is put together. The second week, they will go behind the scenes at iconic television network MTV. And the lucky intern will spend the third and final week at Armani Exchange helping the press and marketing teams. You’ll come away bursting with ideas about what you want to do (or, if you have a career already, what direction you’d like to take it in), plus have a CV jam-packed with contacts to help you on your way. What are you waiting for?

HOW TO ENTER

Entries can only be made by picking up an entry card at one of the six Armani Exchange stores across the country. For your nearest, visit armaniexchange.com. To enter, write one sentence saying why you should win. This should be no more than 50 words and completed on the back of the entry card. The competition closes 8 August 2010 at 6pm.

For all the lovely T’s and C’s check out the full article here

A recent article from the BBC describes how Aldi’s applications for the retail group’s management scheme have been astronomical. With a starting salary of £40,000 rising to £61,000 in three years, it’s easy to see why.

To get through the initial filtering from an online form, applicants need to have a 2:1 degree and recruiters are looking for evidence of leadership and commitment outside of studies. So what can set you apart from the rest?

“For us, graduates who stand out from the mix are those that combine academic and non-academic skills and experiences,” says head of graduate recruitment Richard Holloway.

“Leading a local or university sports team, carrying out voluntary or charity work, having a part-time job, or going the extra mile to reach individual potential is favoured over first-class honours.”

The article also describes how your CV can put you in good stead in the process. “Getting as far as an interview depends on a persuasive CV. Aldi give some top tips – advising applicants to provide an informative, succinct and spell-checked account of achievements, qualifications and skills, not spreading beyond two pages.”

To read more click here.

A topic that is frequently discussed within Graduate Recruitment is that of supply and demand and the issue of graduate skill sets being appropriately moulded for the world of work…Never has it been so important to have relevant work experience and transferable skills, as well as a good degree classification in order to gain a position within a relevant field.

The CIPD’s latest ‘Focus on Graduate Jobs’ calls for government policy to concentrate on “understanding and meeting the real skills needs of employers” in addition to providing better information about the “realistic” employment and salary prospects available to graduates.

In this climate, arm yourself as best you can and take up as many opportunities as possible. Whether that’s through a part time job, work experience via an Internship or Placement or getting involved with your student union. Plus, be realistic about what is actually achievable!

As always feel free to comment

We have already offered the BEST placement opportunity Ever… Now, we are looking for 25 students to be our On Campus Brand Managers for 2010/2011 and take the BEST part time job EVER!

Be quick to apply as competition is fierce; we only have one spot per campus and we’re expecting applications to come in thick and fast.

To find out more information and to apply click here.

In this recent blog from Grad Expectations, Rob talks about what is good experience and how important it is to pick the right industry and have the right attitude. A timely piece for some, it may help those of you still looking for work experience before September or for your placement year next year!

Ticket to the Table – A degree is not enough!

A stark reality for many Graduates leaving University is that your degree, whilst something you should be proud of, is still just a ticket to the table. It is the piece of paper that enables you to have a different conversation with organisations. But on its own however, it will not guarantee you a job!

If you degree is just a ticket to the table, you must therefore seek to differentiate yourself from your peers!

How do you differentiate yourself from your peers?

If all the other applicants have the same (or similar) degree to you, you have to differentiate yourself by getting the ‘Right’ Experience!

What is the ‘Right’ Experience?

For me there are two types of ‘Right’ Experience:

1. The Right Industry:

Some jobs will require a certain type of industry specific experience. If this is the case, this is what you’ll need to get, which I know is easier said than done. However, the right industry experience does not always mean getting that experience in that exact industry. What I mean by this, is that many employers when looking for industry experience are really looking for confidence that you know the industry and more importantly the vocation you’re applying for. For example, you can still prove that you understand and apply your marketing expertise if you’re working in a department store. You can do this by proving that by applying your marketing expertise you’ve helped increase sales and customer satisfaction. This approach is what we call ‘transferable experience’, because your proving that you can transfer your expertise from one area into another.

I should say however, that some technical disciplines will need specific experience. This is really a way of them sifting through the very many applications they get. However, don’t be put off by this. My best advice here is really get creative in how you will get this experience e.g. placements, volunteering, shadowing, research etc…

2. Right Attitude:

The right attitude is something that recruiters always look for, but those looking for a job find it hard prove. For me, as a recruiter of Graduates, the right attitude is as follows:

• You prove that you have drive and ambition – you get involved in activities outside of study and working part time. This could be anything from clubs and societies through to volunteering.
• You prove that you can achieve real results – it’s one thing to say that you’re involved in different committees etc, but what are you delivering through them? I always look for proof of what people have achieved rather than just their participation. E.g. increased the membership of a club by 500% in 6 months, makes me take notice.
• You prove that you fit their team – this is by far the most difficult thing to prove, but what all employers are looking for is someone who fits their team. What runs through my head is; Would I like to work with this person? They way you prove this is through the description of who you are, your achievements and your interests. Whilst all of the other experience is great, if we see you as someone that we wouldn’t want on our team – you’ve got no chance!!

A Last Word… The key to getting the right experience is to be creative and strategic. You have to be thinking like an employer – that is, what are they really looking for in their future employees? By doing this you can then start to be more creative in the full range of things you activities you get involved in, and you can be more strategic in making sure that those activities give you the ‘Right’ Experience!

A familiar idea that is frequently discussed on RateMyPlacement; this latest blog from Grad Expectations is all about making the most out of your placement. A timely piece for some, it may help those of you starting your placement year over the coming months to set off on the right foot!

Sitting in the Corner

On Thursday this week an email arrived in my inbox with a spreadsheet attached. In that spreadsheet was a list of all the Graduates and all the placement students in our company. As a Graduate Programme manager I make sure that I know everyone of these people. However, on Thursday as I scanned through this new list I saw a name that hadn’t been there before.

‘That’s interesting,’ I thought to myself as I checked out who this person was on the directory. Under their name it said that they were a Placement Student. Instantly I picked up the phone to find out more. It turned out that this was true, Mark was a placement student who’d been working in the company for the last 8 months. He’d been brought in through one of the ‘alternate routes’ rather than through the central system, which sometimes happens. And it was only now that the standard reports were showing that he ‘existed’.

“So are you planning to apply for a job with our company once you Graduate?” I asked Mark after he told me his story. “Probably,” he replied. “But I haven’t really enjoyed my time here,” he continued. “I don’t really know anyone and all I’ve been doing is sitting in the corner and analysing spreadsheets for the entire time.” ‘Wow,’ I thought, ‘poor guy.’

After setting him up to talk to some other people so he could find something more interesting to do, I wondered why he wasn’t doing more to get the most out of his placement.

Get the most out of your Placement

Generally I see that there are 3 reasons people do a placement:

1. Their course requires them to
2. They want to get the experience to build their CV
3. They want to land a job with that company once they Graduate

Regardless of the reason you’re doing a placement, it is essential that you use the opportunity to the best of your advantage. And, unlike what Mark was doing (i.e. sitting quietly in the corner) this means doing 3 key things:

1. Know what you’re seeking to achieve Whenever you start any new job or project, always think about what you want to get out of it! This doesn’t mean being purely self motivated, but on a placement you have a great opportunity to develop new skills and new contacts. So if you start with clear goals in mind, you can be more focused on achieving them. For example, if you want to get experience in a specific area of work, then make sure you tell your manager this, as they will usually help you achieve it.

With Mark, he had a goal of trying to get a job after Graduation, but I had to ask him to find that out. If he had made his goal explicit, like other placement students, he would have hunted me down and told me what he was trying to achieve, and then I could help him.

So morale of this part of the story is that if people don’t know specifically what you want to achieve during your placement, they can’t help you – you have to have goals, and you have to make these goals known!

2. Build Your Contacts One of the things I find is really common in organisations is that most managers are happy to spend time talking to new people. And more importantly, they’re happy to talk about themselves to new people – managers love talking about themselves!

With this in mind, against the goals of what you want to achieve, make sure you build your contacts. This doesn’t mean you have to be a ‘networking freak’ who cold calls every manager in the business, but I would encourage you to pick out certain managers and schedule some time to buy them a coffee. When you do this, make sure you start the conversation asking them about their current role, their experience and then, any tips they have for being successful. Then talk about yourself and what you’re trying to achieve. Every manager I know (including me!!) loves this because it makes them feel important as they impart their worldy wisdom to help someone, which gives you the perfect opportunity to build your contacts.

As with my statement above, after they’ve talked about themselves, make sure you tell them what you’re trying to achieve. If they don’t know this, they can’t help you!

Even 30minutes of some-one’s time can open up a range of opportunities for you, if you’re prepared to ask. So do not sit in the corner, get out and make the time to talk to people. This is how you’ll get known and how you’ll find out about new opportunities.

3. Use your Initiative to Get Involved When you start your first professional job, knowing where the boundaries are can sometimes be tough. For many Students and Graduates, the fear of getting it wrong too often prevents them from really showing what they’re capable of. This to me is a flawed approach. With any Student or Graduate, what I want to see is them using their initiative and getting involved in things. If you just sit there doing only what you’ve been asked (as with Mark and his data analysis), you’re not really adding a huge amount of value to your boss or your company. So…seek to get involved.

How do you get involved? – One way is to use your initiative to look for simple things that aren’t working and fix them – I call this positive dissatisfaction and positive impact! Over my years of working I’m yet to see an organisation where every-thing’s perfect. This therefore gives you plenty of opportunity to do other value adding things to show what you’re capable of. And, a good place to start with this is to find out what’s keeping your boss awake at night.

As you look for things to get involved with or to fix, be sure to start small and build up. I’ve seen too many people take on too much too quickly and fail to deliver. So be sure to start with ‘quick wins’, or ‘low hanging fruit’ as they say, and build up to bigger things from there. It’s amazing how often fixing the simple things will help you get noticed…so don’t ever be afraid to show your initiative and get involved!

A Last Thought… Regardless of the reason you’re doing a placement, it is essential that you make the most of your opportunity. However, to do this you have to drive it – you have to make it happen. Within every organisation I’ve seen there are always people or managers who will help you, but as the saying goes – you have to help yourself! If you sit there in the corner like Mark waiting form someone to find and help you, it’s unlikely to happen. But…if you know what you want to achieve, if you get out and make contacts, and, if you show people what you’re capable of, then you will get the most out of your placement!

As you may remember, we brought you the Kit Kat Challenge ‘regional heats’ at careers fairs on campuses nationwide over the 1st Semester… The Challenge was to build the highest tower possible out of 20 Kit Kat Chunky’s in 60 seconds… Don’t understand what we mean? Watch the video to view the introduction:

The winners of the regional heats all met for the Kit Kat Challenge Final up at Nestle HQ in York this week and… We have a winner!

The Kit Kat Challenge Final took building Kit Kat towers to the next level, so instead of 20 Kit Kat Chunky’s in 60 seconds, we used 200 Kit Kat Chuky’s and those competing had 5 minutes to build the highest tower possible.

The winner, a student from the University of Manchester managed a massive 110cm!! Here’s a photo of the monster!

read what you need to succeed

Article provided by thegatewayonline.com The Gateway is the business and finance newspaper for students For more essential reading visit thegatewayonline.com

Considering a placement or internship in Retail? Then you should read The Gateway’s Guide to Retail Schemes. Whilst it is primarily aimed at Graduate schemes, many of the companies have a very similar set up for their undergraduate placement/internship scheme so it is definitely worth a few minutes of your time….

1. What is Retail / FMCG?

Retailing is the practice of selling products to consumers, typically in small quantities at relatively low prices. According to the British Retail Consortium (www.brc.org.uk), the UK retail industry accounted for £278bn of sales in 2008, hiring over 2.8 million people – or 11% of the UK workforce – in the process.

Graduate career opportunities in the sector typically lie in one of two areas: either in a head office capacity directly with the outlet itself (be it a supermarket, electronics shop or online Store,) or helping the companies that produce the retail stock (Fast Moving Consumer Goods or ‘FMCG’ firms) sell goods to stores and market their products to the consumer.

2. What do the Graduate Schemes entail?

Graduate schemes in the head office of retailers will typically involve a rotation around separate departments at the company, giving you an insight into the roles different teams play in providing a complete and efficient working operation. The most common departments to experience are Sales, Marketing, Logistics and Finance although stints in lesser known (but just as important) teams such as Human Resources, Public Affairs and Customer Insight can also occur. With each rotation normally lasting around six months, you will have the chance to gain a solid introduction into how a few different teams work before deciding at the end of the program on which department you want to work full-time.

FMCG companies typically embark you on a ‘real’ role following a much-shorter training period lasting between one and three months. With the companies that provide everything from your batteries to your washing-up liquid all operating in an extremely competitive marketplace, they are keen to get their graduates stuck in to selling and marketing their wares as quickly as possible. Depending on the focus of the scheme you’ve applied for, the day-job will involve working alongside the big retailers –selling your product, arranging promotions and keeping the client happy – or be more logistics orientated, ensuring that the stock gets from factory to shop-floor as smoothly as possible.

3. Which companies should I apply to?

14 of the Times Top 100 Graduate Employers (www.top100graduateemployers.com) are retailers or FMCG firms; all of whom are well-known international institutions. The schemes at Tesco, Aldi, Procter and Gamble, L’Oreal and Unilever in particular are all very highly regarded because of the mix of formal training and project responsibility which they involve.

Before filling in the application form, make sure that the program is one that you would find interesting and enjoy – blanketing the world with your online application is rarely as effective as researching which companies you want to work for and making sure you know the key points of each program when outlining your motivations. For example, if you want to be very hands-on as opposed to working in head office then take a look at the Aldi grad scheme which trains you up to be a supermarket Area Manager. Or if you see your future as a marketing guru, then there can be few better places to start than at L’Oreal, who each year host a student competition dedicated to advertising and branding their products (www.brandstorm.loreal.com).

Alternatively, think about which companies and products you relate to most in deciding where to apply. Did you try to pass off Waitrose’s finest as your own cooking on Valentine’s Day? Why not apply to their grad scheme? Fancy telling the world about Nurofen’s hangover curing power? Take a look at the graduate scheme of their parent company, Reckitt Benckiser.

4. What are the hours and pay like?

Pay will typically range from £22k-£28k, with small bonuses sometimes being offered for good performers (up to a maximum 10% of salary). The pay will almost always be the same for all members of the scheme in the first year and will not be negotiable. You can expect the salary to rise by a few thousand pounds a year so that you will end the scheme on some £28k-£35k.

Working for a ‘real company’ often guarantees a better work-life balance when compared to positions at consultancies or agencies as there will be fewer deadlines imposed upon your work. In reality most days will end somewhere between 6pm and 7pm, although – as with any graduate job – in busy times you may find your work travelling home with you at evenings and finding its way into the occasional weekend.

5. Future Career Prospects

In their graduates, employers are looking for their next generation of senior managerial talent and so will often have a set career progression in mind for top performers at the end of the scheme. This will either involve taking an advanced position in a certain team from where you can work your way up, or joining an ‘in-house consultancy’ team which looks to take a holistic view of the organization, tackling big issues that straddle different teams and making sure that the company is running as smoothly as possible.

However, a significant number of each graduate cohort will choose to leave at the end of their scheme, seeking perhaps the opportunity to play a part at a smaller firm which is less rigid and hierarchical in structure, or taking the opportunity to move to a consultancy which will allow them to broaden their experience beyond the retail sector. For the top performers in each scheme – those that have truly gone the extra mile and achieved more than their colleagues – demand from consultancies and agencies can be high as they look to bring on people who know how their clients work on the inside.

Also, with online sales predicted to exceed those on the high street within 20 years (according to www.computing.com,) graduate opportunities are slowly starting to exist at companies such as amazon.com, ebay.com and at several price comparison websites. Whilst anyone interested in the mix of technology and retail should check the websites of these types of companies to see if they are advertising any ad-hoc junior roles, those who have completed a well known retail graduate scheme could find a world of opportunities open to them in future which are only starting to exist at the current time.

Overall, working in a retail or FMCG company can be a great way to start your career, putting a recognized brand on your CV whilst giving you exposure to established training methods and real-life project work. With demand never going to cease for retail goods, these graduate schemes offer you the chance to work in an inherently interesting sector, picking up skills and experiences which will stand you in good stead throughout your career.

Article used with permission from The Gateway and written by Craig Abrahams