Fairytale Boutique opened its doors in the heart of Little Tokyo, Los Angeles in June 2012. It is a boutique that sells new and pre-owned Japanese street fashion designer attire and accessories.
- Sole Proprietorship
- Owner – Miki
- Helpers: Shaun, Monique, Olivia
- Intern: Sami
- Target Market: Women 16-30 years old.
- Suppliers: Stores in Japan and Consignment items
My Responsibilities
- Input inventory and prepare items to be sold in the store and on the online website.
- Add products to computer inventory, add hangtag to item with SKU, new or used, and price, hang them neatly so they display properly.
- Assist customers
- Help them find what they're looking for, assist them in the dressing room.
- Prepare for and host in-store events
- Model for store in photo shoots.
My Experience
I was very fortunate to get this internship, and I definitely learned a lot. It taught me how to work in the retail environment since I haven't worked in retail before. I learned the inner workings of a store, and everything that it takes to run one, including marketing, visual merchandising, inventory, store layout, and the online store.
The online store was my biggest responsibility, since we really wanted to get that up and running. I learned everything about the admin side of it, and quickly found there are a lot of small details that need to be input for an item before it can be put on the floor, and even more for when it goes up online.
I was able to apply my knowledge from AMM, because it has taught me all I know about the fashion industry. I’ve learned about store layouts and floor plans, fabrics and sewing skills, and accounting and store management. In different ways, I was able to apply these skills and more to my internship, which made me a greater asset because I wasn’t coming into it with no knowledge of the industry.
I did learn a lot for the time I was there. I enjoyed that I already knew my boss, because it made the dynamic between us more relaxed and comfortable. I think if she didn’t know her intern, it wouldn’t have gone nearly as well. I am very thankful for the opportunity.
The Store
The Online Store
Check it out here at Fairytale-Boutique.com!
Fairytale Boutique's online store was already in the works, but they needed a lot more help before it was ready to launch. This is where I came in! All of the items we had in store were in the computer system, but didn't have photos or descriptions, so they couldn't be put online. Part of my job was to add these in. For certain items, I was able to use stock photos from the original stores, but for other items, we had to take photos ourselves.
I had help from Miki's boyfriend, Shaun, since he had been working on it previously. Shaun showed me how to photograph items and then Photoshop them to make them look professionally presentable. I was really proud of myself when Shaun told me I was a quick learner and was picking up inputting information for the items and Photoshopping the stock photos correctly. Throughout my time as an intern, this is mostly what I worked on. It was a lot of work assuring every item had all the pieces of information it needed, but when it was launched, it felt amazing.
Finally, on February 25, our grand opening announcement went out on our Facebook page!
| Hello Everyone! We have exciting news from Fairytale Boutique! We’ve been working hard on our website, and we’re happy to announce the Fairytale Boutique Online Shop GRAND OPENING!!! Please come visit us at Fairytale-Boutique.com and see all the wonderful and cute items we have for sale! ~~We will be offering a small gift with every purchase~~ (while supplies last) We wish everyone a great day! P.S. Please be aware that though the website is now open, not all items are available online. Feel free to contact us through our contact form on the website, or on Facebook. We will be restocking the website as often as we can! |
Orders came in quickly afterward, and I helped package them and ship them off. I was very happy to see the site launch smoothly.
In-Store Event
On February 10, we held a Valentines event. Miki did a lot of running around to buy all the items we needed to prepare for the event. The day before, we made the candygrams we would be selling for $10.
We closed the shop for a half an hour before the event to rearrange the furniture, set up the candygram table, and prepare the store for the awaiting guests.
My outfit for the day (I'm in pink):
We played bingo and had a raffle, and people won some good prizes. We also had a best dressed contest, and it was hard to pick a winner! It was a great event, I got to see a lot of familiar faces, and it created a lot of revenue for the store! It was very interesting to be on the other side of things by working the event instead of just coming as a guest, but at the same time, I was still able to talk to many of my friends! I enjoyed being able to help out, and I’m so happy everything went smoothly.
Modeling for Fairytale Boutique
Monique, Olivia, and I did a photoshoot for the store. Miki is still working on some of the photos, but here are a few from our shoot:
After the Internship
Miki has offered me a part-time job after my internship. It will be a twice-weekly position to help with the store's inventory so items can be added to the online store. I will be taking stock photos and editing them, and writing the descriptions for the items. I will also help run the store when Miki is not available.
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