Coffee and Cavalli

During my weeks at one of the world’s largest fashion magazines, I was constantly being asked by friends and acquaintances if I felt like Anne Hathaway from The Devil Wears Prada and, to be honest, I did.

Day 1: When I first arrived at the Hearst building (the publisher of magazines like Harper’s Bazaar, Elle and Cosmopolitan), I was welcomed by the assistant of the editor I was to be working under. She [who will here forth be known as Amy] was smiley, helpful and young so I felt comfortable and immediately appeased by the fact that she wasn’t a snarky fashionista as seen on the screens. She then took me to see the editor of the magazine…

The editor, who for the purpose of the article will be called Eva, didn’t quite seem to remember who I was; only that my name was Sharvi and I had met her somewhere at some point in her life and that I had emailed her relentlessly asking for an internship. I was okay with this – at this point I had absolutely no idea what I was in for, so nobody knowing who I was might make it easier to hide and pretend I wasn’t there. Eva wasn’t rude or patronising like Meryl Streep’s character… but the mere fact that she didn’t have the time of day to talk to me was intimidating. So, I got out of her way and feverishly asked Amy where I should start.

I was sent into the fashion cupboard to take care of returning all the items that had been called out for shoots. As shallow as it sounds, I felt the simple joys of life purely by being able to touch the Lanvins, Salvatore Ferragamos and Givenchys. Like Anne Hathaway, I was the office nerd that drooled over unattainable clothes, but this was soon to change.

Day 3: A few days in, drowning in returns and having had no more verbal exchanges with Eva since the first time I met her, Amy finally told me that she wanted me to meet Ashley in order to jazz up my day a little and let me experience more of what I would be doing should I actually work there. I was given some real responsibility, organising viewings that even Amy still has to do a year into her job, and things were looking up. I was a shy little caterpillar who was slowly beginning to break out of the cocoon of fear. Ashley even told me that we should go for a coffee if ever in the future I should need some friendly career advice – I had butterflies in my stomach as though I’ve just been asked out on a date.

Day 10: I’m getting into the swing of things. Amy and the other girls, who are only a few years older than myself, are talking about Amy’s date last night. They’re normal and this is a relief. If only their humorous gossip wasn’t persistently being interrupted by Scott, the incredibly irritating other fashion student-come-intern. Scott is your stereotypically camp American fashion student who knows the address of every PR agency in the city and has memorised which celebrity wore which designer in which issue. Tip: Watch out for interns like Scott who do zero work and take all the credit on joint jobs – make your face known by being the one who asks your superior if there is anything else YOU can do to help as YOU have finished the last task.

Day… it’s all one big blur: Finally, a few people know my name, it’s taken a few weeks but I’m no longer a nobody and this is highlighted by today’s turning point. Eva enters the room and asks if I’d like to go out for a chat; outside she asks me about my education, previous experience and career goals. My equal to Meryl Streep tells me that I’ve done a great job and that I should send her an e-mail with the dates of when I’d like to return. Mission accomplished.

My internship has ended, and I class it a success. I didn’t once have to make anyone a coffee, and I’m now a pro at pretending I know anything about the fashion world. Finally, I’ve evolved into a butterfly ready to make my flight into the world of journalism.