Danielle Sanchez worked at Vanity Fair and is a Florida State University graduate. After working there for a year, she left to start her own magazine for her parents’ new up-and-coming boutique jewelry business.
She majored in “editing, writing and media” in college, which she said infused both her fashion and writing interests.
Danielle was the content editor for Clutch, FSU’s on-campus fashion magazine. After graduation she was an apparel intern for 6 weeks, then was hired as jewelry coordinator at Vanity Fair, where she stayed for a year.
Danielle’s day-to-day:
“I was a jewelry coordinator -- the assistant to the assistant to the accessories editor.”
“They would decide on a theme and come to me and say, ‘We’ll do a Marilyn Monroe shoot with Kate Upton. This is what we’re looking for. Can you contact X and X and X and see if they have anything that would work?’ They send it over, and I set it out for the editors. I put the yes’s out for them to design with, and put the no’s in the safe.” Then she packs everything up -- carefully.
“I make sure things are not broken and leave not broken. There’s a lot of liability in our department because we borrow absolutely everything. Making sure everything is in mint condition is really important.”
“We have inspiration photos, and someone would say, ‘I need this hat -- exactly.’ If no one had it, we’d have to make it. We base our samples off the photos. When I get the photos, I’d have enough inspiration images to gauge whether it’s the right for the shoot. Ultimately it’s the accessories editor’s decision for the shoots., and she decides what goes to the fashion director.”
Danielle also copy edited market director Michael Carl’s weekly blog column, Carl’s Crush. “I didn’t go to Vanity Fair to work for jewelry. I went because I wanted to edit … Before he’d turn it into copy, I’d see it. ... Then he’d see it, and his assistant would edit it again.”
What makes a good intern?
“You have to be willing to do things and give it your all. Apparel interns have to do a lot of running around. It’s very The Devil Wears Prada. It takes a lot of courage and belief in yourself -- you have to know what you're getting into. There's a lot of physical work. It’s tough, but if we don’t have a photo shoot, we’re really just sitting around the office organizing things, which is very tedious. An intern has to do all that physical labor and know they won’t be sitting at a desk all day.”
On hiring:
Vanity Fair likes to hire a lot of people they already know. “We up a lot of ads at Ed2010, but never really took anyone from there.”
VF’s fashion department consists of 14 people. “We’re all wearing a lot of hats because we are a very small team. We like to hire fun people we can trust with our items. That’s why we typically go through people we already know.”
Are interns paid? What about your salary as you climb the ladder?
“I can tell you that the people above me are not making what they deserve. … In editorial and especially in fashion, we’re not making a lot. We’re working with the Manolos, but we don’t wear them.”
What about PR?
“I learned a lot from my job, contacting designers’ PR departments. I’m talking to a PR jewelry coordinator, someone at my level, 4th tier, bottom line work.”
Working in fashion closet versus working in editorial:
“The fashion closet is under the umbrella of editorial. I spend all my time working inside a literal closet.
It’s transactional versus transformational. Editorial definitely has the more creative job. They’re the ones who look at inspiration photos. And if the accessories assistant needs help finding a product, that’s when they come to me and I’ll help them. Otherwise it’s just very hands-on, very ‘I am not going to lose this earring.’”
We are the middleman: the complete management of the shoes, jewelry, clothes, everything. There's a lot of product in it and it can really get messy. It’s very high-stress, and we’re just very hands-on, whereas editorial is more creative. They communicate more with designers, and we focus more on the actual handling of materials.”
What should we do now?
“Get involved. Keep writing. Put it on your resume. When you put it on your resume or email people, keep it short. Our closet manager doesn’t have the time to read three paragraphs of why you love Vanity Fair so much. We like to see a strong resume. Definitely know their name. If it says “To Whom It May Concern,” it’s an automatic delete. ‘Hi Danielle, I’m interested in this internship. These are my credentials. Three quick points, then have a good day.’
“Keep all your contacts. If you talk to anyone, ever, always be cordial because you never know what they can do for you in the future.”
“It’s not always the resume that shines through -- it’s your persona and work ethic.”
On her new Floridian local mag venture:
My parents own a jewelry store, so Vanity Fair knew I’d be comfortable handling high-price jewelry. She had been working there for a year when her dad offered her a job as CMO of his new jewelry store in Tampa, Flo.
“Starting a local magazine is going to be really good for me. It’s really exciting.” Danielle wants to gear it towards fashion and jewelry at first, directly out of her father’s fine jewelry store, which produces unique pieces. “After a few months of circulation, I’ll probably only release the magazine quarterly," she said.
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