Kerry Tanner

At

Melissa Ashley Brides, Ltd.

32 High Street

Westerly, RI 02891

Gain ‘real world’ experience. Have hands-on time in a retail setting. Gain knowledge about what it is really

like to run a business. Establish and expand my own

professional goals. Gain better personal skills. Establish better self confidence. Become more professional through job

experience.

Assistant to store owner, Denise Marcey Armstrong.

Creating purchase orders, completing workroom and alteration orders.

Working directly with clients. Working directly with vendors. Visual organization and advertising. Garment prep and product placement.

In addition to specialized tasks that varied from day to day, I also was responsible for the following:

Steaming Gowns. Answering Phones. Placing Orders. Working with Customers. Booking Appointments. Customer Service. General organization of Merchandise.

Median household income: $44,613. Population 17,682 people. 15.97 square miles. Brides spend an average of $900 on

wedding gowns. Washington County. Median age 39.6 years. Average more women than men. No sales tax on clothing (unlike nearby

Connecticut).

Black flowers, accents and accessories. Pink wedding gowns, in shades of Blush. Short wedding dresses, or a long gown for the

ceremony, and a short dress for the reception. Jewel tones for color palate. Strapless and one shoulder bridal gowns. Hidden seam pockets on bridal and maids

gowns. Tiered skirts (chiffon, organza, feathers, tulle,

etc.) Lightweight fabrics such as taffeta and

organza.

Short dress trend Feathers add volume!

Over the course of my internship, I have learned that there is much more to running a business than simply working with customers, placing orders, etc.

Even in a setting as glamorous as the wedding business, there is much ‘dirty work’ to be done. Things do not always go as planned; shipments run late, shipments run early, custom orders are not always correct, people are not always friendly, brides are sometimes hard to deal with, and sometimes things get so crazy and busy that is it just hard to keep things under control.

However, part of being in a retail setting is knowing how to deal with all of these different types of situations.