Greetings!
I'm back home in Tennessee this week! It's been hectic since my family and I moved this week from Cleveland to Knoxville, Tennessee. In case you're behind on the blog, you can read my posts from Job #6 at Dallas Market Center here and here.
To recap: I spent Wednesday-Sunday last week working at Dallas Market Center. During the year, the Market puts on numerous "markets" that each focus on a certain business. For example, they host home & gift, apparel & accessories, menswear, and bridal markets. It's incredible because the World Trade Center (the building with 15-stories of showrooms) is transformed for each market to fit the theme. All the windows feature new displays and there are events that cater to the buyers specifically.
Like I said before, my schedule was jam-packed! Since I'm an eternal optimist, I honestly didn't mind the chaos of being a human baton for a week. I literally spent every hour with a different Market employee and then went to another person. Someone joked, "you'll probably know more about this business after this one week than I know after being here for years!" I think they were right!
I already explained what the Dallas Market Center does in a past blog, but now I'd like to run through the different departments that make a market happen. It would be great if there was a magic "instant market" switch, but alas, it takes fabulous people and lots of work!
Leasing-They're responsible for renting permanent showrooms to exhibitors at the Market, taking care of lots of paperwork, and building relationships with the showroom sales representatives.
Retail Relations-Their motto is "keep the people happy!" (not literally, but it fits this department well). They send out promo materials to the different exhibitors who usually sell their goods at the market. They also offer incentives to buyers to come to the Dallas Market to buy goods for their store/boutique.
Registration-This team greets the buyers from all over the world when they enter the Market and come to check in. After showing an ID, the buyer receives a badge that grants them access and a book with a listing of all the product lines and showrooms.
Marketing & Communications- This fabulous group is all about getting the word out about the Dallas Market Center, They're responsible for press releases, media alerts, hosting the press room during markets, and much more!
Creative Services-To start off, this crew has the coolest office space of all the departments. I'm biased since I had a desk in the super vibrant creative services area. With magenta walls, mod furniture and lots of graphic art around, it was hard to not be inspired. This team does graphic design and other creative projects for the Dallas Market.
Security and Operations-They're motto is "keep the people safe." They manage the deliveries that come in and go out and ensure that everyone in the building is safe and supposed to be there.
Architectural Design- responsible for measuring showrooms and making computer-generated blueprints and 3-D pictures to show potential exhibitors to see what their showroom could look like.
Event Planning and Visual Merchandising -These departments make things happen and are all about style. The window displays at the Dallas Market Center are stunning! The events during the apparel and accessories show last week were so fun and memorable. Both the displays and the great events would not be possible without these departments.
Favorite part of the job?
I really liked the variety of the week. I arrived on Wednesday, the day before the apparel market began. It was neat to see the whole process of getting ready for market, the actual days of market, and then the frenzy of the vendors packing up. I realized during my week in Dallas that I thrive on fast-paced jobs that include lots of variety.
Least favorite part of the job?
Talking constantly. It may sound like a strange thing to have as my least favorite, but I talked a ton last week! I did tons of listening too, but I was constantly being asked about the One-Week Job Program, talking to exhibitors, and talking to DMC employees. I am pretty outgoing, but at the end of each day, I was thankful to retreat to my room at the Palomar to put on the cheetah robe they provided, watch my complimentary pet fish (I named it "Dallas"), and sleep!
Final word?
It was a phenomenal week and so worth flying to Dallas for the experience. The people I met were so warm and hospitable and very intelligent in their various fields. I loved being at the Dallas Market Center and would gladly return to visit or work if the opportunity presented itself.
For now, I'm trying to rest and get over a cold in preparation for my next major job. Next week, I'll be working with a home-building company! Stay tuned for more details!
Cheerfully,
Kieley Best