Nada Debeaumont, PCA Class of '19 talks about working for Oscar de la Renta during Fashion Week 2015

Spring/Summer 2016 Fashion Week took place in Paris from September 29 to October 7, 2015. As a Foundation student going into Fashion Design, I was very happy to be given the opportunity to intern for Oscar de La Renta.

This season, Peter Copping, newly appointed as Creative Director of Oscar De La Renta, presented a Corrida-inspired collection, introducing a modern twist on matador-like outfits. The collection has a Hispanic feel, thanks to the omnipresence of warm colors, lace, and various carnation prints.

Since the brand had already shown their collection on the runway during the New York Fashion Week, they were exhibiting their collection in a showroom for the Paris Fashion Week. The showroom, where the brand displays its collection, was run by a team of people responsible for selling the collection to buyers from department stores and boutiques around the world.

On the first day of work, I and the other interns, helped set up the showroom and were briefed on the collection, in order to be able to merchandise it properly during the following days. The rest of the week mainly consisted of dressing models, running the showroom, and providing the clients with great customer service.

To say the least, due to a high demand and limited time, days were hectic and busy. Clients and buyers would come one after the other to see the collection up close, choose the looks they preferred and order them in the sizes and colors of their choice. Very often, Asian and Middle Eastern buyers would ask to add extra fabric to their order so as to accomodate their own cultural aesthetics.

As my first professional experience, I took this internship very seriously and learned quite a lot from the team; I got a first glimpse of what a professional fashion environment looks like. Although very exhausted at the end of fashion week, I was very happy I got to experience this and will gladly do it next season!

– Nada Debeaumont, PCA Class of ’19

Other brands students interned for include Rag and Bone, Phillip Lim, Victoria Beckham, Gallerie Joseph…