You are probably looking at these images wondering “what in the world is this girl doing?”. Well, you, my friend are gazing upon rare behind-the-scenes images from Sseko’s 6th Birthday photo shoot. If you take a look at the final pictures from this shoot you never would’ve thought that this is how we got there. The life of a stylist and model is not always as glamorous one may think, but it sure is a lot of fun!
My name is Emily Mills, and I’m the 19-year-old Summer Style Intern. Working at Sseko as their summer stylist is my very first internship experience, but it was not my first experience in the fashion world! I’ve modeled for the past 5 years and have been able to travel to New York and LA, but my true passion is to work behind the scenes. I’ve always had a passion for fashion and now write for an online fashion publication and run my own instagram blog. Sseko has been a great way to grow my understanding of what it is like to be a part of a fashion brand, and not just any brand, but one that I know and love. Each day I spent with Sseko was one for the books! I’ve made so many great friends and even more great stories so tell. Here is a behind the scenes look at what it is like to be the Sseko Style Intern.
A typical day would start with me driving to the office and then trying to find parking. For some odd reason I would only ever find 30 minute spots, but luckily I never did get a ticket for using it during my 5 hour work day! After that I would book it up to Sseko carrying bags of styling wardrobe and walk in the doors with arms full and be greeted by everyone there! My fellow interns would always ask me what’s new and what I’m working on. They spoke with the most enthusiasm and the biggest smiles (I love those girls). I mostly worked with Megan, the marketing intern. Our main tasks were to do product photoshoots as well as lifestyle photoshoots for social media and campaigns. Getting the perfect shot was always an adventure in itself.
My work hours (12-5) would more often than not be spent working outside of the office, roaming around town searching for a good setting for a photo opp! I worked in parks, downtown, in the burbs, and even in some back alleys. Each day I would have a new assignment to style different products in different ways for different occasions.
My first big assignment at Sseko was to create content for our Fourth of July promotion. We had to go through a lot of trial and error to get the perfect pictures, but we spent a great day in the park being goofy.
I’m still surprised these images didn’t end up in the email that was sent out! I guess they were just too good.
Photo shoots for instagram always resulted in some great blooper pictures! I’ve been modeling for 5 years, but we always ended up with more images like these ones than usable ones! Whoops!
I’m not even sure what I’m doing here.
And, I don’t know what it is with me and laying on the sidewalk, but it does get a good shot! Classic.
Anything for the perfect picture, right? When I am at Sseko office I spend most of my time trying to conjure up captions for our social media platforms like facebook and Instagram. It is much more difficult than it seems!! Lots of my time was spent staring at pictures of ribbon sandals until I would finally get a good idea of what to say about them. I learned that it’s much easier to write from a personal point of view rather than write from a company’s perspective, but I’m still learning! Other times I would work on styling outfit layouts for upcoming photo shoots and incorporating products into the ensemble. Overall any task I had to work on at Sseko was a fun one!
Every intern at Sseko Designs plays an important part in bringing fresh ideas to the table, and in turn Sseko gives us the opportunity to work at an amazing company that empowers women and teaches us to be brave! I have absolutely loved being a part of the team this year. As the style intern I think I learned to place the most importance on the idea that “where it’s made matters”. I’ve become more conscious about where I shop and what kinds of companies I want to support. Sseko is a truly amazing company and I will always hold them in the utmost respect. Their dedication to helping women in Uganda by providing jobs while also being a fun fashion forward brand based on a strong ethical platform is something I think all companies should strive to emulate!
I have had a blast getting to team up with wonderful people and work at an amazing fashion company that is making strides in the fashion world. Every day is a great day with Sseko!