From classroom to cooler: Missouri School of Journalism student’s refreshing summer internship at Mark Anthony Brands
By Sydney Perry
Before she entered her senior year at the Missouri School of Journalism, Strategic Communication student Danielle Laue searched for an internship that would bring a fresh new angle to her resume. She wanted the chance to show off what she has learned in her textile and apparel management minor along with her communication expertise.
“I really love anything in fashion, so any time I get to combine my public relations skills with my fashion skills, I am all for it,” said Laue.
After finding an open position on LinkedIn, Laue went through two rounds of interviews before being hired as the creative marketing intern at Mark Anthony Brands, an entrepreneurial drinks company that owns different alcoholic beverage brands including Mike’s Hard Lemonade, White Claw Hard Seltzers and Cayman Jack. Within the company, Laue worked with a team of interns on several projects, company wide presentations and detailed daily tasks to assist in the company’s goals for each brand.
“My main jobs were to help the social team with content creation,” said Laue. “My favorite part was getting to work on our influencer relations team, so I did a lot of work with the influencer campaigns and assisting in the search for influencer candidates for all of the different brands.”
To bring in her textile and apparel management skills, Laue had the opportunity to work with the shopper marketing team. This team was tasked with designing the apparel, like t-shirts, for each individual brand the company worked with as well as designing in-store displays. With the target audience of Generation Z, the team looked to Laue for her personal opinion on what the apparel and merchandise should look like.
“When my managers found out I was interested in fashion, they wanted me to use some of those skills to enhance my communication work,” said Laue. “I never imagined I would be asked for my opinion by managers of these brands on projects of this size given that I’m just 22 years old. That was very exciting.”
This position offered a world of connections and Laue tried to take advantage of that each day, scheduling coffee chats with her more experienced co-workers.
“I made it a point to schedule meetings with people within and outside of the communication department just to introduce myself and get to know them a bit more,” said Laue. “Being able to surround myself with people who want to see me succeed and do well was a very cool experience and something that I don’t think you get through every internship, so I think that is why it resonated with me so much.”
Laue feels that this internship, along with everything she has learned and accomplished within the School of Journalism, has had an impact on her in ways she could have never imagined.
“This intern position really lit something within me and helped me realize that this work in public relations, and within the advertising and communications world, is exactly what I want to do,” said Laue. “I believe honestly and wholeheartedly that the J-School and the Missouri Method prepared me for this internship and for the rest of my career experience.”
Updated: November 17, 2023