London Fashion Week is almost here, and behind the scenes there's a flurry of interns frantically scrabbling to try and prepare a month's worth of work in the space of a day.
In the glamorous world of fashion editorial - we're talking glossy magazines here - interns really do form the backbone of fashion week operations. How do I know? Because, dear friend, once upon a time I was one.
Been there, done that, got the bladdy t-shirt.
While this week will be one of the busiest for fashion mags and their editorial teams, it's the interns that really put in the graft. So, with this in mind, I'd like to blow a metaphorical trumpet for those unpaid heroes of the industry. 'Cause they're bloody great.
Here's a list of just some of the nightmare-inducing stuff interns have to do in the run up to fashion week:
:: Sift through a gazillion fashion week invites and create "invitation goody bags" for all of the editors. Cue, paper cuts.
:: Stay desk-bound until 9pm to ensure cars and transportation are scheduled ready for the editors.
(You know shit's bad when the drivers' phone numbers are saved on your personal mobile phone).
:: Create personalised Fashion Week schedules for every major editor in the company and ensure timings are bang on. Cars should be booked to work around the shows and to allow time for traffic jams and such. It's organisation on a totally different level.
:: Go on endless coffee runs for all staff members.
:: Trek to Bond Street to buy ridiculously expensive thank you notes so editors can thank designers for interview opportunities and/or the free shit they've received.
:: Pick up Krispy Kremes for staff on the way back from aforementioned Bond Street mission.
:: Stay late to upload hundreds of pictures of designer shoes and handbags to galleries.
:: Stay even later when the software crashes and you have to do it all over again. (FYI, it isn't fun).
:: Work your arse off and then be ignored by a handful of editors who think it's beneath them to acknowledge you even exist.
NB: These are a rare breed and most editors are decent human beings.
:: Fetch lunch for staff members, even though you've got a to-do list that's probably longer than theirs.
:: Return the designer clothes the editors have worn at Fashion Week (and not washed) to PRs.
Don't get me wrong, there are perks of interning too. You get to witness how a magazine operates during the busiest time of the fashion year. You get to attend shows (if there are spare invites knocking around). You occasionally get free stuff. And you get to work closely with the people whose shoes you might one day fill...
But when all said and done, it's a lot of hard work and dedication when you're being paid naff all and are relying on your overdraft to pay a month's worth of rent in London.
A message to interns: we know your plight, hang on in there baby(s).