Finding my Flavor in Hospitality Marketing
Hi, I'm an aspiring art director who spent my fall senior semester as a marketing and design intern at Attico Rooftop, a global tapas and cocktail bar in Philly.
During my time at Attico, I developed a new found passion for hospitality marketing. When the opportunity for this internship came to me, I was excited, yet nervous. However, those nerves went away when I realized the experience I would gain along the way. I’ve been able to apply skills like typography, graphic design, food and beverage photography, email marketing, influencer outreach, and more that I’ve learned through courses and my time as an intern.
Gained Knowledge
My internship experience has been extremely well rounded. While I’ve learned through my assignments at Temple, being able to do hands-on work for a company and see my projects come to life has brought me new knowledge. Graphic design has always been my main thing, as my primary concentration is art direction, which has been beneficial for the social media and flyers I developed thus far at Attico. However, I’ve able to strengthen my confidence in my typography skills by working on menu design for regular service, private events, and event package designs. Beyond typography, I’m gaining experience in email marketing and influencer outreach for featured events at Attico, like Martini & Jazz nights.
A New Passion
I’ve always dreaded the question, “In which industry within marketing do you want to work?” Not knowing when it felt like everyone else knew exactly what they wanted drove me crazy. After my experience up to this point at Attico, I can confidently say I want to continue my work in marketing within the hospitality industry. I’ve always leaned toward food and beverage marketing, but the hospitality industry is next level for me. Building experiences for guests at a restaurant, especially in the city, has been nothing short of captivating. The hospitality industry is incredibly passionate while ever changing, and that’s something I want to continue in my marketing and design career.
Expectation vs. Reality
My time at Attico exceeded my initial expectations. The role I’m in—marketing and design intern—was made specifically for me. Attico hasn’t had any interns for a couple of years, but they were looking for someone to assist on the marketing side of operations under their new ownership. While I expected to gain hands-on experience, I never expected to gain as much as I did. The reality of my internship is that I was an important part of the team and I felt like more than just an intern. I contributed fresh concepts, graphics, and more each time I clocked in. Understanding feedback and incorporating it was my favorite part, I often pushed for more feedback as I value professional opinions when it comes to my creativity and gaining experience in an industry I love.
Some Work I Made
Work I’ve developed throughout my internship can be found in my portfolio, linked here: https://olivia-burkholder.myportfolio.com/social-media
This was a great read. I feel like you really put into words how students and interns often feel unsure about themselves in a professional environment. It sounds like you were able to gain both experience and confidence during your time a this internship. It is so interesting to work with food and drink experiences. It is great to be able to feel prepared by coursework and get to apply the skills you have learned during art direction. I looked at your portfolio you provided and the work looks great! Your graphic design skills are impressive. Thank you for sharing your experience at this internship!