She’s young. She’s fun. She has the internship we all envy. Meet the girl with the hot pink résumé, Charlotte Hohorst. Charlotte is a bubbly junior at Santa Clara who interns for Sephora. More specifically, she works for Kendo, a division within Sephora that includes brands such as Kat Von D, Marc Jacobs Beauty, Formula X, Marchesa fragrance, Elizabeth and James fragrance, and Ole Henrikson skincare.
Charlotte started as an intern for the brand marketing department of Kendo this past summer, but was promoted in September to beauty trend advisor to the brand marketing team where she works on special projects for multiple brands. Brand marketing has to do with everything from naming lipstick shades to writing educational sheets for cast members (staff), She previously had internships in PR and fashion, which have proven very helpful to her ongoing experience with Sephora.
HC: If you could choose one product to recommend what would it be?
CH: I have spent a lot of my time working on Formula X, a new brand to Sephora that makes the absolute best nail polish in the industry. One of my first tasks of my internship was matching Formula X shades to competitor colors (Essie, OPI, Chanel, etc.) and comparing them on draw-down cards… the difference is amazing. Not only do we have an incredible variety of colors, but the “effects” polishes are SO cool. Kendo made a deal with the formula manufacturers that gives us a 6-month lead on any new technology (that’s crackle nail polish, gels, whatever’s next!) making Formula X the go-to for all things nail. I encourage you to head to the Formula X site to see the brand in full and check out our crazy “inspo pics.” Where do they come from you might ask? We have nail parties at work every once in a while.
HC: What is your favorite aspect of working for Sephora?
CH: Sephora is an amazing company and while I could tell you a million things I love about my job, I really value my coworkers. My boss Ann Leahy is one of the most amazing, inspiring women I’ve ever met and being able to learn from her years of experience every day is incredible. When you work with confident, intelligent and loving people, it totally wears off on you. The nail parties at work are also one of my favorite parts of my job.
HC: What recommendations do you have for a student seeking an internship?
CH: While it may seem excessive, I would recommend having a different résumé for almost every application—they don’t have to be totally opposite from each other, but take the time to evaluate what your potential employer might want to see. Does a finance exec care more about your internship with the business school or that time you worked at Jamba Juice? You decide—there’s no right answer! When I first started applying for internships as a freshman, my résumé was totally lame and 6 pages long. What you heard in all of those workshops is true—personal branding matters! After my first few weeks at Sephora, the women that hired me told me they had a confession—they knew they were going to hire me before they even got halfway through my resume because it was printed in hot pink. Before I sent my résumé in to what seemed like a hundred different jobs, people told me it would be risky to have a pink resume. Of course I believed them and knew there was a risk – but I wanted to be honest about who I am and in the end I got my dream internship.
“Confidence is everything – Want it. Own it. Kill it. XOXOX” – Charlotte Hohorst