Name: Rebecca Cunningham
Age: 20
Status: Senior
Zodiac sign: Pisces
Favorite Movie: 500 Days of Summer
Starbucks Drink of Choice: Soy Chai Tea Latte
Favorite Stores: Free People, Anthropologie, ASOS
Her Campus (HC): Tell us about yourself.
Becca Cunningham (BC): I’m Becca Cunningham. I’m a Retail Merchandising and Product Development major with a minor in Business. This past summer I interned at URBN Inc. in Philadelphia, which is their headquarters for Urban Outfitters, Free People, Anthropologie, BHLDN, and Terrain. Before that, I’ve had my own headband business where I sewed and sold headbands online and around campus. I’m also president of the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists here on campus and I’m also a lifestyle director for Swatch Magazine. I also work at Urban Outfitters Tallahassee.
HC: Tell us about your experience interning at URBN.
BC: When I first applied to URBN, I didn’t think I was going to get it. It was unlike anything my professors or anyone would have told me. As soon as I walked into URBN they just want you to be yourself and to dress like your personal style and they want your resume to be fun and show your design sense and personality. I was like, wow, that’s the kind of company I want to work for. I originally applied for a Free People product development internship and I didn’t get it. I got a denial email and everything. Then I got an email from their college recruiter and got an offer for an internship in talent development. I had no idea what talent development was but I took it because I just wanted to intern with URBN. [Laughs.] So I was like what do I do? They were like “basically you’re responsible for helping us manage ninety interns and plan all the events for them. You work with all of our recruiters” and I was like perfect I get to know all of these people. It was the best experience by far I’ve had besides studying abroad. I got to pick up and move to Philadelphia and I lived by myself in a brownstone. I had never lived by myself before. I didn’t have a car so I had to master the whole like mass transit thing. I met the most incredible people there. I was so scared it was going to be kind of you know snotty or too cool for school but everyone I met was so friendly and creative. The internship program is also wonderful because you get to interact with all of the brand presidents in addition to like the CEO Dick Hayne who created URBN. 25 of us actually got to go eat at his house. He lives on a farm so we had like this organic farm-to-table lunch with him and got to ask him questions and talk to his wife. It was incredible.
HC: You also studied abroad, tell us about that.
BC: I studied abroad the summer after my freshman year. I was just not having a good time at FSU; I’m not in a sorority so I wanted a way for me to meet people. It was the best thing I could have done. We went over there and it was like 35 girls. Everyone was so nice and friendly. We got to have hands on experience; we got private tours of Burberry and had tons of time to explore. We got to see an haute couture exhibit in Paris’s city hall. It was really wonderful. I would recommend it to everyone. I expected it to be dorm living and it’s high ceiling loft styles. There is trendy artwork on the walls and it’s just beautiful.
HC: How do you handle being involved in so many things at once?
BC: I think one of the best things that I had to teach myself was how to delegate. As president of AATCC, I started out as secretary and worked my way up to president. As secretary I wanted to do everything and handle everything myself but then I realized as president you want to give other people the power to build their own resumes and take ownership over certain things. So, even though like it is a lot of work being president, I know I have a wonderful team who will take ownership over things. If you’re the kind of person like me who want to just do everything you have to give it to people you know you can trust and will take responsibility. It’s going to make you a more successful team. With Swatch, it goes hand in hand with AATCC so that makes it easier. Swatch is a great way to get involved because you can be as involved as you want. You can write one article or ten articles.
HC: What are your career goals?
BC: Well, always in the back of my mind I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. So I feel like my end goal will be to have my own brand or open my own shop. In the meantime I really want that corporate experience. So I’d like to go back to URBN within Anthropologie and do buying or merchandising.
HC: That’s super fun, how would you describe your personal style?
BC: I would say I have a bohemian flair; I love the free people aesthetic. But at the same time I really like simple and clean silhouettes and neutral colors. So I would say bohemian minimalist.
HC: How has your experience at URBN and abroad affected your personal style?
BC: It made me realize that quality is so important. So, I’m more likely to invest in a few high quality pieces rather than a ton of disposable garments. Women in Europe seemed way more open to letting their bralettes peek out underneath their tops. A few years ago I would have been skeptical, but now I integrate these little details into my wardrobe. It adds an element of surprise and femininity to a loose fitted dress or tank.
HC: What is one fun fact about you?
BC: I actually met my boyfriend in London and he was not studying abroad. We randomly met at a bar and he goes to FSU. He had a two-day layover in London because his family was coming back from Ireland. We’ve been dating for a year and two months now. That’s also why studying abroad was a great experience because I came back with friends and a boyfriend [laughs].
HC: What do you do in your free time?
BC: I love to watercolor paint; it’s just something I love to do. It’s something I would love to grow into something entrepreneurial. I’m always painting things, little pictures of my Birkenstocks or VW bug. It’s cool to take a chill pill and paint.
HC: Tell us about your headband company?
BC: Becca Bands I created when I came back from study abroad. Right now it’s on kind of a hiatus just because I left for my internship and wasn’t able to run my company while I was gone. But even if I don’t pick back up with it again, it was definitely crucial to a learning experience. I got to do everything with the branding, merchandising, retailing, construction and it was a lot of work. Also creating a brand image which is really hard to do because you to have a clear brand aesthetic. A message you’re sending to your consumers. I’m lucky enough to be friends with people who have their own businesses like Briana Ali who is also an on campus designer who does a lot of jewelry. Also, Jenny Rose who is an avid knitter and entrepreneur. So having these people I can talk to about their companies and their businesses and where they’re going is really inspiring.
HC: What are your plans after graduation?
BC: Right now I’m applying for internships so I’m hoping to go back to URBN. I want to go up north so if not, hopefully New York in buying or merchandising fields. I would like to organically start my own company and see where it goes and grows. I also want to get a pug so that’s definitely on my goal list.