Namita Shah '12

My Last Week!

Hey everyone!

I can’t believe my internship is coming to its close. This last week has been about tying up any loose ends, finishing projects, taking some last minute photos and making sure I did everything I wanted to during these past few weeks. Andrea and Lisa have been really great at making sure Nga and I are happy with what we accomplished and that we found the internship worthwhile. We had our wrap-up discussion with the two of them yesterday. They told us they were really appreciative of all the work we have done with them.

And I am really pleased with large amount of work I produced for them. I really didn’t expect to get so much done in these 2 months. Although writing the articles for the newsletters was a relatively easy assignment, I think it was a great opportunity that my work will be sent out to many clients around Chicago. After writing so many of them, I definitely understand how much time they can really take. Lisa wanted us to write them because normally she is in charge of all of the articles and it eats up a lot of her time. So with our help, she should be set until December.

Another portion of my internship was photography. So far I have photographed at two events, although I would have liked to have seen more. But anyway, other than the first one I went to, on Monday I went to a barbeque buffet lunch at a local high school. The school was holding a week long program called Amplify. I am not sure exactly what was involved, but it had to do with local teachers. The event was held outside in a large tent and we had about 600 people come. It was definitely a success and we didn’t run out of food like we did for the last event. It was interesting to see how the company works in different venues and with different catering situations. Overall I would say that they are very organized and efficient. Even with a smaller staff, Andrea knows how to get the food out and the clients happy. While I wasn’t helping with the catering, I was taking some more photographs of the space and food. It was fun shooting in an outdoor environment this time, even though it was quite hot.  But being able to take photographs has been really great. Andrea and Lisa even told me that people were commenting specifically about the photographs and how they are much better than before! It is great to get compliments like that.

I figured when I started doing marketing pieces that it would take me a while to finish even one. But amazingly I managed to make 4 complete pieces and 2 backgrounds. I asked Lisa whether there was any other work she wanted me to do for marketing but she couldn’t come up with anything. So I put the backgrounds that I made and haven’t used on the Amazing Edibles network. This way, Lisa or whoever can access them and use them for any future marketing flyers and email blasts they want to make. Basically, I am trying to do as much work for them that I can so that later on they don’t have to worry about getting things done.

I look forward to seeing the work I did for Amazing Edibles in the email blasts and other media outlets, but most importantly I want to know whether my work helped the company in any way. I hope that Andrea and Lisa will keep in touch with me and let me know if more clients have been brought in or more orders have been made due to any of the pieces I made. It will be nice to know that not only did I get a great experience at Amazing Edibles, but also that they benefited from my internship.

-Namita-

Week 6

There is not much more new information to report. I’ve been working on my marketing projects and they are going well. My ideas are definitely slowing down! I guess the initial fast rate I was making pieces was just a fluke. I still have more ideas, but they are taking longer to create. One thing I have started to think about more is the overall purpose of my designs. I mistakenly made a complete piece without realizing that the background I used was completely wrong. The piece was for back to school events the nearby colleges might hold, but the background I used had nothing to do with school. Luckily Andrea pointed that out to me so I can now be more careful and aware about what I make. Clients who see a piece that doesn’t make sense would probably end up confused and think that Amazing Edibles didn’t spend time to make sure what they send out is perfect. And I definitely want Amazing Edibles to look good with my marketing pieces!

I’ve been assuming that my pieces will just be mailed out, but I think that Andrea and Lisa are up for a different distribution method if I suggest it. I think one of the pieces I made might be better as an email blast, so I will do some research this week and see what method is best for each of the pieces based on the content and client base.

-Namita-

Posted on July 21st, 2010

Week 5

“I went to a restaurant that serves ‘breakfast at any time’. So I ordered French Toast during the Renaissance.” ~Steven Wright

One more week has past and it was quite fun! I got to work on more marketing pieces and take some photographs for the company.

Lisa and Andrea really liked my first marketing piece, so I continued in that path to create one more. This one was about advertising dinner parties at Amazing Edibles. As I mentioned before, the company offers a bunch of useful and desired services but their main hurdle is to get the word out to their clients. So it is my job to create one page pieces that grab the clients attentions and highlight the best aspects of these different services. I found out that people really like what Amazing Edibles does, but they don’t realize all the other possibilities of the catering company.

With the dinner party piece, I had to realize what a client would be interested in. I tried to think of the event as a client would and see what would most appeal to them. Once I made a plan for what I wanted in the piece text-wise, I had to think about what kind of overall look the page should have. Since Lisa said they could host and cook for an “intimate dinner party,” I figured an elegant image would work. Using Photoshop, I manipulated one of the images I took of the dining area decorations for the background. The toughest parts about creating these flyers are continuity in the piece, balance and the content. But I feel that I have got a good number of ideas I can still use for the other pieces. Hopefully I won’t run out soon! They take a while to plan and execute, but I think they have been turning out pretty well so far. Lisa wanted them to look like they hired a professional company to make them so hopefully mine have been coming close!

One of the days I spent taking photographs of different dishes in the kitchen. Andrea wanted me to take these for the chefs’ use. Whenever they are preparing dishes and someone needs to know how to assemble it or how certain components are cut, they could refer to the photographs to see the finished product. The photos might be used for menus, but I doubt that since I wasn’t photographing in great conditions and the pictures just weren’t turning out well. But for their purpose they will work well. Andrea also wanted me to take some photographs of random fruits and vegetables in case Lisa would need them for future newsletter articles. This way they have photos on hand in case they ever need them.

I think the coming weeks will probably be more of the same stuff, taking photos for the chefs and creating marketing pieces. I really like this part of the internship. Hopefully the work I am doing here will really help them out in the future!

-Namita-

P.S. Here is a completed marketing piece and one that is in the beginning stages.

Weeks 3/4

“I can’t cook. I use a smoke alarm as a timer.” ~Carol Siskind

These past two weeks have been pretty uneventful. I have been working on my research of possible new clients for Amazing Edibles and I finished the final articles for the newsletters. Now the fun begins!

Lisa talked to me about what she was looking for in the different marketing pieces. I was given a list of target audiences, specific services to advertise and other niches to create pieces for. There was minimal instruction or restrictions, so these projects are going to be mine to run with. I am excited to take charge of the projects from start to finish. This way I will learn how to design my own marketing pieces and create ways to reach my audience and capture their attention. Lisa has left the content and design up to me so I have to research and decide what the best tactic to reach our clients is.

I’ve just started, so more detailed updates about how the projects are going will come later! And here is one of the rough drafts of one marketing piece that I made yesterday.

-Namita-

Week 2

“Tomatoes and oregano make it Italian, wine and tarragon make it French, sour cream makes it Russian, lemon and cinnamon make it Greek, soy sauce makes it Chinese, garlic makes it good.” ~Alice May Brock

Hello readers!

Well, another week has flown by! I can’t believe I am starting my 3rd week here at Amazing Edibles. I have been quite busy so far.

Last week I worked on more of the newsletter articles but I have also been researching contact information for new possible clients. These cold call lists are a large part of how Amazing Edibles finds new clients. I was assigned the Chicago area non-profit companies. Basically, with the information I gather on the many companies in the area, calls are made to all of them to ask if they ever require catering. Initially I was under the impression that Amazing Edibles is a gourmet catering company and shows it through slightly higher prices, but I was surprised to discover that they have competitive prices with most other caterers and restaurants! For example, a simple box lunch cost just as much, if not less, than ordering from Panera! Amazing Edibles not only has competitive prices but also makes themselves appealing to clients because they can be customizable and are guaranteed to be correct and delivered on time.

I have learned a lot about how a small-time catering company manages to keep their clients and get new ones. They have a combination of characteristics that make them very appealing to organizations. The only hurdle they have is getting their name out and making themselves known to possible clients. While talking to Andrea, I have found out that organizations jump to use her company as soon as they realize what great quality she has as well as the broad spectrum of services Amazing Edibles offers. That seems to be the toughest part of owning a business; getting word out that you exist and what you can do. Hopefully with my market research and customized marketing pieces, new clients will discover what Amazing Edibles can do for them.

On Tuesday Andrea took five of interns with her to UIC Forum where a minority and women owned businesses workshop was being held. It was a great event to see. Andrea went there to talk to new clients and touch base with old ones as well as make more connections for the future. It seemed like a very helpful event for new businesses who are starting out. It also encouraged people to increase their diversity of vendors, which is a great goal to have. At this event, while helping Andrea out, I learned what a basic sales pitch involves and how receptive most people are to genuine people. Andrea definitely demonstrated that if you offer a good product/service, people will respond. It doesn’t hurt to also offer free food as well!

And here are a few photographs of a cooking class I attended.

-Namita-

Chef Liz and students	Malinda and students
Kabobs	Chopped Salad

First Few Days

The first week of my internship at Amazing Edibles has certainly flown by! I started last Tuesday when I was introduced to the many people working here. Everyone is extremely friendly and accommodating to Nga and I. I am quickly getting the hang of how things operate around here.

Amazing Edibles is a gourmet catering company that caters to many different business and events around Chicago. Last Saturday I accompanied the team to a graduation reception for 1000 people. It was quite an interesting experience! We actually had about 1500 people show up, so it got quite crowded in the space. It was nice seeing the catering business from this angle because I never realized how hectic and tough catering jobs can be. I also was the photographer for Amazing Edibles during this event. I have been taking photographs since high school and I am quite excited to have a chance to do some event and food photography for the company.

Other than going on some different catering events, I will be working on researching and writing articles for the monthly newsletter. This will be an on-going project with Nga that should last until we are through with the December newsletter. Lisa, the “Sales Diva,” will be meeting with me soon to discuss a direction for my next few projects. I will be working on research for target client groups. Then I will be creating a marketing campaign and email blast for the groups I work on. I look forward to seeing first-hand what a marketing project takes to start and follow through completion.

While I intern here, I will be trying to get a full picture of the catering business, from marketing to working in the kitchen. On Thursday I helped prep for the Saturday event with the rest of the staff members. I didn’t expect to see everyone, from interns to managers, step into the kitchen and help when there is a large order. So far I am enjoying my time working here because I am getting some valuable experience in see all sides of a small business. This internship should be a great experience for me!

I have kept this entry pretty general since I have only been here a few days. But more details will come! I’ll leave you with a few photographs of my time here so far.

-Namita-

The loft area where I work.	The view looking down from the staircase.
Kabobs & other food at the graduation reception.	Some food at the graduation reception.