TOMS Interning Update - #Caliliving

[Christopher Reimer]

Hello fellow Jewelligans... 

I am writing this blog from my ridiculously priced apartment in LA! Living out in LA is expensive, but it's been worth the pain of paying rent and bills! It's been four weeks since I started my internship at TOMS in Los Angeles and I've been living it up ever since. This summer has truly been the experience of a lifetime thus far, and I'm excited to see where the next six weeks will take me.

Here is a little overview of what the internship program at TOMS is like... There are twenty three summer interns from all around the U.S. and one from Honduras. Each intern is part of a separate department within the company and have their own responsibilities. TOMS is very keen on making the intern experience all about professional development and growth of the interns. There are no coffee runs or any cliche intern work. We are actually treated as part of the family and given jobs and tasks that any other employee would be given. I am one of two interns in the Campus Programs department and help with the inner workings of our department as well as intern program work. Each week we have intern snack and chats with the big wigs of the company from different departments to learn more about how a business works. We also have coffee chats that we schedule ourselves with employees we wish to get to know better! In the past couple of weeks I have attended conventions and represent TOMS at booths, I have helped with CRM databasing, and I have helped with research projects. If you would like to learn more about what the TOMS internship experience is all about check out this link: http://www.toms.com/our-movement/intern , and if you would like to meet the other 22 interns that I've quickly become friends with check out this link:  http://www.toms.com/blog/taxonomy/term/4. 

Because we work 40 hour weeks, work/life balance is still just as important for us interns! So far some weekend trips have included the following... Solstice Canyon Hike in Malibu, Laugh Factory feat. Dane Cook, Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood Hike to the Hollywood sign, trips to Venice beach (which is 2 miles from my apartment :)), trips to Santa Monica Pier, tour of CBS studios on 4th of July with fireworks to boot, lots of intern apartment parties, a music festival in Pasadena featuring bands such as Cults and Grouplove, and many other events that I can't remember! Some future plans include an intern trip to Disneyland, Magic Mountain, and a Billabong sponsored concert in Paramount studios featuring some incredible bands! 

If you don't know about TOMS and their movement, please check out their website at www.toms.com to learn more about why I'm so passionate about this internship. This internship was truly my dream position for the summer. I turned down two other internships in KC not knowing whether or not I had even received an interview with TOMS... it turns out that good things come to people who are patient and passionate. I think its important to chase your dreams and just as important is being able to surround yourself with those who support your dreams as well. I would have probably taken one of those other internships in KC if I didn't have parents, friends, and fraternity brothers who continued to tell me to chase after the TOMS internship and told me that they had no doubt that I could get it. 

Below are some pictures of my experience thus far!!!! CHECK EM OUTTTT! I'm out for the night. Peace, love, and Cali living! If you want to continue to follow my LA experience... add me on Facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/csreimer22!