*My internship is Tuesday-Saturday so I forgot that Monday was an internship/blog post day* I am doing multiple mini projects instead of one big project. The idea for my first project happened like so:
Jason: Do you want to make us a Twitter page? Me: Sure The second project I do is I design what the display cases are going to display and how they display the items, and I also rearrange other things in the store like shoes, helmets, bags, etc. School and internship are very different, and I think it is because of the structure, environment, and regulations of internship compared to school. Everyone at my internship isn't afraid to speak their mind and say whatever they want, and unlike school, I won't get in trouble if I speak my mind as well. They are adults, and they treat me like an adult. On a different note, the internship is quite meaningful. It has influenced the way I think about certain subjects (I learned a lot about myself) and all this is useful because I want to be a leader and I have learned a ton about managing a business.
A big limitation I have is communication. I'm used to saying to saying things like "yeah" and "yup" instead of "yes" and that makes all the difference in a professional environment. It's especially challenging when I meet new people because some of them are really well known high end people and I'm here like "what's up".
The biggest challenge I have faced at internship is when I finish working on a project or something around the store and I kinda just walk around doing nothing till someone tells me what to do. Another smaller challenge, however equally important, is the fact that I need to ride the bus every day. In general, I don't like our transit center.
I commented on Casey's, Tzvi's, and Kiley's. They all have different experiences and internships, and I caught myself reading and learning about all of them. I'd say that we are all learning different things about ourselves, maybe. There isn't a lot to say.
I have been very enlightened whie I spend time here. Kevin has taught me a lot about communication and how to be a leader. We delve deep into how customers see first impressions and how they see the store, about how you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover and about morals and wealthyness. I do want to be a leader in the future, and these lessons are not something I expected, but something i gladly receive.
Aa lot of what I do is maintenance on bicycles and organizing items on the showroom floor, so I do not interact with a ton of customers. Sometimes I say "welcome" when people come in and the owner, Kevin, will introduce me to people that they know. I've met families that have been friends with kevin for a long time, store owners, important people in San Diego, etc. and they are all very nice, but I don't if customer service is for me.
My "Final Project" is a series of mini projects that improve the store. One of the small projects I do is rearrange display cases and displays to improve the customer's experience, and the main big one I do is set up and run their twitter. Follow them @calbikelajolla
The people who benefit the most as the clients. They come in every day expecting a bike shop where you go in and buy a bike and leave, but instead they are treated with the utmost care and service because they are the beneficiaries. I do think, however, that the staff also benefits because everyone who works is always learning from everyone else.
The employee I chose to interview is Jason Millard, son of the owner Kevin Millard. Kevin started California Bicycle Inc. when he was sixteen, and Jason was born into the business. He started working there when he was twelve, but after high school, did different jobs until he came back to the business and stayed there for good. He attended La Jolla high school and the school of hard knocks. Jason is currently the sales/store manager and I believe he will take over the business at some point in the future.
There are three things that surprised me the most. The first one is how there are so many bicycle types, companies, and cyclists items. They have everything from food that gives you energy to bike horns to helmets, gloves, you name it they have it. The second thing that surprised me was how much maintenance a bicycle needs. I knew there were many parts to it, but for each part you need the right tool and there are so many tools at the stor. So many. The final thing was I wanted training on how to manage a business when I went into the internship, and I was taught how to be a leader while learning a lot about myself.
California Bicycle inc's mission is to provide quality customer service while attending to all your bicycle needs. As soon as you walk in the door, you are greeted and asked if you need help finding something. There is always someone around to talk to about bicycles and to help you with them.
My "mentor" is the son of Kevin Millard, Jason Millard (Kevin is the owner). California Bicycles inc. is family run and i am learning from everyone, so "mentor" is in quotations. He started working at the bicycle store when he was twelve years old, being pretty much born into it.
Since California Bicycle Inc. is a family run business, I am hoping that I can learn about running a business from a point of view that aren't from corporate and money standpoints. My dreams are pretty much the same, just learning about business management. I don't, however, have any real fears because I have no idea how the experience is going to go and why be afraid of the unknown?
There was no site visit. My original internship was at The Lot-Liberty Station, but I didn't even get a chance to do a site visit because my mentor was never there. The entire experience of trying to intern at The Lot was frustrating and unnecessarily prolonged.
I didn't have a site visit for my current internship, California Bicycles Inc., but I started yesterday and I got to know the place. I met everyone who worked there and they all seem really nice. |
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