My last week :(

Week commencing: Monday 20th September

This week is unfortunately my last at TOPSHOP white city and I'm really going to miss it here. During this week i was able to collect my experience over the last two weeks of being an active Top level and start thinking about filling out my third chapter in my book which is titled Motivating the Team.

Form my summer work here at TOPSHOP i was able to learn alot more about the brand and how it operates in its trends and departments. Having been apart of new coming trends, model store and important floor movements and deliveries i have boosted my confidence with working with people and can use these skills do develop in my career of hopefully making it into the PR business.

Throughout my summer work i was also able to inspire my colleagues having achieved to sign off Cynthia on her Advanced book this week! and Charlie on his standard level book last week! Although Hassan was not able to get signed off before i left i was able to complete 90% of his book and I'm sure he will complete it by next week.

Thanks White City I loved my experience!! :)

Crunch Time!!

Week commencing: Monday 13th August

With only two weeks left at Topshop before i head off to uni it was now crunch time!!! I had a list of things that had to be completed before my departure.


First and foremost my priorities turned to the boys, more than anything i wanted to help them to the best of my ability getting them signed off before i leave.

This week charlie presented all of his challenges to me and i was most impressed. One of his challenges i was mostly shocked by was his Style challenge where he had to pick an outfit out form a trend and suit it for a celebrity. Charlie chose to pick an outfit for Cheryl Cole and the department he chose was "Into The Wild." I was most pleased with his presentation and was excited to give him a more than enthusiastic feedback in his book so that George can be impressed. Our deadline was to get him signed of by the 14th and trust me we did just that!! Charlie had now completed his book and was signed off this week!



Hassan On the other hand really surprised me with his style challenge as he really thought of the whole attire for his celebrity. Hassan decided to choose an outfit for famous singer Beyonce! With Beyonce being such a glamorous icon Hassan thought about accessorising her head to toe by including the different types of heels she could wear. The trend Hassan chose the outfit from was "Dark Nouveau" which is our most dressiest evening trend which includes alot of sequins and sparkles. Having left Hassan a remarkable feedback for his book we however had missed the deadline and he was not signed off this week. We both had to try our hardest for next week for him to complete his book before i leave.

Fitting the role...

Week commencing: Monday 6th August

This wee i have been given alot of early morning 8-5 shifts. With these shifts i am able to walk around the store with my manager or Top level, whoever opens the store, and go through all the important things that are required to be completed before the store opens.

The first this i learnt to complete was the store open check list. this list includes all the different areas of the store, and you go through it ticking off whether those areas are decent. For instance the list will include whether the store windows are spotless and show the latest trends, if so then you can tick it off. however if on the list it says fitting rooms need to be in a spotless condition and all lights need to be working, and neither can be ticked then a "to-do list" is then drafted up giving us an idea of what needs to be completed before the store opens.


Also this week i was given the chance to run the shop floor by myself and was in charge of the rota. I had to ensure that all staff were in the correct departments, everyone goes on their designated lunch and breaks at certain times, authorising any queries and transactions on the till points, briefing all staff that start their shift on the brand updates and store news and incentives and so on...

I really felt this week that i was getting the most out of Topshop. I felt like i had alot more meaning to the store and was really beginning to get into the brand.

Bank Holiday!!

Week Commencing: Monday 30th August
Bank Holiday Monday!! i know most people would be in work today to get that double pay! Although it is the Adult day in Notting Hill Carnival and i was a bit disappointed that i wasn't able to go as i have never missed a year yet. :(

Well this week Ive got an appointment with George to update her on my progress within my book as well as my buddies books.

Surprisingly this week one of the Top levels on my floor had a word with me asking whether i wanted to run the whole of ground floor for an hour or so. I jumped at this opportunity!! Running the ground floor did become quite complicated after a while as if one person was late for their break it could effect the whole team who was still waiting for their breaks or lunches. however i used my friendships with my team to my advantage, everyone knew that i wanted to achieve my Top level certificate and as their friend they were all willing to cooperate with me :) after a while it became a breeze!

5 days off!

Week commencing: Monday 23rd August

Ive been given 5 days off work, so while I'm off I'm just going to focus on completing my book.

After my meeting with George she agreed to have a meeting with the managers discussing my progress within the store and the kind of support i need. Since that meeting i was able to speak to the toplevels on my floor about taking 10 minutes out of the day just to have a look at my departments Bs3 reports and spend time coaching and evaluating the boys I'm buddying.

So far out of my second chapter i have began filling out the challenge section recording the targets i have set for the boys, i also filled out some evidence as to how i have used my coaching skills amongst the rest of my team.

Becoming a Buddy

Week commencing: Monday 16th august

My second challenge of my book is to actively coach to members of my team who are working on two different competency levels within the business. I have decided to work with 3 members of my team as i feel i can confidently help them all at a fast but effective pace. I have chosen two boys, Charlie and Hassan, who are working on their standard level books and a female named Cynthia, who is working on her Advanced book.

My goals are to get the two boys signed off before my last day at work which is the 24th September. Cynthia however is completing a larger book and it may take a while until she is signed off. However the rare case with Cynthia is that she had actually completed her advanced book already but a past manager had misplaced it. So now she is actually re-completing the book almost by memory but i will be here to support her as her new buddy, therefore she may get signed off before i leave :)

I have got a meeting with George this week and i will discuss with her the misunderstanding that is going on with most of the managers. What i mean by this is that although i should be completing my department challenge with the Petite range most managers are not allowing me to take time away from the shop floor to look at my reports. This is slowing down my progress, so George will need to talk to them individually ensuring that they all give me support.

P.S. I've FINALLY been signed off my first chaper of my Toplevel book :D !!!

Department Specialist

Week commencing: Monday 9th August

This week is going to be a bit of a tough one for me as I've only been roted in for 4 hour shifts each day, so I'm going to have to make the most of my little time spent at work.

Oh! quick update i have been reading my book on most of my journeys to and from work and its coming along well. not so interesting just yet but I'm looking forward to the section about Sesame Street and Blues Clues.

As I'm at work, I've decided to spend my short time focusing on one department and its selling performance. The department i have chosen for my challenge in a later chapter is Petite. What i need to keep an eye on over the next six weeks is the performance of the best sellers and a way to improve the sales on the items that are not selling so well. This is great practise of roles that an office based Top level will be completing. With the results of sales on my department i will then be able to take on the role as a Visual Merchandiser, playing around with the positioning of the items that need to improve on their sales.

chapter 1

Week commencing: Monday 2nd August

Now that i am back at work it's time to concentrate on my Toplevel tasks. After each chapter of my book there are delegated tasks that i have to complete in order for that chapter to be signed off. After having a meeting with the Training manager George she helped me realise that i should really be looking to sign off my first chapter by the end of this week. My first chapter easily enough consisted of me getting a review from my current manager on how well experienced they think i am with each chapter and what they advise me to focus on first.

Cant get to work just yet! :(

Week commencing: Monday 26th July


I completely forgot that i have to attend jury service! U know do my part for the government and all that :) my first day wasn't so bad actually. After my long introduction i was selected to a case straight away! i was then selected again to be one of the final 12 judges! i felt so lucky as most people say when they start jury service their usually waiting around to be selected for days! unfortunately i had to be dismissed from the case as i was unable to attend one of the court days due to i had to attend my uncles funeral the same day.

After the funeral now i attended back to court to be selected for another trial. Just my luck i was selected AGAIN for the final 12 jurors. I was beginning to like this place lol. My case seemed relatively simple so the judge said to us that it may only take up to a week. Thankfully it did! I was able to give my verdict after just 3 days in court and had served my time. Throughout my time i had learned a little bit about laws and how cases are held and trialed. However although i was glad to have finished and able to return back to work, i sadly thought, u only get to serve once so i would have LOVED! to sit another trial.

Still reading!

Week commencing: Monday 19th July

Still in Egypt :) but i have been reading my book. so far im finding it quite interesting how Malcolm knows alot about past epidemics such as crime rates in the 90's. The book is very psychological and can seem to draw off the point a little bit but so far so good.

Gotta take a break! :)

Week commencing: Monday 12th July

I know i know i should be completing my work but its the summer holidays! everyones gotta take a break right?

lol well although im off to Egypt for 2 weeks i wont be getting of lightly as i have vowed to begin reading my assigned book for my Fashion Promotions course! (The Tiping Point by Malcolm Gladwell) Great reading for the beach :)

BS3 reports

Week commencing: Monday 5th July

I cannot seem to get the hang of these! They provide all figures of the best sellers within departments compared to how well they are doing in comparison to each week and last year. My task this week is to try and print one of these off each week so that i can gain confidence in reading them. This will then help me talk more freely about the changes we could make in my next meeting with Training manager George.

module 1 of the training book!

Week commencing: Monday 28th June

My first module is about driving my development. After having my first meeting with the training manager George, she helped me set out a few targets for me to complete before i leave for uni in October. This week my target is to create a personal development plan of how far i want to get through my book before the beging of October. I will then think about a department i would like to gain the responsibility of being a specialist over. Last summer i was actualy a swimwear specialist for the brand and i quite enjoyed it. Reading daily/ weekly reports on whats your departments best sellers and repositioning the department to support sales, began to give me an insight of what its like to be a visual merchandiser which happens to be a job role i can go into once i have finished my degree:)