Third-year fashion students, Adam Hogarth, Miranda Kale and Rosalind Borwick, were selected along with just nine other students from universities across the UK to work with Old Navy, a subsidiary of Gap Inc, based in San Francisco.
Representatives from Old Navy attended Northumbria’s School of Design to review the portfolios that third year fashion students had produced as part of a design project.
Five candidates were chosen for interview based on their work, with Adam, Miranda and Rosalind emerging as the final winners.
The trio were flown out to spend 12 weeks with the Old Navy team in the United States and through this internship Adam managed to secure employment with Old Navy and after graduating in 2013 moved to San Francisco to start his career in fashion.
Old Navy sells clothing and accessories for men, women and children, targeting its products to consumers who are both fashion and price conscious.
Rosalind Borwick said: “I felt extremely grateful and excited for the opportunity to live and work in America, as it is somewhere I had always wanted to visit. After working at Margaret Howell – a contemporary British clothes designer – during my industrial placement year, Old Navy provided an insight into the more commercial high street side of the industry.”
Miranda Kale said it was a surprise to be chosen. She added: “They mentioned that they liked my colour palette and the way I had put colours together.
“I was really excited to go, not only to spend the summer in San Francisco, but to experience how a commercial American brand works and to see another aspect of the fashion industry compared to the areas I had witnessed in England.”
The fashion courses at Northumbria’s School of Design are internationally recognised for producing innovative and hands on designers. Alumni include Thomas Walker, Senior Designer at Nike; David Walker Smith, Menswear Designer at Selfridges; and Barry Jordan, Senior Designer at Ralph Lauren Menswear.
Janine Munslow, Head of Fashion at the School of Design, said: “Our aim is to produce fashion designers with the right blend of creative vision, commercial realism and appropriate knowledge and skills to begin a career within the sector, and a large part of this success is down to our partnerships with industry.
“We have contacts throughout the fashion world and we continuously collaborate to create a learning experience that is both inspiring and relevant. The partnership with Old Navy is an example of the invaluable experience our students gain through links with industry.”
Course Leader for Fashion, Emma-Jane Goldsmith, added: “This opportunity with Old Navy is a very exciting partnership for the programme and the school.”
