Words can’t fully describe the feeling of entering the last week of my internship with COACH. It was truly bittersweet. On one hand, I felt incredibly proud of myself for not only earning this opportunity but also dedicating 100% of my energy to making the most out of it. On the other, it was hard to believe this chapter was coming to an end.
At the beginning, I honestly didn’t know what to expect. Retail was a completely new world to me, something I had never really pictured myself working in. But looking back, it turned out to be better than I ever could have imagined.
This last week was packed with unforgettable moments. One highlight was a volunteer activity with Second Harvest Food Bank, where we helped prepare 5,000 meals to be delivered to local schools. It was such a rewarding and fun way to give back to the community.
We also had two major presentations. The first was my final project presentation. I was so nervous, afraid I’d forget something or mess up, that I minimized the cameras from supervisors watching so I could just focus on my slides. And it worked! I delivered everything at a good pace, stayed within the time limit, and even received lots of compliments, especially for using the COACH Reddit community as a data and insight resource. That feedback meant the world to me.
The second presentation took place on the very last day. When we arrived at a conference room in the Mall at Millenia, we were greeted with gift boxes labeled with our names. Inside, there was a heartfelt card, a COACH tag with our initials and a sketch of Orlando, and most surprisingly, a brand-new Tabby Bag as a farewell gift. It was such a thoughtful gesture. After that, we delivered our final business presentation, reviewing KPIs and goals from the past year and the upcoming one. It was both a great learning experience and the perfect way to close this journey.
To top it all off, our colleagues surprised us with cake, flowers, and a beautiful card. Saying goodbye was much harder than I expected. I made friendships I’ll carry with me forever, and this internship became one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.
I’m beyond grateful for every single moment.