Interview Tips and Tricks To Landing Your Dream Job

Yellowbrick on May 7, 2021

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Going into an interview for your dream job can be nerve-wracking. Many people apply, the chosen are few and there can only be one person in the top spot. We’ve all been there and realize that things would be much easier if we had some inside tips on how to ace an interview. Izzy Lugo, Founder and host of Strange on Purpose podcast,  had an up close and personal conversation with some hiring staff members from the global footwear brand adidas. The webinar, How To Get a Sneaker Brand’s Hiring Manager to Notice You, was packed full of free game for you.

Izzy was joined by Nick Ziemer (Manager Digital Technology –Footwear, adidas), Bernadette Little (Designer on Global Brand Design, adidas), and Collin Lashway (University Recruiter, adidas). They talked about what it’s like to work at adidas and what the hiring process is like. They gave ve attendees an inside look at what hiring managers are looking for and what you can do to make yourself stand out as a candidate for the position you are interviewing for. Check out some of their points below: 

  • Myth: The only job in the sneaker industry is sneaker design.
  • Truth: “The 3 panelists on this webinar are a great representation of the different jobs available in the sneaker industry. There was a Manager of Digital Technology, a Designer on Global Brand, and a University Recruiter, all adidas employees.” 
  • Myth: Internships are so hard to get.
  • Truth: “Networking plays a major role in landing internships and even full-time jobs in the sneaker industry.” 
  • Question: What makes a resume stand out?
  • Answer: “There’s not one way to do a resume well but a lot of ways to do it wrong.” 
  • Question: What makes a portfolio stand out?
  • Answer: “Portfolios can show passion and desire through projects to help applicants tell their authentic story. Authenticity is key to standing out.” 
  • Question: What is it like being a Black/Brown person in the industry
  • Answer: “A young Black/Brown person coming into the sneaker industry now is definitely going to be minoritized but the conversations around diversity are being had. I find myself being the only woman in the conversation and the only Black woman in the conversations, at times.”

If you want to hear their complete answers and get all the gems, the full webinar replay for How To Get a Sneaker Brand’s Hiring Manager to Notice You is now available here.  

About Izzy Lugo III:

Izzy Lugo III is the Founder and Host of the Strange on Purpose Podcast. The podcast tells the stories of professionals shattering the glass ceilings of culture and shows young professionals what happens when you are authentically you 100% of the time. In addition to the podcast, Izzy spends his time working with brands on content creation as has partnered with brands such as Columbia, UGG, and much more. Lugo has been previously selected as one of Wisconsin’s 25u25 and a Neighborhood Achiever by the Business Journals.

Entrepreneurship In The Music Industry with Director of Marketing, Ali Samadpour

Yellowbrick on April 5, 2021

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Everyone’s journey through the music industry is different. Ali Samadpour started out as an intern and worked his way up to Director of Marketing at Everybody Knows. While working his main gigs, he managed to launch two companies, Prescient Digital and Modular Merch. Both companies are rooted in the music industry and help artists with things like merch and digital marketing. He’s worked with a variety of artists including J. Balvin, Da Baby, SAINT JHN, MADEINTYO, A Boogie Wit da Hoodie, Wiz Khalifa and many more.

It hasn’t always been easy but Ali worked hard to get to where he is today. He recently hosted a Music Industry Essentials Webinar to talk about his career path and give some useful tips on making it in the industry. He talked about everything from maximizing a marketing budget to building a Spotify account for artist’s music and how digital advertising plays a major role in marketing an artist and his/her music. He also talked about how to network and safely communicate with people during a pandemic. Networking and fostering positive relationships with people is an important part of making it in the music industry.

If you missed the live webinar, you’re in luck. The entire webinar is available for replay in the video box above and some of the presentation slides are posted below. Aside from taking the Music Industry Essentials course, this conversation is a great jumpstart for a successful career in the music industry.

5 Career Quotables From Grammy Nominated Songwriter Madison Love

Yellowbrick on March 24, 2021

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Working in the music industry doesn’t happen overnight. It requires hard work, training, and persistence. Grammy nominated Songwriter Madison Love knows all about the grind it takes to break into the music industry. She recently got her big break and even a few Grammy Noms but it didn’t come without all of the hustle that comes with it. Madison is an NYU alum of the Clive Davis Institute. She is also a songwriter from a few pop star faves including Lady Gaga, Ava Max, and Selena Gomez. She recently sat down with Yellowbrick’s Music Industry Essentials course to talk about her journey through school and how she transitioned into a career in the music industry.

Madison loves what she does, and it shows. “The best part of my job, honestly, is being able to connect to millions of people emotionally through your voice and your emotions”, she said. “And it’s kind of a crazy thing when you hear other people screaming the song that you wrote and you’re just thinking, wow, this is so unreal”. She dropped a lot of useful gems during this interview. Bringing a pen and paper to take notes is highly recommended. You can see some of her quotables below.

If a career in the music industry is something you’ve always wanted, let Music Industry Essentials help you take that first step. Visit Yellowbrick.co/music to apply.

1. “I don’t want to share all of my secrets, but I write down a lot of titles and lyrics all the time in this (shows a journal) and I always bring it to every session, so I’m prepared.”

2. “I think that hustle has gotten me where I am today and getting big cuts like the song that I collaborated on for Lady Gaga album that’s coming out. I wouldn’t have been able to be in that room if I didn’t really, really hustle to get there.”

3. “You just say yes to everything. I’ve molded myself over the years to try and lend myself to other styles to get more cuts, because I have songs that have gone on the radio that are Latin, I’m speaking Spanish, a lot of songs I speak in, whatever language you want, I’ll do it.”

4. “You have to be able to mold yourself into whatever situation you want to be, but still being authentic to you and being authentic to what you want to present.”

5. “As a songwriter, you don’t really make that much from streaming.
You’re getting YouTube, you’re getting Apple Music, you’re getting all these other services. But it’s still not as much money as you think. You have to have multiple, multiple hit songs a year to be making a lot of money.”

“Ask Me Anything” with Foot Locker Engineer Brennan Nichols

Yellowbrick on March 10, 2021

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Foot Locker Engineers are not always easy to get a hold of. Operations Engineer is a job title in the sneaker industry that is rarely public facing. Their position works heavily behind the scenes to help keep the Foot Locker brand on point. Yellowbrick Ambassador and Sneaker School grad Brennan Nichols is the Site Operations Engineer at Foot Locker.

Foot Locker Inc. is the leading brand that celebrates sneaker and youth culture worldwide. Their portfolio includes Lady Foot Locker, Kids Foot Locker, Champs Sports, Eastbay and Footaction. They have about 3,000 retail locations in 28 countries across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Foot Locker recently invested $100M in the reseller platform GOAT, which could yield interesting Goat x Foot Locker collaborations in the near future.

Brennan decided to take some time out of his day to give the Yellowbrick community some much needed career talk and industry gems via a ZOOM Webinar. He talked about his current position at Foot Locker, as well as his Sneaker School experience, solid Resume Tips, Building your network, and how to nail your interview for the job you want in the sneaker industry. At the end of it all, he opened up the floor for an “Ask Me Anything” Q&A session. We jotted down some of the top questions and answers and compiled a list below. You can press play on the video in this article to hear the webinar in its entirety, including all the questions and answers.

How did you get started in the sneaker industry?

“I started back in college where I did an internship at this sneaker boutique called Self Conscience. It is no longer open but it was the starting point for many people who have careers in the industry. I started as an intern, doing events on the weekends. We did a really cool collaboration with adidas back in 2008. That gave me my first love of the sneakers, the industry and sneaker marketing events. That’s the best place to start, as an intern.”

Do network connections matter and did a network connection help you get your job at Footlocker?

“Connections always matter. That goes back into building your network. Building my network helped me. What helped me was going to events, volunteering. Volunteering didn’t get me the job at Foot Locker but it helped me beef up my resume. I got my job from a staffing agency who saw my resume on Linkedin. They contacted me for an interview and I started as a temporary worker. A lot of big companies start people off as contract employees so don’t get discouraged by getting an offer on a contract position. Sometimes you get paid more often and paid more per hour. Sometimes you don’t have benefits so it depends on your livelihood but if you have the ability to go through a staffing agency, I recommend it.”

Can the Sneaker Essentials certificate of completion lead to a job opportunity?

“It can lead to a job opportunity but graduating from the program won’t give you a job. The course gives you a lot to talk about in interviews. Taking the course and having the certificate can lead to a lot of conversations during an interview. I’ve been in a lot of interviews with a lot of companies and they ask about the course. Whatever you learned from the course, you can mention it in the interview and that helps you stand out from the other candidates.

If a sneaker career is something you’re interested in, visit yellowbrick.co/sneakers. You can reach out to Brennan on IG. His handle is @wallstreetbnic.

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