Attire:
There is no mandatory attire at Lydell NYC, it is more of a way to express your identity, especially being a part of the fashion industry. Account Executives and HR were dressed very business formal which is suited for the profession. Whereas the merchandising and design floors were very casual according to their own personal style. On my first day, I did not know what to expect so I dressed semi-formal, black jeans, a button down and 2” heels.
Environment:
The Company covers 3 out of 12 floors in the building. Each floor is separated by departments and requires a key card to enter. The 4th floor is where I work, which is the Design Floor and Photo Studios. It consists of the Jewelry designers, Public Relations and Graphic Designers. On the 10th floor, there is the Merchandise Managers and all the companies inventory (over 2000 different jewelry). The 11th floor is the company’s showroom, the owner’s office, account executives and managers.
Each floor looks the same throughout; large cubicles of which four employees shared. On the Design floor, there are 4 cubicles, 2 conference rooms, kitchen and a small photo studio for product and model photography. The conference rooms are hardly ever being used. Small meetings are usually held in the kitchen or cubicles. I work at my own desk in one of the cubicles on the Design Floor, which is shared with the Art Director, PR Co-ordinator and two PR interns.
The culture is very diverse and surrounded with design inspirations, mood boards, pintrest boards and jewelry showcases in each cubicle on the design floor. The employees are very passionate, welcoming and driven by one another.
So what’s the typical work day at Lydell NYC?
The day starts at 9am. Account Executives and Art Director sometimes makes it in before 9am, usually to complete previous projects or get an early start of the day. Around 9:30 everyone is seated at their desks.
Lunch is 1 hour, taken at any time of the day that you chose. The common hours are between 12 and 2pm. Most employees bring their lunch from home, others order or spend their lunch out the office. I usually take lunch between 1-1:30pm on my full day shifts. When I work my half day shift (1pm – 5/6pm), I do not take any lunch.
Around 3pm, everyone is back at their desks until the end of the work day at 6pm. There are some longer days where employees stay until 7pm.
My day starts at 9am to 6pm on Thursday and Fridays and 1pm to 5pm, sometimes 6pm on Wednesdays.
