Alexandra Barber

Country of origin: United Kingdom

Placement: Mattel

Mattel is the leading toy manufacturer worldwide in the dynamic FMCG industry. They have an impressive portfolio of brands which include Barbie, Hot Wheels, Uno, Polly Pocket and Scrabble. My role as assistant brand manager was to support the brand manager to implement key marketing strategies for the Girls brand portfolio: Monster High, Disney Princess, Polly Pocket and Girl Tech.

My main responsibilities were quite varied but involved working across multiple brands with key internal partners: Sales, Finance, Trade Marketing as well as external agencies, PR, media agencies, advertising and design agencies.

I assisted and planned key marketing activities for each brand as well as tracking and monitoring the performance. I also attended TV shoots and executed TV campaigns with an external agency. Furthermore, I supported the marketing team with retail catalogue pages such as Argos by working with an external agency to design and create the pages for the brands. I helped with competitions and adverts in the Mattel brand magazines as well as working with our PR agency on adverts in other girl magazines.

Working on Monster High allowed me to learn and develop my knowledge of marketing as well as learn how to manage a brand. I helped launch the 2013 brand campaign, “Where Screams Come True”, and I continued throughout my placement to manage the website we had designed.

I was given full responsibility for the management of the Barbie and Monster High Facebook pages, regularly undertook store checks, visiting retailers to see how our brands and products looked in store, and worked on digital and website development.

My highlights from Mattel include attending London Fashion Week in London, attending a private screening of 'The Dark Knight Rises' at Warner Brothers Head Quarters as well a screening of 'The Little Mermaid' at Disney headquarters in Hammersmith, London. Also they provided the opportunity to get involved in the social committee and I helped organise the Christmas Party as well as raising money for the Charity committee.