1. SOPHIE
BALMBRA
89 Alma Road,
St Kilda East
Melbourne, Victoria,
Australia
sophie.balmbra@hotmail.com
0459567324
Profile.
I have always been highly motivated and enthusiastic when it comes to customer service, I have worked successfully for various
well-known brands.This has proved very useful when completing my own projects throughout the years. Building a relationship and
creating memorable stories with consumers is crucial and incredibly rewarding when working for different brands. I strive to be
attentive and very observant, this helps me to stay aware of the changing factors that can affect a business and their consumers.
Authenticity is at the core of my strong work ethic, I find it really important to seek the truth and show this to consumers through
different mediums.
Experience.
BRIDAL CONSULTANT / WED2B Gateshead (December 2015 - September 2016)
At WED2B, we believe every woman deserves to look stunning and feel special on their wedding day – regardless of budget. Our brides-to-be don’t want to
be intimidated by expensive boutiques, but neither do they want to rummage for poor-quality dresses at rock-bottom prices.
• Customer Service - I am trained to help and dress the brides into multiple gowns, this is a very intimate shopping experience which
customers may not have been through before. It is important to maintain a level of excitement and positivity with every single bride as this might
be the only experience they ever have in their life. This requires me to make the customers time with me as relaxed and comfortable as so on
as possible, especially when the majority of customers are nervous, self conscious or may be dealing with personal and sensitive matters.
• Advisor - I have to ask the right questions in order to build a stable and in depth rapport, resulting in being able to give the correct advice
when appropriate. It is important to show the brides the different shapes and what they do for their particular body shape in the most polite
and friendly manner. It is very important to build trust with your bride and build their confidence to try, for instance, a veil or belt
which they hadn’t thought about yet.
• Conducting staff meetings – I volunteered to travel to our head office to collate information on upcoming lines and brand changes, this
required me to present back to the staff at the Gateshead store and show different styling techniques in order to maximise sales.
• Diffusing situations - Planning a wedding is an extremely stressful time for brides and their families. Sometimes brides bring large entourages
which may lead to conflicting opinions and awkward situations. It is vital that the bride is reassured that it is her own opinion which is most
important and that she feels confident and comfortable when making that final purchase to minimise the chance of a return.
ACCOUNTS MANAGER / STRATEGIC FIVE MARKETING (September 2015 - November 2015)
Our mission at Strategic Five Marketing is to develop our business through diversity, individuality and a fusion of ideas. The face-to-face interaction delivers
maximum impact, and Strategic Five Marketing effectively presents offers to targeted consumers that result in quality sales.
During my time at Strategic Five I represented Scope a charity which supported local disabled children, being able to create quality donations for
this charity was extremely rewarding. After 2 weeks in the company I hit the required criteria to be promoted to the next stage of the business, this
enabled me to begin to interview, teach, train and build my own team. During my time here I have developed great working habits such as
maintaining a great attitude, remembering why I am there and taking control. This job is 100% performance based this enabled me to track my own
progress, however this resulted in uncertainty and a lot of pressure and so I sought out for a more stable income.
Charity / Brand Awareness / Direct Sales / Customer Acquisitions / Interviewing / Public Relations
BAR STAFF - WAITRESS / NEWCASTLE ARTS CENTRE (September 2014 - August 2015)
Newcastle Arts Centre included ‘The Black Swan’ venue, popular for weddings, and ‘The Jazz Café’, café by day and live jazz bar by night.
• Barista & Mixologist – We offered a range of coffees and cocktails in both venues, I am trained to create these to perfection and take pride in
my presentation. We also got the freedom to create our own cocktails which I really enjoyed and loved to see customers enjoy them also.
• Multi-tasking – Having a small team in the café by day meant that I had to keep on top of orders, ensuring coffees were made and taken to the
correct tables along with the food orders. Hygiene is very important with a quick turnover of customers it's vital to keep all areas clean and tidy,
especially the coffee machine being so frequently used.
• Setting up a venue - I am able to transform our 200 capacity venue to the clients desired mood or theme to an extremely high standard,
ensuring all done as safely as possible. I learnt how to follow strict instructions and work efficiently as a team with new people every week, as
often we would have to help caterers set up as well as running the bar.
COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER / MADE WITH WORDS (September 2014-May 2015)
Made with Words brings a contemporary twist to your desktop with hand-stamped notebooks, decorated with regional sayings from the heart of the North East.
• Branding - Creating a brand new business required building a brand suitable for our target market. Through design, promotion, tone of
voice, it all had to tie together to create a trustworthy brand in which customers would happily buy into.
• Social Media - Managing our social media sites, successfully creating a community in which we supported local traders helped increase sales.
• Finance - Having a very limited source of funding it was crucial to budget accurately and source appropriate, reliable sources. We ran a lean
production system so that we didn’t waste money on manufacturing. I assisted the financial advisor on break -even points and balance sheets.
• Networking - I was extremely successful in using the fairs to discover events that others took part in around the city and establish useful
contacts, leading on to other opportunities for sales and our community to grow.

2. BAR STAFF – WAITRESS / GREENE KING (February 2010 - September 2014)
• Initiative - In incidents of miscommunication between the bar and the kitchen it required me to instantly think of solutions which would make the
customer happy and keep the kitchen running smoothly.
• Motivation - Amidst the busy atmosphere of the business I had to make sure that all the staff were happily motivated, wanting to go the extra
mile for themselves and the people around them.
• Promotion - I really enjoyed getting into the promotion side of the business, coming up with offers and new products. Hosting live band
nights and creating award-winning back bar displays, were ways in which I feel I excelled in the business.
• Mystery Visit Scores - 1 x 96.8% 1 x 100%
SALES ADVISOR / SUPERDRY (November 2013 - May 2014)
• Visual merchandising - A lot of care and attention goes into the window displays and the interior of the store. As I was involved in the creation
of their brand new store in the Metrocentre, I had to be meticulous in every aspect of the presentation to create the quintessential Superdry
store. Working towards a deadline just before the Christmas period made my precise and confident decision making crucial.
•Up-selling - I received REAL training which taught me how to achieve the best customer experience through my service. Having been successful in
this training means that I know how to secure loyalty with the customer, and a true relationship between themselves and the brand.
SALES ADVISOR / NEXT LTD (November 2011 - September 2012)
• Management Skills - During the sale periods we would have temporary staff to come in and help set up the stock and to help during trading hours. I
assisted my manager in the Childrenswear department to make sure that everyone knew the tasks to complete and to make sure the time-line of the day
was being kept to. I also completed managerial checks such as stock levels and floor walks to make sure that all stock was accounted for.
• Customer Service – As my first position in retail I learnt the basics of cash handling, dealing with returns and processing customers directory orders. I
learnt to be meticulous and thorough so that customers received and ordered the correct products as one wrong piece of information could result in the
products being lost and leave the customer frustrated and dissatisfied.
Education.
Diploma in Digital Marketing The Shaw Academy Online / November 2015 - January 2016
Grade achieved : Distinction
Through this online course I have learnt and completed assessments concerning the methods of marketing and surrounding subjects
such as: eCommerce / Blogging / PPC / SEO / Data Driven Marketing / Email Marketing / Social Marketing
BA (HONS) FASHION COMMUNICATION Northumbria University / September 2012 - June 2015
During my time at Northumbria University I gained a 2:2 degree and invaluable skills in the following areas :
PR / Journalism / Photography / Styling / Marketing / Film / Exhibition / Installation /
Branding / Business Management / Project Research / Events.
Projects have included marketing campaigns with Dr Martens and photography with Diversity Now All Walks Beyond the Catwalk. F or my final
year project I created a music and travel publication called ASH. I created all the content appropriate for the desired target audience, devised a
creative digital marketing campaign across multiple platforms, conducted SWOT analysis’ and pitched the concept successfully.
A Levels Holy Cross College, Bury / 2010 - 2012
Media Studies, B English Literature & Language , B Business Studies, C
GCSE’s
St Gabriels RC High School, Bury / 2005-2010
Drama – A Religious Education – A French – A English Lang – A
English Lit – B Maths – B Science (Core) – B
Science (Additional) – C Graphics – C
I.T – Distinction (equivalent to an A)
Skills. Achievements. Interests.
Adobe INDESIGN 5* Facebook Reviews Winner – Wed2B Fashion
PowerPoint Rising Star Award – Credico Health & Fitness
Microsoft Word 3 Peaks Challenge – Macmillan Music
Wordpress International Chair – Rotary Film & Photography
References available upon request.