When I began the school year, it was my goal to work for Winners.
I love Winners.
It’s exhilarating to dig through piles of discounted designer clothing and find a sleek Michael Kors purse or a Guess blouse at a phenomenal price. I have always loved that kind of shopping and have spent hours at Winners perfecting the art. I embody the Winners brand, which is about affordable luxury so I thought Winners is the type of company I should work for.
Then I did a project on Winners. I discovered that Winners is owned by TJX, which is the same company that owns TJ Maxx, Marshals and HomeGoods. They also own HomeSense in Canada.
I quickly discovered that if I worked for Winners, I wouldn’t be organizing elaborate fashion shows or looking at clothing samples all day. I would be writing about stock prices and sales reports. TJX is a huge, publicly traded company. Its shareholders and stakeholders are their main audiences, not the 25 year old woman who just bought a discounted pair of L.A.M.B. shoes. She is definitely a target market but most of TJX’s communications efforts are simply not aimed at her.
Around the same time, I attended a promotional event by Virgin Mobile. Virgin mobile is in the business of cell phones and although I have a smart phone, I never thought that I would want to work for a technology based company.  The promo event was a huge musical showcase in the middle of Dundas Square in Toronto. They had bands and other cool stuff that seemed totally in line with the Virgin brand. I remember thinking, “I could put on this kind of event. I could work for this company.”
Realizing the difference between the company and the company’s communications strategy is the most important thing I learned this year. It may not seem too cool to work for a company like Gillett, until you realize how many razors end up in gift bags at fashion shows. Working for the LCBO may seem like a government job until you get to throw wine and cheese parties or write recipes for how to use Jalapeño Vodka.
Centennial’s corporate communications and PR program taught me that it’s about the Brand.  The company itself may sell clothes, but how do they sell the fact that they sell clothes? How do they push themselves? I learned that my role as a communicator is to help companies sell their brand, not their product. Years ago, I spoke to a PR professional who told me that PR people don’t paint the house; we tell everyone that the house has a great new paint job.
Centennial College’s PR program gave me a full understanding of what that means.