When you enter the Barefoot Books loft, you might think you’ve entered a Dr. Seuss-like wonderland. Vibrant purple and neon green walls, books and puzzles packed into every nook. The atmosphere is key to interning at Barefoot; fifteen employees share the space, desks out in the open rather than in offices.

The Interaction. From your desk, you’ll peer over shoulders (sometimes literally), hear the sales and finances departments banter back and forth, observe the CEO and head of marketing scrutinize next spring’s cover designs, and overhear the Ambassadors calling in to place orders.

I was a sales intern this summer. No fancy title, but I joined a sales team of three and had reason to talk to almost everyone in the office at some point. Outside sales, I helped out foreign rights, tracked down design files, and copyedited a manuscript.

The Down-Low. What exactly do interns do?

Editorial interns more or less scour through submissions mailed to Barefoot and reject ninety-five percent of them. But other departments are more fluid. In sales, I prospected specialty book and gift stores, worked out education and literacy discounts, wrote pitch letters, placed orders, and talked to hundreds of accounts over the phone.

The Mail. “One word of caution about the mailroom: It is a place out of which you must get.”—How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying

When you intern in publicity, sales, or marketing—at any house!—you will get to know the mailroom better than most of the staff. The joy at Barefoot is that output is small—you might send advances out to fifty sales reps, but nothing approaching five hundred galleys. (Been there, done that.)

The Brand. The Barefoot philosophy is independence: from conventional children’s art, wearing shoes (though the staff usually does), and major book retailers. They don’t sell to Borders or B&N—an independent bookseller’s dream.

Their sales approach is distinctive. Ambassadors who work on commission spread Barefoot titles through their communities, with book parties Pampered Chef-style. Their flagship store resides near Porter Square; FAO Schwartz in New York City houses a Barefoot boutique.

Day-to-day work: 4

Yes, there’s mail—but no intern coffee runs!

Networking potential: 3

They’re the Mighty Mouse of children’s books. Well-respected around Boston.

Relevant experience gained: 5

They’ll tailor projects to you—who knew they’d have bilingual books that used my college Spanish?

Awesomeness of co-workers: 5

Proponents of the one-hour lunch break.

Swag factor: 1

You don’t work here for the champagne. Do it for the children! (Or everything else Barefoot supports: The environment. Multiculturalism. Pirates.)

Tags:   Barefoot Books · Internship Reviews · Josh GarstkaNo Comments