Gaston Day Interns Capitalize on Opportunities at Parkdale Mills

Down in the basement of Parkdale Mills Headquarters here in Gastonia, a small group of young women interns are working tirelessly and growing new business at a rate almost beyond belief. Internships often involve mundane tasks and busy work and doing lower priority jobs that no one else has time for. But not these internships. The COVID-19 crisis has strained the nation's PPE supply chain. So these young women are working diligently to help supply our first responders and others with these critical needs. Among this group of interns are Madeleine Singh (rising ninth grader), Katherine Heilig (rising senior), Lauralee Hurst (recent 2020 graduate and class valedictorian) and Ceci D'Amore (GDS Class of 2017 and rising Notre Dame University senior). The pandemic has turned their internships into a crash course in sales and marketing, and these young women are more than meeting the challenge.

Here is how it all happened. With leadership from CEO Andy Warlick (GDS Class of 1975), Parkdale Mills, a world leader in yarn manufacturing and beauty and cosmetic cotton products worked with the US government and a coalition of US textile companies to begin retrofitting facilities and altering production towards facemasks and gowns. As a result, Parkdale began producing masks and gowns for the US government, FEMA, and the nation's health care industry. These contracts have put thousands of USA textile workers back to work and allowed other textile companies to join the effort.

Realizing that other state agencies, universities, school systems, and the private sector had an immediate need for PPE as well, Parkdale wanted to grow awareness about their new production capacities and capabilities. This also provided opportunity to further support their textile industry and supply chain partners, and keep their employees working during this pandemic. To do so, Davis Warlick (GDS Class of 2004)  reached out to Gaston Day School looking for promising interns to assist in their new efforts.

The internship program has provided these Gaston Day students and alums with the opportunity to learn about manufacturing, supply chain, and the art of the sale. And sell they have. Sensing a need for student demand as they return to campus in the fall, Ceci D'Amore has focused on working with colleges and universities. While I visited, she was working diligently on facemask prototypes for

Ohio State University. Based on the volume expectations, this order could potentially exceed Gaston Day School's annual budget! And Ceci is not the only one. Katherine Heilig secured a high five-figure sale the other day. Madeleine Singh and Lauralee Hurst have built from scratch an E-Commerce platform that allows individual consumers to purchase Parkdale masks online. Davis Warlick noted that Hurst and Singh did the whole thing by themselves and without outside help. Using their writing skills--courtesy of the GDS English department--graphic skills, and fashion sense, they have built a platform that outclasses the competition.

Warlick cannot contain his enthusiasm and praise for what the interns have accomplished. He, Johanna Pichardo, and the Parkdale staff provide guidance. However, the interns have been empowered to help identify opportunities. According to Davis, the interns "are getting an MBA experience and they don't even know it." This group of Gen Z interns proves that generational perceptions can be misleading--as Warlick appreciates how well suited their skill sets are for this task. Their combination of communications and technology skills, their work ethic, fashion sense, and competitiveness make them ideal employees. According to Warlick, "these young women are bright, creative and have a great work ethic. Way to go, Gaston Day!"

Meanwhile, back in the sales center in the Parkdale basement, the interns continue to discuss COVID trends--identifying where future demand will be and where supply deficiencies exist. Warlick just shakes his head in amazement and smiles. Do these young women know how much business

knowledge they are soaking up? Probably not. And the masks are keeping people safe and healthy. Everyone wins--the interns, Parkdale Mills, and the customers! This is the free enterprise system operating at its best and taking care of an extraordinary public need in a time of crisis.

This group of interns is certainly one of the most effective and successful ever assembled. If you are reading this post during working hours, rest assured, the interns are hard at work--making more calls, closing more sales, and filling more orders.
If you would like to order a Gaston Day face mask CLICK HERE.