Work Experience Week at Carpet Trader Bicester
Last week, we had the pleasure of welcoming two sixth form students into the showroom for a week of work experience. One student spent the week learning about finance, business operations and how a real business works day to day, while the other student joined us with a focus on art, design and creative projects.
Supporting local students and creative learning
During the week, both students were able to get an insight into different areas of the business, from understanding how the showroom runs to learning more about finance, marketing, design and customer-facing work. It was a great opportunity to show how many different skills go into running a local interiors business.
Our art and design student began the week by creating their own version of the exterior of our showroom. They completed this digitally on their iPad, producing two different versions of the design and exploring how the building could be interpreted in their own creative style.
Showroom sketches and interior design tasks
After working on the exterior design, they then moved on to sketching different areas of the showroom by hand. This gave them the chance to practise drawing from real spaces, looking closely at layout, products, furniture and interior details.
The next day, they were given the task of redesigning a new showroom space, using inspiration from Carpet Trader and the products displayed throughout the showroom. This was a useful exercise, helping them think creatively about layout, design and how different interior products can work together in a space.
From sketching to game design
Later in the week, the art and design student mentioned they were interested in game design, so we created a task around that. The idea was to design a simple app or game concept based around Carpet Trader, which led to the creation of “Carpet Wars”.
The project started with sketches before being developed digitally on their iPad. Alongside this, they were also introduced to Adobe Illustrator and Adobe XD, giving them a chance to explore how creative ideas can move from early concepts into digital design.
A brilliant week of learning
It was lovely to have both students with us for the week and to see their confidence, ideas and creativity develop. We really enjoyed being able to support local students and give them a glimpse into the world of interiors, design, finance and business.
