Hearst UK

Day 4 of our trip started bright and early with a very quick breakfast before heading out to Hearst UK. Hearst UK is a publishing company in London that publishes 23 brands including ELLE, Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, and many other well-known magazines. Their brand reaches over one in three UK women and one in four UK men every month.

The visit started with a tour of the agency, provided by Clair Blunt, COO, and CFO of Hearst UK. We were taken to different creative spots including where many of the videos and media were shot, along with where the company stores all of the clothing that they receive for the fashion segments in ELLE and Cosmopolitan. It was fascinating to see these behind the scene places, especially where they keep all of the clothing for the fashion shoots.

We learned that all of the designer clothes are actually sent in one size and bounces between different agencies, meaning that Hearst doesn’t get to keep the clothing. We spoke to Alyssa, a Senior Fashion Editor, who told us that some of the higher end jewelry has to be sent with a bodyguard. We also learned that if Brexit does go through, then each item has to be individually processed in order to be shipped to different branches within the UK.

After checking out where all of the clothing is stored for the fashion shoots, we took a short walk over to where a majority of the content is filmed for social media. The setup of the video studio was small, yet versatile. We spoke with Jess Edwards, Digital Editor, for Cosmopolitan, who walked us through her pre-production, production, and post-production process.

Afterward, we took a short walk over to the GoodHouse Keeping studio where they test out different recipes and test out products for reviews. It was interesting to see all of the various test labs—makeup labs, a room filled with different dishwashers, different types of flooring to test vacuums, and so on. The most interesting insight that we were given was that when they get a product that doesn’t meet the standard that the company claims, then GoodHouse Keeping will send their findings to the company in order for them to make improvements on the item.

Experiencing Nando’s for the First Time

After we finished up our media visit, a few of us went to Nando’s for lunch where I ate the most fantastic chicken sandwich in my entire life, and no that is not an overstatement. If there were one thing I could bring back to the States, it would defiantly be Nando’s (we apparently have a few, but I suggest replacing every McDonalds with a Nando’s).

The National Gallery

After our late lunch, we walked over to the National Gallery for a few hours before it closed. The National Gallery in London is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster. Founded in 1824, the National Gallery houses over 2,300 paintings, some dating back from the mid-13th century.