November 18th, 2018

Cover Letter

To whom it may concern,

I am a third-year student completing a Bachelor of Communication at the University of Newcastle. As part of my education I completed a semester of study abroad at The College of New Jersey. I will graduate in November of 2019 with majors in journalism and public relations. I am passionate about creative communications for the food industry including restaurant reviews, feature stories and strategic public relations on behalf of hospitality establishments.

Prior to undertaking my degree, I completed an apprenticeship in commercial cookery with a specialist diploma in patisserie. I have six years’ experience in the hospitality industry which includes working as a kitchen assistant, apprentice, qualified chef and sous chef. My employment in this industry has enhanced my appreciation of working to a deadline, teamwork, strong communication and most importantly armed me with intrinsic knowledge of restaurants and cuisine.

In 2018 I completed a four-month internship with Wild and Free Media, a marketing and communications agency. During this training I gained skills in composing engaging content that targets niche audiences with an effective brand voice. I published this content across multiple platforms including social media and WordPress blogs and strategically issued news releases and proposals to the media and potential clients. I also regularly compose articles for Crave New Media’s online “food diary”. This content includes guides and updates on Newcastle’s food scene which requires me to regularly research food trends and remain up-to-date on the city’s events and restaurant launches.

I consciously use my extensive experience in the hospitality industry to inform my writing for the food journalism and public relations industries. I am confident in my use of terminology and literary devices to engage my audience and allow them to visualise my narrative. I believe my qualifications as a chef and appreciation for cuisine provides me with a professional advantage when composing content in the food and restaurant beat. I would appreciate the opportunity to join your team and help shape the narrative you share with your audience. I have attached my resume and contact details if you are interested in negotiating a professional relationship.

Looking forward to your response

Sincerely, Zoe Drew

 

Resume

Zoe Drew
zoe.4995@hotmail.com
0434 266 294

Education

• Certificate II in Floristry TAFE NSW
• Completed HSC at Merewether High School, ATAR 96.80
• Certificate in Prepare and Serve Espresso Coffee
• Diploma of Hospitality with specialist units in Patisserie, completed at Distinction level.
• Commercial Cookery certificate III TAFE NSW.
• Currently in 2nd year of Bachelor of Communications Majoring in Journalism and Public Relations at the University of Newcastle

Employment History

Absolutely Beautiful Flowers Nov 2009 – Oct 2013
Role Florist and retail attendant
Responsibilities
• Creating floral designs, replenishing and care of floral products
• Stocktake and ordering giftware and floral products
• Training new employees
• Customer service and using Point of Sale systems

Circa 1876 Oct 2012- May 2017
Role Head pastry chef however, as I commenced and completed my apprenticeship at Circa, I worked in all sections of the kitchen.
Responsibilities
• Preparing food products for breakfast, larder, mains, pastry and functions.
• Managing breakfast, larder and pastry sections and small functions
• Training staff in food production and kitchen operations.
• Ordering produce for individual kitchen sections and the kitchen as a whole.
• Maintaining hygiene standards in the kitchen, ensuring stock rotation and HACCP principles.
• Recipe and menu development, including calculating menu costing.

Doughheads May 2017- July 2017
Role Sous Chef
Responsibilities
• Making, decorating and storing all doughnut products based on daily quota.
• Supervising production processes and determining daily quotas for sale.
• Training staff
• Ordering products
• Ensuring HACCP and food health and safety is enforced
• Developing new flavours, recipes and composing menu notes for front of house teams

Wild and Free Media Marketing Agency Feb 2018 – June 2018
Role Intern
Responsibilities
• Creating social media content plans for W&F and their clients including copywriting and publication.
• Copywriting and publishing blog posts and copy for W&F and clients.
• Composing marketing and public relations proposals for clients and issued tenders
• Researching new clients and making contact with them through letters of introduction
• Brainstorming marketing strategy with colleagues

Crave New Media Feb 2018 to present
Role Blog Writer
Responsibilities- Researching the Newcastle food scene and composing food guides and blog content for Crave’s “Food Diary”

Personal Blog

https://zoedrewwriter.wordpress.com/

Skills

• Writing hard and soft content for blogs, print, copywriting, scripts, news releases, advertisements, pitches, proposals and reports
• Adobe Photoshop and Premiere Pro
• Understanding of Hootsuite, social media platforms, WordPress, Google documents and Microsoft Office
• Photography and videography
• Event planning and management

Awards and Achievements

• Australian Vocational Student of the year award 2013.
• Hunter Culinary Association apprentice scholarship recipient 2015
•  1st place in the HTN Apprentice Culinary competition 1st year category 2015
•  1st place in the HTN NSW Apprentice Culinary competition 1st year category 2015
•  2nd Place at Australian Culinary Federation National Apprentice Competition 2015
•  Achieved placement on University of Newcastle Faculty of Education and Arts Commendation List 2017

References

Anna Farthing: Director and founder of Doughheads
Phone:0429 498 123
Email: anna@doughheads.com.au

Vesna Kirkovski: Director and founder of Wild and Free Media
Phone: 02 4962 3111
Email: vesna@wlldandfree.com.au