Over the past nine weeks, we’ve had the pleasure of working together at The Treat Kitchen, blending creativity, learning, and a shared love for all things sweet. From campaign planning and content creation to trend research and product insight, we explored the world of gifting through hands-on experience. This blog captures the highlights of our placement journey—what we learned, how we grew, and why our time at The Treat Kitchen was such a valuable and inspiring chapter.

Lara’s section:

✨ Gifting with Purpose (and Personality)

The Treat Kitchen isn’t just about selling sweets—it’s about creating memorable, giftable moments. During my placement, I got to experience firsthand how a brand connects with customers emotionally, whether through quirky packaging, heartfelt message bottles, or limited-edition seasonal launches. It showed me just how powerful storytelling and creativity are in building a strong, relatable brand.

🧠 What I Learned

My role covered a variety of tasks across marketing, branding, and retail strategy. Some highlights included:

• Social Media & Content Creation – I contributed to campaign planning and helped brainstorm ideas for TikTok and Instagram content. It was rewarding to see concepts evolve from ideas to posts that reflected the brand’s fun personality.
• Trend Research & Competitor Analysis – I got to deep-dive into gifting trends, particularly how food gifts continue to grow in popularity. Understanding consumer behaviour was eye-opening and reinforced just how important insights are for making strong brand decisions.
• Product & Visual Merchandising – Working with the in-house team, I saw how visual appeal directly influences buying behaviour—especially in gifting. Every detail matters, from colour schemes to label wording!

💬 Team Culture

What stood out the most to me was the collaborative and energetic culture at The Treat Kitchen. Everyone—from marketing to product design to customer service—works together to deliver a brand that feels playful yet purposeful. I always felt encouraged to ask questions, pitch ideas, and learn from the team around me.

💡 Takeaways I’ll Carry Forward

This placement has given me real-world insight into how a growing brand operates and adapts in a competitive retail space. It has strengthened my skills in content creation, trend forecasting, and brand communication—skills I’ll continue to develop in my Fashion Marketing & Branding degree at Nottingham Trent University.

🍭 A Sweet Ending

As my 9-week placement comes to a close, I feel incredibly grateful for the experience and everyone at The Treat Kitchen who made it so enjoyable and inspiring. I’ve gained valuable knowledge, made great connections, and of course, sampled a lot of sweets along the way!

If you're a student looking for an experience that blends creativity, marketing, and retail insight (with a side of sugar), I’d definitely recommend a placement at The Treat Kitchen. It’s the perfect mix of learning and fun!

Mias section:

Stepping into my 9-week placement at Treat Kitchen was both exciting and slightly nerve-racking. As a marketing and branding student, I was eager to put my skills into action but I had no idea just how immersive this experience would be. What started as a placement turned into one of the most hands-on, confidence-boosting learning opportunities I’ve had so far.

🛍️ Behind the Brand: Real-World Marketing Experience

Right from the start, I was encouraged to contribute ideas and get involved in meaningful projects. Because Treat Kitchen is a small and creative business, I had the chance to work closely with the buyers, marketing director, branding director, content creators, and graphic designers. This meant I wasn’t just watching things happen — I was part of the process.

One of the biggest highlights was helping lead the Father’s Day campaign 💙. From brainstorming playful content ideas to organising influencer PR boxes and planning social media calendars, I got to experience campaign development from start to finish. It was a challenge, especially when some of my early ideas didn’t align with the brand's goals — but it pushed me to adapt, stay resilient, and keep creating.

✨ Skills I Gained (and Loved!)

During my placement, I picked up a ton of new skills that I know I’ll take with me into my marketing career. Here’s just a taste:

📸 Content creation for TikTok and YouTube Shorts

💻 Writing blog posts and curating social media content

🛒 Getting exposure to buying and licensing processes

🎨 Collaborating with designers on new packaging concepts

🖥️ Observing the redesign of the website and shape the brand’s digital tone

📦 Developing influencer guidelines and producing PR boxes

🧠 Deepdiving further into Adobe to sharpen my creative software skills

Every day was different — and every task built my confidence in working creatively and collaboratively.

One of the best parts of this placement was working in a small, tight-knit team. With just two other placement students, we worked together to bring campaign ideas to life, share feedback, and learn from each other. The level of trust and involvement I had with the full-time team was something I never expected and something I really valued.

I also built professional relationships that stretched beyond the office. I attended the NEC Food and Drink Expo in Birmingham, where I spoke with buyers and saw how brands present themselves at trade events. I also supported charity fundraisers each experience helping me grow my confidence and network on LinkedIn. 💼🌐

🚀 Ready for What’s Next!

My time at Treat Kitchen has helped shape the kind of marketer I want to be; one that’s creative, strategic, and values collaboration. I’m walking away from this experience with new skills, stronger industry knowledge, and a growing professional network that I’m excited to keep building.

Big thank you to the amazing Treat Kitchen team for making me feel like part of the family! 🍬✨

Sammies part: 

From Sweet Treats to Real-World Skills: My Time at The Treat Kitchen

My nine-week placement at The Treat Kitchen can be described in three words: fun, fulfilling, and formative. From the moment I walked through the doors, I was welcomed into a friendly, open, and creative environment where learning and growth were clearly a top priority. What stood out from the very beginning was how committed the team was to helping us develop — not just as interns, but as individuals preparing to take our next steps in the industry.

Unwrapping My Skill Set

During my time there, I was lucky enough to gain hands-on experience in a wide variety of areas within marketing and branding. Some of my favourite skills I learnt included:

• Social Media Content Creation
• Developing content plans - I learned to think strategically about what to post, when to post it, and how it could support wider marketing goals. This involved researching current trends and keeping an eye on competitors to identify opportunities and stay ahead of the curve
• Creating and planning PR boxes. From selecting the right products to include, to helping develop a creative theme and messaging, it was an incredibly rewarding process. Seeing a campaign idea grow from a brainstorm into a physical, well-packaged box ready to be sent out to influencers and partners was a real highlight.
• Licensing - I learned how partnerships with well-known brands influence product development, packaging design, and marketing strategies. It added a new layer of understanding around how brand collaborations work and how they can bring something unique to a business.

The Sweetest Moments!

A highlight of my placement was our regular catch-ups with the Brand Director, Graphic Designer, and Marketing Assistant. These chats gave us valuable insight into how each role contributes to the brand and showed me how important collaboration is in a small but dynamic team.

Another standout moment was attending the Food and Drink Expo in Birmingham. Seeing The Treat Kitchen in action in a B2B setting helped me build confidence in networking and gave me a clearer understanding of how businesses grow through strong industry relationships.

Lessons to Chew On

Beyond the technical skills, this placement taught me a lot about myself. I discovered that I’m more capable than I realised when I step outside of my comfort zone. I became more confident working in a team, offering ideas, and taking ownership of tasks.

Most importantly, I built genuine connections during my time at The Treat Kitchen - people who were generous with their time and knowledge, and who made the experience feel welcoming and enjoyable every single day. It’s those connections, along with the skills and confidence I’ve gained, that I’ll carry with me into the future.

Looking back, I feel incredibly grateful to have been part of such a dynamic and creative team. The experience has given me a strong foundation for my future career in marketing and branding, and I’m excited to take everything I’ve learned forward into my next opportunity.