The CEO, The Company Culture, The Pay.
1. Micromanagement: The company strives for efficiency in project planning, organization, and execution, but with that comes an unnecessary amount of “guidance.” I felt I was never free to lead projects in my own way, and never trusted to complete them in a manner that was comfortable to me. I was happy to be respectful of the company’s pre-conceived planning structure and tools, but there is such thing as too much structure. Especially when it comes to creative projects - there’s no room for creativity. Not to mention Scott (the CEO) oversaw all creative projects, and his sole opinion was the only one that really mattered at the end of the day.
2. Unprofessionalism: I was threatened to be fired based on speculation. Around the time that 3 of my coworkers had left the company, I was asked to step into the hallway outside of the office. Scott, apparently, was concerned about the steep decline of “company morale” and was under the impression that my speculation about why my coworkers had quit was adding negativity. For starters, the abrupt departure of my coworkers was never addressed. This company is not transparent in the slightest - Scott wasn’t even the one giving me this “warning.”
3. Salary: When I joined the team, I was promised a salary by May. When I knew the salary wasn't coming (realized this in January, started in December), I began my job search. Scott never addressed his empty promise, or where the company was in terms of fundraising and budgeting. For the overtime I worked, I was given “Colab cash” which are tickets that equal $10 each. I have $300 worth of tickets. Tickets that I was never able to even use. On top of that, my last week of work, Scott shorted my check $125.
4. Defamation: I put all of my energy, time, and passion into this job. The job itself was so much fun and I learned so much about fashion, organizing, planning, and teamwork. While I was still working there and when I quit, the CEO spread rumors that he had a "hunch" I was stealing the merchandise in the studio. He mentioned this multiple times to various coworkers, which is unprofessional and extremely untrue, to put it lightly.
Overall, I did like working here at the start, and I learned so much. But the company is not easy to work for. There are a lot of internal issues, not only with management, but with the business model itself. Do your research and fully understand what you’re getting into before accepting any job here. 10/10 would not recommend.
Side note: this company is now called Flagship, not CoLabination.