How it started: a high school intern at Sam’s Club. How it’s going: a front-end manager with aspirations to keep on growing.
When Sam’s Club set out to reimagine the concept of an internship, the result was a groundbreaking program that’s cultivating young talent!
The 10-week paid summer internship gives high school juniors and seniors — many from underserved communities — the chance to develop business and soft skills. And it’s more than a simple preview of job roles: Through a series of rotations, interns are introduced to key concepts like the warehouse business model, fresh food production and merchandising.
There’s also training on skills such as resilience and member service. And thanks to our benefits team, rotations on life skills like financial literacy plus an overview of associate resources, including Live Better U and well-being benefits.
For Krystle Lewis-Curtis, manager of Club 4787 in Bloomington, Minnesota, the program is a gamechanger. “This internship program opened another talent stream for all the clubs. It's just such an untapped group of individuals.”
And the benefits clearly flow both ways. “We're able to show these kids their earning potential in various roles from day one. It's extremely eye-opening to them,” Krystle adds.
Diana Marquina was one of those “kids” not too long ago.
A foot in the door
Back in 2020, Diana was among Krystle’s first group of high school interns. Diana was 16 when she started at Club 4787.
“The internship was a truly awesome experience because I was able to learn every aspect of the club,” Diana says. Interns get to work in all the departments and learn each area of the club from experienced associates.
Getting this experience helped Diana decide that she wanted to become a manager. And it quickly became apparent that she had what it takes.
“Diana demonstrated leadership pretty much immediately. She was a self-starter. You didn't have to give her much direction, and she caught on very quickly,” Krystle says.
An unexpected journey
And just like that, Diana was off — growing from a summer intern into a cashier, then onto a member specialist. “And a very, very quick, quick turnaround,” Krystle stresses. At 18, she was promoted to a member team lead.
“Sams Club wasn’t afraid to give me a shot even though I was young,” Diana shares. “It has been and unexpected journey, because I didn’t plan to be front end manager in 4 years, but I really think it was meant for me.”
While the internship program may have fueled her career, Diana’s family is a big factor in her passion to succeed. Her family came to Minnesota from El Salvador. Before she started at Sam's Club, Diana worked two jobs in addition to going to high school.
“My mother was injured at the time and couldn’t work,” Diana shares. “So being able to work only at Sam’s was a huge help — not only for me, but for my family.”
“It was very important for her to be able to grow and have a career. When she came to Sam's Club, she was able to do that,” Krystle says.
A leader by example
Now at age 20, she is the first high school intern to become a front-end manager. She now works in Club 4736 in Apple Valley, Minnesota.
As a young manager, she says that leadership is “really all about treating everybody with respect. I'm very big on communication. I never want somebody to feel down at work, and I like to be an open book with my team.”
Her leadership style? “I like to lead by example. So if I expect somebody to hop on the register, or get the exit, I'm going to do the same for them, because I want them to know that I am there for them and I understand what they're going through,” Diana explains.
The best is yet to come
What’s next for Diana? Her current club manager, Karena Schroeder (pictured above, right), is a role model. “I've been learning a lot from Karena, and I wouldn't mind becoming a club manager one day,” she shares.
“Diana is so good at asking questions and diving in. She wants to learn,” Karena says. “She’s going to continue to grow. And I think largely because of her intern experience and how she took advantage of that experience,” Karena shares.
“She's just so great already, so young in her role,” Karena raves. And to think… It all started with a high school internship.
More than 1,300 students have completed the Sam's Club High School Internship Program. Applications open in the spring. Participants earn at least $16 an hour — plus the chance to kickstart their career in retail management! Learn more about Sam’s opportunities here.
