Retail Experience
In addition to research and teaching experience gained during higher education, I have also continued to work in retail, working closely with diverse customers and managing teams for several years. I enjoy working in fast-paced environments and forming meaningful relationships with clients.
Sales Associate – Madewell: March 2026 – current
Costa Mesa, CA
Practiced in all store duties including visual merchandising, enterprise sales, & customer service.
Sales Associate – Madewell: Sept 2023 – Sept 2024
Costa Mesa, CA
Practiced in all store duties including visual merchandising, enterprise sales, & customer service.
*Left position to focus on writing my dissertation.
Store Manager – Raising Plants OC: Jan 2021 – Sept 2022
Mission Viejo, CA
Working directly with the store owner to manage a team of four part-time associates.
*Left position to prioritize Ph.D. program milestones.
Sales Associate – Madewell: Oct 2017 – Apr 2021
Berkeley, CA and Mission Viejo, CA locations
Practiced in all store duties including visual merchandising, enterprise sales, & customer service.
*Left position due to time constraints from employment at UC Irvine and Raising Plants OC while taking Ph.D. degree courses.
Other Personal Interests
I have solo-travelled to Norway, Iceland, Singapore, Indonesia, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, France, Germany, Hungary, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Canada, and Mexico.
I have also attended university in Norway and Singapore.
I have been doing portrait and travel photography since 2015.
*Most portraits omitted for privacy.
I’ve always been a creative person, exploring all different kinds of crafts and art forms.
I have done ceramics (hand-building and wheel-throwing) since I was 10, sewn clothing since I was 12, and practiced photography since I was 15.
Other interests include: screen printing, jewelry-making, silver-smithing, knitting, crocheting, and painting.
I have had up to 200 houseplants in my home at once, running a sealed indoor greenhouse in my living room. I am knowledgable about species names, different necessary care, and propagation techniques.
I have served as a Store Manager for a local plant shop from 2021 – 2022 where I helped clients pick out the plants best suited to their spaces, provided in-person and online plant care assistance, and taught a variety of workshops covering instructional courses on propagation techniques to hands-on classes on making dried flower wreaths.
ASHLEY LUCIA TORRES, Ph.D. 