Live Well Interns Live the Dream

Live Well 30A is well known as a one-stop shop for beach gear rentals along Scenic 30A. But did you know that the brand takes on a group of college interns to help out during the Summer months? The first requirement: A willingness to engage with the Live Well brand - what they stand for, and what they’re trying to build.

The beach lifestyle company recruits mainly from their current and past customers… i.e. potential interns that have spent summers playing on the very beaches they’ll be working on. Eight SEC schools are represented, and a handful of returning interns have attended "Live Well University" from Freshman to Senior year. A couple that met one summer is getting married soon. Another student transformed into an easygoing beach bum after meeting a group of friends that coaxed him out of his shell.

“Not only do I think it’s the most important part of our business, it’s the most fun,” says Live Well Founder John Wellborn.

Out of 100 applicants for this year’s Live Well internships, 35 were invited to a tryout. Of those 35, 21 are coming to spend their summer working and living at the beach. Of those 21, 16 are repeats. The hardest part, John says, is telling them no.

From May 22 to August 13, the interns will begin a program that John has dubbed Live Well University. Students will engage in entrepreneurship and life skill classes, and each will carry Live Well business cards stamped with their name, school, year, and what they’re studying. (It's never too early to start working on that elevator pitch!) Live Well houses all 21 paid interns and provides some meals.

Every Sunday night, students will gather round the table for family dinner. Groups will rotate cooking the meals. And on nights after the students have worked especially hard, John will treat them to their favorite guilty pleasure: LoRo (Los Rancheros).

The bulk of the work includes fun jobs designed as crash courses in small business management and customer service. Interns walk away with the knowledge of what providing good service means. Live Well U organizes small groups to teach leadership and life skills that the students may not necessarily learn in college. A huge emphasis is placed on how best to utilize resources. This will also be the first year Live Well is hosting a digital marketing intern. She will be capturing photo and video content for Live Well six hours a day, giving Facebook and Instagram followers a taste of the beach life.  

She’s got plenty to cover since Live Well is in the business of saying yes. Other beach gear companies provide one or two services, but travelers can make one call to Live Well to handle all their vacation needs. Live Well combines convenience that saves precious vacay time with attention to quality and detail to provide a higher level of service and meet higher expectations.

When you make a call to Live Well, a real-life person answers the phone. The crew sets up beach bonfires, beach weddings, and beach chairs. Interns deliver bikes, paddleboards, and kayaks to active clients. And the Live Well website lists a host of other services available as well. 

Come August, Live Well interns will head back to school. Buckets of tears will be shed, a group text will be started, and the countdown to next summer begins. In the meantime, John will be honing in on the trend toward all-inclusive vacays. “Maybe one day a Live Well vacation is a thing,” he says.

Live Well is located in Santa Rosa Beach and provides services to the beaches along Scenic 30A. Visit livewell30a.com for rentals, services and more. Find the Live Well apparel brand in The Hub Shop. Follow Live Well on Facebook for contests, updates and fun beach pics. Email info@livewell30a.com or call (850) 534 – 0183 for more information. Live Well's sister company, Rent30A.com, is a local VRBO-esque booking engine that partners with some of the area's premier vacation rental companies to help you plan the perfect beach trip.