She appeared in the first episode, drenched from the rain in her wedding dress as she ran into Central Perk looking for Monica. We get to know more about Rachel throughout the season, learning that she has a passion for fashion and chooses to follow that career path.
Rachel’s Career in Fashion
Rachel started from the bottom and worked her way up, earning the respect of colleagues as an able professional (except for certain instances, like when she dated her secretary Tag Jones). Rachel’s first official job was as a waitress in Central Perk. She stayed in this job for a short while before deciding to take the plunge, quitting her job to pursue her dream. She broke through the fashion scene as an Assistant at Fortunata Fashions before she became a Buyer, and eventually a Personal Shopper, at Bloomingdale’s through the help of Mark (who Ross was jealous of). Rachel, later on, got her dream job at Ralph Lauren, where her career blossomed and Rachel thrived. Things got awkward when Rachel interviewed for a position in Gucci in the same restaurant where her current boss was lunching. She got fired from Ralph Lauren, and Gucci didn’t hire her, but just as Rachel felt like she was out of options, Mark (yes, the same Mark) offers a job at Louis Vuitton! But there’s a catch-the job is in Paris.
Does Rachel Go to Paris?
Ross tries to stop Rachel from going by bribing her old boss at Ralph Lauren with various paleontology artifacts (his kid was interested in dinosaurs) to offer her her job back. Rachel chose to work with Louis Vuitton and got on the plane to Paris, but before the plane leaves, she decided to stay.