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      Cosmetics Associate Interview

      Oct 5, 2014
      Anonymous Interview Candidate
      No offer
      Negative experience
      Difficult interview

      Application

      I interviewed at Clinique in Oct 2014

      Interview

      The Talent Plus interview was difficult because the questions could not be explained by the interviewer and since I do not have previous experience selling cosmetics I had to remember times at other unrelated jobs when I met the sales goals, was rewarded for meeting sales goals, or dealt with an unhappy customer. The last positions I held were in education and it was difficult to think of specific examples to answer some of the questions. Many of the questions dealt with rating myself with regard to honesty, loyalty, and a positive attitude. I was asked how many hours I worked in a day at previous jobs and how I get along with negative people. Some comments have mentioned that the Talent Plus interviewer sounded uncaring and unsupportive but my interviewer seemed to regret that she couldn't explain questions and she asked one question again when I forgot to address the second half of a question. The most helpful preparation I did for this interview involved reading other comments on the website, writing down the questions which were asked, and considering my answers to those questions. Apparently I passed this interview because I was asked to interview with the account representative of the cosmetics line. However, during that one-on-one interview I decided that this high stress cosmetic sales position was not for me because of the following expectations: daily goals for sales, weekly goals for credit card applications, follow up telephone calls (calling a customer 2 days after they purchased a product to thank them, 2 weeks after to see if they want to come in for a follow up appointment to see how the product is working for them, and 2 months after purchase when they are probably running low on the product), making pre promotion sales calls to pre sell the products, and working a 12 to 14 hour shift for Black Friday. As a consumer of many cosmetics products over the years, I would probably not return to a cosmetics counter if someone called me 2 days, 2 weeks, or 2 months after I purchased a product. I know they appreciate my business, assuming they were pleasant and thanked me during the transaction. I know how to drive back to the department store if I have questions or trouble using the product. If they were honest and genuine during the initial sale, I will want to go back to them when I'm running low on the product. Calls after the sale would feel like telemarketing calls to me.

      Interview questions [1]

      Question 1

      How many hours do you usually work? This was difficult for me because I'm not sure if they want to know so they'll have an idea of how many hours I'd be willing to work during the week at the cosmetics job. If that's what they want to know, just ask me how many hours I'm willing to work. In some professions, work includes the hours you report to the place of employment as well as the preparation you do at nights and on the weekends. I said 50 to 60 hours because I added preparation time during off hours but I don't want or expect to work that many hours selling cosmetics. I was confused at the purpose of this question.
      Answer question
      7