Sales Associate applicants have rated the interview process at Payless ShoeSource with 2 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 68% positive. To compare, the company-average is 63.5% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Sales Associate roles take an average of 11 days to get hired, when considering 199 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Payless ShoeSource overall takes an average of 13 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Payless ShoeSource as a Sales Associate according to 199 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 36%
Skills test: 12%
Background check: 11%
Drug test: 11%
Personality test: 8%
Presentation: 6%
Group panel interview: 5%
Phone interview: 4%
IQ intelligence test: 3%
Other: 2%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -
I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Payless ShoeSource (Pittsburgh, PA) in Jun 2011
Interview
Well I applied for an application online and I got a call the next day asking to come in for a job interview. Once arrived at the Payless Store the manager took me into the back room asking general work interview questions such as, In your past place of employment was there times you were mad at a customer and how did you deal with the situations. Or what do you do when one of your co workers is slacking. Questions such as those. but the one thing that really threw me off was she pulled a highlighter out and handed it to me and said "Sell me this highlighter." It just felt awkward. Next she took me out to the sales floor and asked me to sell her two pairs of shoes. When i was leaving she said if she was interested in hiring me she would give me a call with in the week. Two days later she called me and told me I had to go to a second job interview with another manager from another payless. She was in a room with a woman who did not introduce her self which later i found out was the district manager. The manager of that store also asked me those generic interview questions like where do you see your self in 5 years, what can you do for this company. Both interviews seemed to go well. As i was driving away from the second interview I got a call from the first manager i interviewed with she said "They loved you, I'm just going to call your work refrences and you can come in for training"
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Handed me a pink highlighter and said "Sell this to me"
I passed and started quickly. The process was simple and not intimidating. Everything felt straightforward, and I would definitely recommend it to others looking for an easy experience. I enjoy working here.
I applied in-person. I interviewed at Payless ShoeSource (Anchorage, AK) in Aug 2025
Interview
Easy basic questions like job history, availability, and why you chose to interview.
Interview was less than 30 minutes and hired same day. They will almost always hire on the spot im a teenager and they still gave me a job.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Whats youe job history and do you have customer service experience?