Pros
I genuinely love Athleta's brand and culture and I actually feel like I have been trained with great product knowledge and education about products and selling points, unlike previous retail jobs I have had. I love the clothes and believe they are made well and it's also fun working for an up and coming company that is growing and doing well especially in NYC. the discount is amazing, 50% which you really can't beat. The free yoga classes are great customers love it. It's exciting working at Athleta in NYC where some really interesting characters come in and you get the chance to get to know some and literally build their wardrobe where "athleisure" is becoming huge here and people WILL spend the money! There are days when I have a blast at work, our management has a great knack for hiring great employees who all get along and have great energy of representing the brand and working as a team which I really appreciate. The job is easy if you understand retail and sales, and once you start learning about Athleta's culture and education it all starts to feel really easy and enjoyable to sell. I love building customers outfits and the styling that can come along with it.
Cons
management can be a mess... but that's true of all retail. Not all management, it's just inconsistent. LOW PAY. For the amount of work you could end up doing for one customer or the 10-15 customers you could work with in one shift.. I feel associates should make commission on top of an hourly rate. This is no ordinary retail/sales job... we go above and beyond for people, the brands goal is to make it feel as though we as associates are the customers personal shoppers. There are days when I can't believe how much work I have done or how many customers I personally got to know/ provided them with amazing product knowledge and styling advice, and then remember how little I am getting paid. People always ask after leaving if we work on commission or if they need to give our name at the register... that should say it all. Same goes for the clientele program if the store you work at offers it. I am on our stores clientele list and even though I enjoy the work and connections I make- the fact that I'm making NO commission out of it when I am doing more work on top of what is required of my current shift is ridiculous. Where is my incentive to go the extra mile for a customer and lay out the red carpet for them, selling great and expensive clothes.. and I walk away with no bonus or perks...... pretty sure you could make better money at starbucks who especially in this city have the rudest employees you will ever meet.....
