Great if You Love Responsibility - Custom Frame Manager Michaels Employee Review

2.0
Feb 6, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Corporate seems like they care, they try to do things to make the job more positive. They very much seem involved in trying to get you to move up (I personally don't know about the corporate level but I came from Replenishment and worked my way up to Framing Manager). Framing is very fun and creative, I loved the hands on experience and getting to see all different kinds of art. You really do feel like an expert in your field and I was proud of what I was doing. Their archival techniques were very good for the artwork and museum quality (if you were trained right). In framing it was kind of nice to be able to have some distance away from customers. You have your own area that you can't stay in but it was nice to go back there and just work on your framing projects. Because of everything I had to do the position looked great on my resume.

Cons

Oh boy. I was in charge of a framing team but because there were managers who kept on quitting I had to help out more and more with the store. I was either a good framing manager or a good store manager. It's hard to hire for framing because it's so detail oriented and people can really mess up artwork if you hire wrong but also no one knows about framing so no one applies for it. So if there is a vacancy it's rough and it takes a long time to hire someone (and train them). Corporate would keep coming in and telling us to do more and more and we didn't have enough hours to do everything they made us responsible for. Online ordering was also added and managers (at least when I left) were in charge of fulfilling them instead of hiring more people. I was paid NOTHING, it's retail so it sucks but when I tell people in office jobs everything I had to do they tell me it's crazy how little I was paid for everything I had to do. Corporate can tell us we are appreciated but at the end of the day managers and associates in the stores actually have to face customers who complain about the lack of people in the stores and things we can't control and we are the ones who are paid nothing. I loved framing, loved the artistry, the art itself, and the people I helped out and worked with but when I had another opportunity I took it and didn't look back. Living in poverty for corporate profit is not worth it.

Explore other reviews about Michaels

5.0
Jun 18, 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Benefits and the people there.

Cons

It was far away from me.

2.0
Jun 22, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Some great co-workers, employee discount, on site office benefits including a gym and cafe for breakfast/lunch, full suite of employee benefits at reasonable prices

Cons

Ridiculous amount of stress. Retail in general is often stressful but the amount of stress at Michaels is unnecessary and over the top. Constant last-minute changes by leadership to creative, promotions, products, and any other kind of changes. Things will be finalized and signed off on and delivered, and somebody will make a change at the last minute and things are constantly having to be redone. People are worn down and worn out. It’s the highest turnover rate of any place I’ve worked in retail at the corporate office. I’ve seen people take jobs and be gone within weeks. Leadership in some departments are extremely micromanaging and controlling even with employees that are tenured and have multiple years of experience. The stress level for both tenured and new employees is very high. Projects get discussed over and over and over again, decisions are made and then revisited again after decisions were made making delivery late and causing people to work unnecessarily in order to fix things that could’ve been done correctly the first time. The company tries really hard to make the workplace fun and offer activities, motivation, and incentives. Unfortunately they don’t offset what the environment is like working inside with some of the teams and expectations to actually deliver the work. Would not recommend.

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