Pura Vida Bracelets reviews

- Discriminatory/sexist work environment: ex 1) When advising CEO #2 to promote more people of color (it’s a brand that thrives off the Costa Rican lifestyle) he shrugged it off and replied, “I’m just trying to give the people what they want, you know?” But if you look at any of PV’s social comments, the same questions keep surfacing - Why are there no brown girls? Why do you only hire models with one body type? Where are the Costa Ricans? ex 2) Proposed using a photo with a woman of color for a marketing asset and CEO #2 replied, “She’s just not our demographic.” ex 3) Women have been overlooked for promotions whereas male employees were offered job opportunities before the opening is even announced to the company. Women were asked to make coffee for the office or take notes in meetings regardless of their position. When a woman asks for a pay raise or promotion, the CEOs advise to “prove yourself” and “keep doing what you’re doing” with no action plan. ex 4) There have been instances of men taking the credit for a woman’s work. The women are the backbone of this company. The men are the face of it. - Compensation: Most employees start at the same hourly rate regardless of education or experience. The reason is that they have to again, “prove themselves.” If you try negotiating, CEO #2 will consider it an insult so heed caution before asking for what you believe you deserve. Most salaries are paid under the local and national average. Even when providing the CEOs with this information, they respond with “We’ll discuss this in private” with no follow-up. We were told that PV had the best black Friday sale ever and this was also the year one of the best-selling products hit the site. However they decided not to give out holiday bonuses. We found out later that only a few higher-ups received a holiday bonus and nothing was ever addressed about this although holiday bonuses had been given out every year prior. To add insult to injury, CEO #2 also bought himself a nice Range Rover around the same time. This also applies to paying promotional partnerships. There wasn’t a balanced budget, or any budget at all. They spent thousands for 1 social media post by a C-list celebrity without a second thought but refused to pay very talented up and coming photographers. - Shady business management: Not all products are made in Costa Rica which is probably why PV is not a fair trade certified company. Social media personalities are slowly but surely catching on to Pura Vida’s reputation of not paying for collaborations. I won’t be surprised if after they read these real Glassdoor reviews, they’ll ask current employees to write positive ones in exchange for Amazon gift cards or some other incentive. They have actually done this with Yelp and BBB reviews. To top it off, there is no HR department. - Poor management: This is the #1 reason I left. CEO #2 is very subjective and emotional in his management style. On multiple occasions - if I took a sick day, came back from vacation, or disagreed with something during a meeting - I went through rounds of hazing. Something he praised and approved a week prior was suddenly vetoed and I had to scramble to re-do the project. Destructive criticism is the best way to put it. He’s a fan of “moving the goalposts” in order to ensure that he's perpetually dissatisfied regardless if you can prove the validity of your work. This is what I experienced at Pura Vida. Unfeasible deadlines, inconsistent direction, destructive criticism, disregard for work/life balance, poor pay, no growth. It was time to go.