Pros
I have been with the company coming up on a year- I was an intern at Sherwin last summer and am a current sales associate that is starting the management training program (MTP) in about a month upon graduation from college, a program that trains you and places you in an assistant manager position in a store upon a position opening. My training store for the internship and soon-to-be MTP is in Saratoga Springs, I get part-time hours at school in the Oneonta store, had gotten some hours over a break from school in the Schenectady store, and have visited several other stores.
Sherwin has a very relaxed work environment and good corporate culture compared to other companies I've worked for (I previously worked in a supermarket in food service for years). The company invests big time in training and recruiting its people- my co-workers are very friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. Management in most stores I've been at is very strong and heavily customer-service focused. With well-trained and oftentimes experienced co-workers and management you'll never have much trouble solving problems for a customer. The company also utilizes knowledge hotlines that employ experienced live people on the other end that ensure you'll always be able to find the right answer to a customer issue.
Though I yet don't know of all the career opportunities at Sherwin I have learned about some of my managers' career paths with the company, and it appears that there is quite a bit of room for movement and advancement if you apply yourself. Many of the upper-level managers I've talked to have been interns, management trainees, assistant and store managers, sales reps, sales managers, and more. It is very common to be working with people (especially management) that have been with company 10+ years, which to me is a pretty strong testament to how the company treats dedicated employees. I have met managers that have been happily employed with the company for over 30 years, including my own grandfather who was a Sherwin store manager for over 30 years before he passed away.
As a sales associate I am paid a decent hourly rate and get enough hours, but have been offered a fair and much better, salaried pay out-of- school as a management trainee that is paired with supposed strong options for a benefits package that include retirement options such as 401k and a company-paid pension, different employee stock options, and your usual medical/dental etc. I work with a manager that explained how he initially wanted his job at SW primarily for the strong benefits. The pay and benefits supposedly get much better as you lengthen your stay with the company and move up towards store and district management. I have been told by managers that raises and career advancement in the company are very performance-based and driven.
Overall, I am very happy with my current employment at SW and really look forward to developing my skills further with the upcoming training and hope to be an assistant manager within the year and see where it goes from there. I have already made many friends in the company and don't mind waking up for work. I strongly suggest to anyone (especially college students) even considering getting involved with the company to try and get an internship with SW and have fun with it and ask lots of questions, but also take it seriously- it was an excellent learning/growing experience and is highly recommended for anyone thinking about aiming for a management position at some point in the company as it gets you prepared for work and training in a Sherwin store, cuts the training time for the MTP, and makes you much more attractive in the interview process for the MTP. So far, SW has been a great company to work for.
Cons
-Promotions and hiring for management positions is done overwhelmingly from the inside of SW, which to some that are not employees of SW and trying to get involved in management with the company may be discouraging. The MTP program has gotten more competitive in the past few years and I believe to even apply for MTP nowadays a 4-year bachelor's degree preferably with a business background is required so that's another factor. If you don't have a college degree you can absolutely get involved with SW and be a driver or a sales associate and maybe some other positions I'm unaware of but I'd imagine it would be much more difficult to work your way up in the company without former formal education.
-Sometimes proper staffing can be an issue in smaller-volume stores during big sales.
