I've worked for Vans as a Floor Sup for about half a year now and I can personally say that I will never look back as soon as I find a new job. Company culture for Vans is supposed to be laid back. They claim to train their employees to not be pushy sales people. However, recently this has become a flat out lie. Expect to have to push socks, shoe care, apparel, and clearance merchandise at every single customer who comes through the door. As a company, Vans is focused on making a profit now because of the popularity they've seen and the growth they are experiencing. So they've taken to making sure that their associates are now selling everything down to shoes off their feet. Upper management at Vans has experienced a complete disconnect with the field in which their employees work every single day. Expectations to do a new floor set and window set almost every single week have become almost a standard. If you work for Vans as a member of the management staff, expect to have to dedicate all of your free time to a job they will only pay you peanuts to do. Despite policy, they want their part-time managers to be available at the Assistant and Store Managers whim. Expect to be accosted for not being available to cover a shift for either of these managers. The sales associates at most Vans locations only recieve a 4 hour shift or two each week, with a peppering of "Call-in" shifts as well. Thats right. A company that supposed to pride itself on excellent work/life balance forces their poorly paid sales associates to avoid any and all plans for a shift they may or may not be called in for. This company is a joke and will certainly fail in years to come if they can't build a successful, happy staff in any of their stores. They are a sham for parading themselves as an individualistic, laid back company because they are the exact opposite. Steve VanDoren should have kept it in the family. Give Vanity Fair a few more years and you'll be looking at a once groundbreaking company turned into the next Urban Outfitters.
