I applied online by filling out an assessment, and was confirmed eligible for interview the next day. The online process was, like most larger organisations, pretty simple. Just a few scenario-based questions that made sure you're not completely useless. After booking my interview, I used this site religiously to practise every single possible question with my parents, and I'm glad I did! Although I already had a (pretty) vague of what to expect, I was still nervous on the day of my interview. Everyone was lovely, though. My interviewer immediately diffused the tension by making jokes and explaining to me the process of the interview (which I already knew, hahaha), and then we started! The majority of the questions she asked me in her office were based on the ones I hadn't done so well on in my online assessment, and I would say it took about ten minutes. She just took notes the whole time. Then (and this is the bit I'd been dreading) we went down to the shop floor. She explained on the way that I'd be completing some 'shop-floor tasks'. In short, this basically just meant following her around the shop while she occasionally stopped at certain aisles and asked me questions (mostly regarding customer queries). It was pretty simple, but then she asked me what I knew about No7. I told her that I use a waterproof mascara by their brand, so she took me over to the No7 mascaras and told me to pick one to sell to a customer. Luckily, one of the nice ladies who was working there recited information about a specific mascara so that I could sell it without looking really stupid. Now...I know how utterly degrading it is to go up to a complete stranger and ask them to purchase a product that they're definitely not interested in, and I know it goes against every instinct in your body that tells you just to leave people alone, but you've got to do it. That's what I kept telling myself, anyway. I knew that the interviewer just wanted to see if I could actually talk to people, so I just went for it. The woman I sold (or attempted to sell) the mascara to was actually really nice, and the whole ordeal was over with in less than a minute. After that, we did some more general shop-floor tasks like spotting out confident/unconfident shoppers, looking at certain aisles and saying how I'd make them better, etc. It actually went pretty fast! When we were finished, the interview told me I wouldn't hear from her until Monday (my interview was on a Saturday), and I got the call Monday morning offering me the job! So far, I've already done two shifts here and I love it. The people are amazing :)
