Custom Ink reviews

2.9

30% would recommend to a friend

(703 total reviews)
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David Doctorow

23% approve of CEO

23% positive business outlook

Custom Ink has an employee rating of 2.9 out of 5 stars, based on 703 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an average working experience there. The Custom Ink employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.4 stars).

Reviews by job title

703 reviews
3.0
Aug 20, 2016

Follow the Golden Rule

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

-My co-workers have also become friends. They are creative, fun, energetic people with big hearts. -There's always food somewhere. -Amazing health benefits -Discounts to cell phone bills -Ability to work from home (if really needed on certain days) -Flexibility (this seems to be tightening up though) -CustomInk does a lot of volunteering and charitable work -CustomInk has multiple locations with the opportunity to move between them if you foot the bill -Great holiday party -Cool game rooms (if you ever have time to use them) -You can have your personal packages delivered to the office -Nice employee discounts on orders

Cons

-LOW. PAY. (I see here that CustomInk is an Engaged Employer, so I'm sure that whoever is reading this has seen this comment time and again. Please fully consider how many people are leaving this complaint- our expectations you give us as employees are astronomical and we get yelled at by customers and have to smile through it, so please give us a little more money or lower your expectations). -Mandatory OT that barely makes a dent in your paycheck and seems to come up at the last second or is canceled right before you arrive to work early (you need to constantly check your work email while at home or you'll have no idea what is going on) -The CustomInk Blacklist feels like a real thing. Management does not want to hear feedback unless it is glowing, positive, and covered in smiley face stickers. They ask for your opinions and ideas and shoot down every single one (although some will mysteriously appear as new policies or "something we're trying out" a few months later, but of course you don't get credit- it is now considered management's ideas. This is very Golden Rule, of course.) Once you give your opinion about things, you mysteriously never get promotions and end up pulling sucky tasks randomly. Weird. -Have a serious health problem? We say it's all well and good until you have to take time off. If you run out of Paid Leave while you're in the hospital, well... goodbye! -Expectations for quality, accuracy, attitude, productivity, and other categories are very hard to hit. When you mention this to managers they tell you they did 5,000 studies about it and you're actually wrong- you aren't overworked. But when was the last time they were in your shoes? -Be prepared to be graded on absolutely everything you do. While feedback is good and keeps employees accountable, this is ridiculous. We are graded monthly on calls, emails, chats, attitude, productivity, time available, overall attitude while you sit at your desk and eat popcorn, how many breaks you take and for how long- everything. You will be constantly scrutinized and you have to take it all with a smile, otherwise you have an "attitude problem" if you try to defend a choice you made with a customer. -They tell you there is no script for being on the phone, but there is a secret one. Customers who have been loyal to us for years are starting to notice this. -Company is becoming profit-driven rather than people-driven, as it once was. STOP. Stop thinking about how you're going to take over the t-shirt world and focus on your customers (who are starting to notice a dip in quality) and your Inkers, who are starting to get very upset with how they are treated. -Do you live in Nevada or Texas? Then forget ever working in a cool department or having a job that isn't order operations. You'll also be working late shifts forever. - STRESS. If you are a person who is easily stressed, don't do this. There are several employees who are now on anti-anxiety meds just to get in the front door of the office, and at least two people I know have had panic attacks.

1.0
Jan 23, 2015

MOD

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Decent benefits, free coffee and fig newtons

Cons

Laughable pay, terrible management, mindless work that is taken way to seriously. Pay: Pay is low for the area, and there is no annual raises. If you try and ask for a raise, you will be told to "try harder". Pay is a base salary in the high 20k range plus performance pay. The performance pay is determined on how much you do and how accurate the work is. Even with awesome numbers, the pay is still way to low. Most "inkers" live with roomies, family or have spouses that make the "real" money. Don't be surprised when you see the company making tons of money and growing well, and you get nothing. Our first million dollar day we had a few months back, we did get an award. The award was a .50 cent candy bar wrapped to look like money. Total slap in the face. Management: The management is very unprofessional and most of them are new to the management role. Most of the immediate mangers are female and all are close friends. So if you have any issues with them, don't say a word about it. It will get you written up or fired. I have seen friends who had issues, take it up with there skip managers and it only ends with them getting "talked too" and "blamed" for it. The environment is very "click-ish" so be ready for that. If you don't have a friend in the management team, make one, fast! Advice to Marc: Look into the management teams, I know for a fact that they do a lot of sitting around and talking about non work related stuff, while we all work hard. I know for a fact my manager online shops 90% of her day. Then the rest of the day she chats it up with her manager (department leader). Overall: The company looks awesome from the outside, but once you get hired and learned the politics, you find out the real Customink. Don't expect major growth professional or salary. They will work you as hard as they can and def pay you as least as they can. My advice to anyone interested, look for another place to work that will treat you and pay you like a college educated person should be. And don't worry you're not missing out trust me.

1.0
Mar 28, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I got paid well but only because I was grandfathered into a pay structure that was immediately closed after I achieved max pay in my role. I also loved my coworkers, we had a tight knit community and we all got along pretty well, I will miss working with them.

Cons

They lied to us about the financial health of our company. Multiple emails from Marc Katz about how our jobs were in a safe place, there wouldn't be any layoffs, and we didn't need to worry despite the recession. Two weeks after that last email, we were all layed off in the Reno and Charlottesville production facilities. Definitely left a bitter taste in my mouth.

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Custom Ink Response
3y
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. We’re grateful you took the time to write a review, and we’re sorry to hear you had a difficult experience. The Reno and Charlottesville production facility closures were a difficult decision, prompted by increasing production costs and tight labor markets caused by the pandemic, but we tried to support impacted Inkers with generous severance packages and extended benefits periods. We always strive to learn from and listen to our Inkers, and we will share your feedback with the team. If you want to share further context, please reach out to us directly at inkerfeedback@customink.com
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Glassdoor has 732 Custom Ink reviews submitted anonymously by Custom Ink employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Custom Ink is right for you.