Petsmart is a great company, but does not pay Salon Leaders well - Salon Manager PetSmart Employee Review

3.0
Jan 24, 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The overall environment is great! The rest of leadership is very supportive and everyone gets along well for the most part. My location is very big on positive recognition for associates, which is awesome. Everyone adheres to policy and openness and honesty are important. Petsmart really focuses on the safety of the pet and wants to do what is best for them. Petsmart offers many benefits like tution assistance, 401k, life and health insurance, etc. Salon Leaders can earn bonuses based on salon performance.

Cons

The Salon Leader position is severely underpaid. PSL’s have a plethora of responsibilities to carry out and Petsmart is constantly adding to the list without compensating for it. It is an incredibly taxing and often lonely job, as no one else can really do the same job as the PSL. Often, a salon leader will take a pay cut for this position as he/she is much more easily able to make more as a Pet Stylist on commission rather than an hourly Salon Leader. Leadership as a whole does not get the same level of recognition as the associates do, which can be discouraging.

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PetSmart Response
7y
Thanks for so much the feedback! We appreciate you taking the time. I'm happy to hear you're enjoying the atmosphere, collaboration and benefits, not to mention an environment that fosters an open and honest culture! That’s wonderful! I will share your feedback with the appropriate team members. We are always striving to improve and your input is very valuable. Please know you can always contact the CareSmart line, as well, at 1-800-738-4693. Thank you, again!

Explore other reviews about PetSmart

5.0
Jul 3, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

good pay benefits PTO always approved

Cons

sometimes pet health and care is overlooked

1.0
Jun 2, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The company pushes for more and more from the bottom level employees without better pay. I worked there before the restructuring and; not much can make me cry, but working here sure did, even back then. I can’t imagine how anxiety inducing it must be to work there now. Animal welfare is a complete non-concern. The only thing that’s pushed is sell, sell, sell. It’s borderline dystopian. Bad management seems to be a common issue, not only from my experience, but many others’ as well. I worked until I was an exhausted sweaty mess to make sure everything in pet care or, when I groomed, the salon, was cleaned to perfection as expected of me (and I reiterate: “me,” because these standards were not expected of my co-workers, just me) and overall felt very unseen. The only times I did feel “seen,” was when mistakes were made. Work was treated like boot camp. A co-worker that was subtley targeting/bullying me, and even started rumors accusing me of racist remarks(!!!), was promoted and anything I reported was downplayed because they were friends with the assistant manager. Working here was an overall traumatizing experience.

Cons

Employees are expected to be work-robots

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PetSmart Response
3w
We’re disappointed to hear that your experience didn’t reflect what we aim to create for our associates, and we appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback. We invite you to contact the CareSmart line at 1-800-738-4693 so we can learn more and see how we can support you. Thank you.
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