Pros
Working for PetSmart was great, given my love for animals and their well-being. The woman who trained me out at another store location was very knowledgable and had been in the industry for many years. Selling classes was definitely tougher in my home store of South Philadelphia (based on the demographics of the area) than it was out in the suburbs where I trained, but the commission on sales was a nice benefit and helped encourage me to sell more classes. My original store manager was very flexible with my schedule in college and allowed me to schedule my own class sessions around it, which was very helpful. Best thing about the job? I got to play with adorable puppies every day.
Cons
New(er) management was NOT flexible with college/school schedules and/or other jobs. This led to my departure (as well as managers hiring family members and playing favorites among employees). I also volunteered with the organization at the time that housed cats in the in-store adoption center - apparently this was an issue with my managers and I often gotten scolded for caring about and being concerned over the well-being of the animals if one of them got sick, etc. Raises were almost non-existent (but maybe that was just at my particular store…I don't know). Other employees were often lazy and the work they did not complete often got pushed off on other employees who already had more than enough work to do. Management also liked to play favorites (especially since family members were often hired by one manager in particular…).