Victoria's Secret reviews

Where do I start? Let's see, -MINIMUM WAGE: They start you at $8.50/hour. As expensive as the lingerie and clothing is, they could pay higher. -CATTY COWORKERS / CUSTOMERS: Being surrounded by girls all day and all night isn't as pleasant as it sounds. -CLIQUES / FAVORITISM: There was a lot of gossip and high school behavior that went on throughout the store. The favoritism of the managers is so rampant and obvious, it's disgusting. -STRICT DRESS CODE: They have a strict dress code, concerning what type of pants, shirts and shoes your allowed to wear to work. They also demand you to wear all black, even in the summer and this becomes a problem when it gets crowed and you get busy, which causes you to get hot, which causes you to sweat, which causes you to smell. -HOURS: Unless your a manager or supervisor, don't expect to get any hours. There have been times when I haven't worked for weeks at a time due to the store not having the money to give hours to employees; whether because it was slow or whatever. (I was promised 20 hours a week when interviewed) They also have the horrible on-call system, which means that an employee has to call in 2 hours before the start of their on-call shift time, to see if the store needs them to work that particular day, night or weekend. -SEMI- ANNUAL SALE or SAS: This is held twice a year, one in the summer and another in the winter. This is the busiest time for the store all year and the managers take it very seriously. The store is packed all day and night and it's fair to say it's utter chaos! There is never a moment of rest when working during this time. On the upside, you're guaranteed 30 or more hours a week during this time. Setting up for SAS is a all week and all night event. They want to make as much money during this time period, so the District Office doesn't get mad at them. The latest I've stayed setting up was 4:50am. I had to come back that same day on the first day of SAS at 2pm and stay until 1:30am; organizing dozens upon dozens of bra and panty bins; by size and color, sorting the walls of lingerie, sleepwear, sportswear and putting back the piles of clothes from the dressing room. It is a nightmare. -CLOSING THE STORE: I'm not sure how late other employees in other retail jobs have to stay when closing the store, but at Victoria's Secret, it is a normal thing to stay late. The managers don't even put the time employee's shifts ends when they're supposed to close, because depending on how messy the store is, you're forced to fold panties, organize bras, fold clothing and etc until the store is neat. The store I worked at closed at 9pm, but we normally left around 10:30-11pm. There were also frequent times when we were required to clean every inch of the store without prior notice (which meant we got out around midnight or later) in order to make a good impression when the District Office managers come the next day.

I don't even know where to start to be honest. I was VERY excited to start this job, to have a little extra money on top of my full time job, and to work in a store I absolutely love. Within a month, that has all changed. It's making me seriously reconsider even working here anymore. First of all, you don't have adequate training AT ALL. And when you don't know something and ask, management belittles you. When I came into training, the manager on at that time didn't even know they were training me. I spent some hours watching training videos and then was automatically thrown on the register. That was it. That was the only training I got. I never worked any other area, and am never on the floor. The couple times I was thrown on the floor, I was on for 20 minutes and they made me go on break or called me right back to the register. They don't give you a great chance of even trying. You have to get bag checked every time you leave the store (which is completely understandable), and if you happen to forget and walk out to get something to eat, prepare to be reprimanded and embarrassed for forgetting. The girls are VERY catty and not friendly at all. You get a couple of them who are friendly and you get along with, but the rest forget it. The girls who have been there longer will bully you and if you're in the middle of talking to a customer and they come over and "assist" you in any way, they will expect you to put their name on the sale to get the credit (for the credit cards, etc) and if you don't, they will complain about it to management and/or other associates. Scheduling is the most horrendous thing I've ever encountered in my life. If you have your availability for anytime/any day, prepare to just automatically be put on a closing schedule. Although it says your shift will be something like 5:30-9:30 pm, prepare to be there until almost midnight. In order to make payroll they will cut all the employees early and expect 2 people to stay behind and clean the ENTIRE store. Yep, that means you are cleaning all the panty bars, folding yoga pants, and folding all the panties in the drawers so the next open shift can just open and start their day!!!!! And since they only leave 2 people on closing, it takes you FOREVER and all the while management is telling you that you need to hurry and do it faster because they can't go over on payroll. They will also randomly cut you without any notice. I was supposed to work a closing shift and was cut 2 hours in. Such a waste. They also have about 5-6 managers per ONE store. So you can have as much as 4 managers on at a time. And one manager will tell you one thing, while another will tell you another thing. And since you don't get adequate training, and you are confused half that time, your best bet is to just stay quiet and do your job to the best of your ability. If a manager doesn't like you, prepare to get the worst schedule EVER. You will work a Saturday and Sunday (closing both days) and then not work all week long and then work the next Saturday as well. I have a feeling one manager doesn't like me and I've worked 5 closing Saturdays in a row, all the while my availability right now is any hours and any days. You also have call ins, which if you don't do it's like your abandoning your shift. So you can't plan anything around that time because you never know if they will call you in or not. Half the time they don't even use them, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Study the store. Every couple days they change the store around so where a panty table could of been yesterday, is not there tomorrow. It's ridiculous and annoying when you are trying to assist customers and you personally don't know where anything is because you are stuck in the cash register the entire time. Also, the policies are a little ridiculous, and aren't the same for everybody. You can't have any piercings or tattoos showing (which I think is a little harsh in this day and age, what person doesn't have tattoos or piercings). They tell you not to show them when you start, but then you'll come in and see another associate with a full sleeve showing, or a piercing showing. So what's good for them is obviously not good for you. They hire so many people, yet it seems like they never have enough people. I'm not sure if it's the store I'm apart of but they definitely are one of the most disorganized businesses I have ever encountered in my life. Half the managers you think would of been there for years and worked their way up, but half of them have only been there a few months/maybe a year. Like I said, working there was an exciting opportunity for myself, and it's been anything but. I'm sticking it out only because I need the job/money right now but my advice to anyone considering it, is to know what you're getting yourself into before applying. They make it seem fun and from the outside it looks like it's a great position, which it probably could be if people were more organized.