Pros
Team is amazing Self-sufficient team that runs without manager there but only for the oxford store. Manager was a nice person though but has more unlocked potential. Good support from colleagues and manager Good pay when there is enough customers and you actually start selling more. Within 6 months you will make a decent amount Free tea and biscuits -white chocolate chip
Cons
Company ethos: Head office and the company are absolute dog poo when it comes to the designers. We make the money for the company but we are treated badly, the only thing that made me stay was my team . 2 year probation: its a company that like to churn people in and out. Best believe if you’re not doing good in the last month of your probation you will get terminated. No, lets see if we can help this person or maybe their having a bad month, you could be a top 5 performer of the store in the year and they just don’t care. Free issue: Not a concern but have to make you aware. Basically if you get a design wrong and it does not fit in the kitchen you will get it deducted from your pay package but only 50% of the delivered item. But that can add up if you have multiple things that the company need to redeliver. Also they can charge you if it’s not your mistake i think thats the biggest worry and you only have 72 hours to appeal it. The process is You are charged either way if it’s your fault or not and then you appeal it. Also when you appeal it and you win you are still marked down on your kpi for the year. Does not make sense but yup. Worst thing is they are rolling out 100% free issue imagine if you sell a cupboard worth £1000 that will be fully deducted. No work life balance if you go for the 40 hour contract, I would personally go for the shorter contracted hours. No weekends off Holidays Its a shambles honestly you can’t book of January or November. Also if you do have holidays they still track your KPI’s so you are consistently monitored even if you’re off. Head office are really dog poo, micro manage everything. Being Sick: They monitor heavily on this, i don’t think its fair. You are made to feel like you can’t get sick. Sales Targets: Some what unrealistic for this store in particular due to the botley road being closed. All colleagues fell short by 100k-200k of target. Wrens head office did not see this as a factor to consider for the year but i think the worst part is they have been told this. Cancelations: Wren allow customers to cancel kitchens at any point and they can get back there deposit and for any reason. This is great for the customer but very bad for employee. Typically the standard is that you do not refund close which is what i always abided by in every case. You would think that if you allow customers to cancel then employees would not be targeted if customers cancel. This is not the case you are now heavily looked at and the manager makes you are made to feel like it’s your fault. On top if this due to targets your manager will push you to do a sale that is risky such as a person in a buying process of there house or applying for there mortgage. I was told multiple times if i did not sell them, that the customer would be given to someone else even though you have worked hard and spent 3 hours with them. If you do work here, don’t ever listen to that BS, sell to non risky customers and save yourself the headache. I got 3 that cancelled in the same month for the same reason and yeah it was not great for me in probation. Thresholds going up when living wage increased. It’s very cheeky to do this when there are people on the breadline. Threshold is the net sale of kitchen you have to hit before you make commission. Ours was 26k when i first started but now it has doubled to 40k.
