Working in retail is one of the hardest experiences for a lot of people. The main reason for this being that working with other people is exceptionally hard. For some, retail can be a lot of fun. For others, retail is the last thing on earth they would ever want to do again. No matter how you feel about retail, every retail employee has a lot in common.
1. The interview makes zero sense.
Since there isn't much an interviewer can ask you about experience and retail itself they tend to ask you ridiculous questions. It's really hard having to describe yourself in one word and then compare yourself to a fruit and explain why. Just wait until you get asked to describe how you stay up to date on fashion culture or give a situation where you helped someone in need. And the whole time you'll be wondering what any of this has to do with selling clothes.
2. The training is also ridiculous.
You're taught how to fold clothes a certain way and it all looks like magic the first time you see it. Not to mention all of the rules for a fitting room, cash register, and organizing a store. Let's not even get into learning safety codes, which most likely takes an hour of your life and a video to complete.
3. You'll meet some interesting characters.
The most interesting part of retail is definitely the people you end up meeting. Interacting with customers can be great or terrible. But no matter what, you'll end up learning a lot more about people than you ever cared to know. You'll definitely hear some sad stories, funny stories, and you'll definitely have people who make you question quitting.
4. Dealing with theft is one of the hardest parts.
A lot of stores have their own rules on theft. Where I worked you couldn't go after the employee or even directly confront them about stealing. You had to be passive aggressive in doing so. Some stores may let you go crazy and call people out on their theft. No matter what, it's never a good sign seeing a bunch of tags and anti-theft sensors in the fitting rooms.
5. You're not sure why you like it, but you do.
Dealing with people is really hard. Cleaning a store is really hard. And most of the time, your coworkers aren't the biggest help. But if you like retail, then you just do. There's no explaining why working in a retail store can be fun, but something about it makes you willing to keep doing it.
