retail diaries of the minimally paid: would you like a bag?

my religious view: sustainability.

sometimes when i am at work and someone purchases a small necklace, i’d ask: would you like a bag?
if they say: yes, please.
i will give them a subtle evil glare. because OBVIOUSLY if i think you need a bag i wouldn’t ask. you do have a purse you know! why do you wanna use a plastic bag when you’re just going to end up sticking it back into your purse?

ugh.

since im so consumed in saving bags i’d always use a small bag and fold everything neatly (even jeans) into the small bag just so i dont have to give them a bigger bag. i just dont think it’s necessary…LET’S SAVE PLASTIC HERE, PEOPLE!!

i wanna make a difference, even if it is being stingy on shopping bags…

xox
boots

 

retail diaries of the minimally paid: boxing day awesomnessage

to my surprise boxing day was really, really awesome. waking up at 630 this morning was totally worth it for a full shift of fun and friends. and i got to help my cover the cashier’s shift while they were on break– and you know how i feel about doing cash. but it was a tad difficult today because of the extra discounts, wayyyyyyy too many buttons to press.

i called us superstars when i worked in the changing rooms. we got rid of our dud piles super fast. we folded and hung right when teh customer gave us their rejected clothes and once we placed the clothes onto the table or rack, the dud runners would put them away asap. i have never witnessed such great teamwork! and more than 60% percent of the workers were brAND NEW, it was their absolute first shift (we desperatedly needed people on boxing day). for everything to work out as perfectly as it did, i am seriously sooo impressed.

oh! and the food. we had a potluck and it was just so much fun. and then in change rooms we had a bag of candy and we’d offer candy to the customers while they waited in line. it was just so, so, so, much fun!!! (well, except when they rejected me).

sidenote: i just weighed myself and im several lbs heavier than what i was this morning. omgat. omgat. omgat. and it only goes up from here. btw, im eating my third bowl of mango pudding (after two servings of dinner and several servings of fruit cocktail and lots of appies) and drinking white wine.

 

retail diaries of the minimally paid: run with the mop!

 

every sunday morning at otw is clean up day.
for two straight hours (9-11) we clean. we vacuum and mop all the floors. windex the windows. scrub the sideboards. do the whole washroom thang. we even clean the walls inside the changing rooms!
if my mom knew what sort of cleaning i am capable of, she’d make me clean every weekend!
so far, vacuuming is by far my favourite!

i can hear my mom vacuuming upstairs right now as i slurp my tomato soup– but i dont really want to lend a hand…i just got back home from work! this is what happens, i dont want to help with laundry either…i fold clothes all the time!

so, i’ve always known i’m a people person, but my golly! i really, really need people. the only times when i truly, sincerely look forward to work is when i know that my favourite co-workers will be around the same zone as me. they are my reason why i love going back to work. there are such wonderful people at work!

last, last week i was trained on cash. i definitely like doing cash, that’s where the magic happens. jean wall and cash is when you spend the most quality time with people. jean wall is where you can really help. and at cash, you are their final destination in the store. and of course, there’s always the changing rooms. some customers are so open-minded and i always feel flattered when they ask for my opinion. i do have awesome opinions, after all.

i hope i dont wake up by 4am tomorrow morning (i’ve been doing this consecutively for a week now *yawn*), i have work again in the morning! i need a nap…

xox

 

retail diaries of the minimally paid: fake it til you make it

 

usually people don’t talk about their jobs in retail because it’s become so mundane. welll sorry, people! but this is my first time, so everything i’ve been doing at my new job is super interesting to me (or maybe that’s only because it’s about me).

yesterday i was assigned to our beautiful jean wall. up to this point, i’ve been the greeter.

but…it’s awfully scary. there’s so much responsbility! everything is folded so neatly and straight–like bricks on a magical wall. damn customers who tug on my wall! anyway, jean wall is where i get to shine and showoff my fashion knowledge, or more specfiically, my jean knowledge. and to be frank, i dont know nuttin’ about jeans. i know the different styles…skinny, bootcut, straight leg, flare…am i missing something? and some of the different wash…light, dark and blk (i need to brush up on my washes). but i dont know how the jeans fit! i can’t tell them that the pair of jeans they’re holding will stretch or not. i dont even know all the brands we carry. and a jean co. would have different styles and they’d have different style names… mavi erins, mavi olivias, mavi lindys, etc. i dont know how those fit! i cna’t tell the difference! they’re all jeans! and they’re all blue!

so yesterday, when i had to guard my wall and prevent tuggers from tuggin’ on that beautiful thing, i also had to help customers find jeans. luckily for me, everyone wanted skinny jeans..and everyone wanted DARK skinnies. so after finding a few good picks, i continued to choose the same ones for every customer after that. tahhaha

and when they ask a question, i pretend to think about it for 2 nanoseconds (any longer and they’d think im retarded) and if i didnt know the answer, i’d make somethnig up. like the other shift, they asked where the triple 5 soul jackets were, i said we didnt have any left. 2 hrs later, i found them hiding in some isolated rack. oops. oh well, it’s better to appear like i know my store than frantically asking my coworkers, right?

i bet you don’t trust me with your shopping now. tahaha

so you see, i dont really know much about jeans…yet. shh, dont tell my boss. but it’s better to sound confident and deliver a presentation that makes me seem knowledgable, when im really actually clueless.

i will continue to fake it til i make it.

xox
boots