working at Victoria's Secret?

Moody

Moody

Member
Jan 7, 2007
143
7
#1
im getting bored of my office job and want to experience other jobs.

Have you or are you working at vs?
how was the hiring process?pay? discounts? [sale associate]
 
#2
I worked for the Limited briefly in HS. VS is a Limited brand and everything is VERY standardized within the corporation. When I was there, the managers had maps of the salesfloor that said exactly where each rack and each product had to go. You ABSOLUTELY were not allowed to put something in the wrong place. Our music came directly from corporate-- it was about 10-12 songs that played on a continuous loop all day long and we ABSOLUTELY were not allowed to play anything else. We didn't make commission, but we had quotas for how much we had to sell overall, how much of a certain product we had to sell and how many cc applications we had to process. Employees HAD to get a certain number of people to sign up for credit; that's why cashiers at the Limited always ask about it. They could fire you for not making your quota, however you were not rewarded for meeting or exceeding it. Each employee had an id number that had to be entered in the computer before ringing up a sale and then you had to enter it again to credit it to the right employee so they'd know who was making quota. That's why they always ask you who helped you. But basically what would happen is that certain people ALWAYS worked the dressing rooms and the floor while other people ALWAYS cashiered. The people out on the salesfloor were clearly the ones helping the customers, but when the cashiers rang up the sales of course they'd enter their own number. Every once in awhile they'd enter someone else's number so the managers never caught on. So basically you'd bust your @ss all day helping customers and at the end of the day your total would be $50. My discount was 40% off my first purchase as an employee and I think 15 or 20% off additional purchases, excluding sales items. My discount was not good at other Limited brand stores except during friends and family week, where I could get my 15 or 20% off at BBW, VS, Express, Structure (now it's Express for men) and I think NY&Co. Oh and we had to store our bags in a locker and every time we left the store, the manager HAD to search through ALL of our bags, pockets, belongings, etc.

From what I hear, VS is better than the Limited, but there WILL be many similarities. I barely made more than minimum wage and I got treated like sh*t, as did everyone else. It's a VERY "Big Brother is watching you" type of environment. I would never work for Limited Corp again. I don't mean to burst your bubble, JMHO...
 
#3
I applied at VS a few years ago for a part time position. I figured the extra money and employee discount would come in handy. I got the job, but declined it when they offered me only $7 an hour. I'm not sure if all their stores pay that low, but I was pretty surprised considering I have retail experience (I used to work at Bloomingdales)
 
#4
I worked at Victoria's Secret.

I liked the people. I liked helping customers.

I liked the free bras. (When a new bra came out, we'd have a seminar about it. We'd watch the new advertising campaign and then we'd try it on and get to take one home. They figure we couldn't talk about something we didn't know much about.)


I did not like the fitting rooms. I did not like the fact that we had to stay there at night until everything was done. (And when I worked there we had huge panty tables we had to straighten up each night).

I also didn't like the fact that we were trained to practically pounce on customers as soon as they walked in the door.

It's a Catch-22 because they would always put me on the floor because I didn't open enough credit. But I could have easily opened credit if I were on the register.


They didn't fire me for not opening enough, but when I got to 'on call' status it was like they didn't care one way or the other whether or not I was there.


I didn't get the Angel card until after I stopped working there.


I loved the store, and I'm still a loyal customer (I miss not having one in Toronto) but as for working there, the negatives outweighed the positives.
 
#5
caitlin1214 said:
I did not like the fitting rooms. I did not like the fact that we had to stay there at night until everything was done. (And when I worked there we had huge panty tables we had to straighten up each night).
Click to expand...

OMG Limited Corp and their effing tables. I forgot to mention the tables!...

We had folding boards and each item had to be folded a certain way using the boards. It seriously took about an hour to do one table, and my manager was insane so if one shirt wasn't perfect she'd literally push everything into a pile on the floor and make you re-do the whole table. I forget how many tables were in my store, but I know it was at least 6.

The other thing I hated was that the store had a marble floor and we had to wear non-rubber soled shoes with a heel. As a result I had shin splints allllll the time.

Sorry, this thread is just bringing back very bad memories :hrmm:...
 
#6
thanks for all the replys -=]

the other day I went in and ask for the manager. The manager ,gave me a application to fill out and to hold on to it .I was told to come back today to see another person.

Who is this other person?I was never told of her position but to ask for her name.Which I did,She looked over the application as we walked to an area with no customers around and asked me a few questions "what is good customer service to you" Also was told she has to check my refs.

Was it an on the spot interview?What am I expecting now?should i call the store manager for a follow up if I dont get a call ?
 
#7
claireZk said:
OMG Limited Corp and their effing tables. I forgot to mention the tables!...

We had folding boards and each item had to be folded a certain way using the boards. It seriously took about an hour to do one table, and my manager was insane so if one shirt wasn't perfect she'd literally push everything into a pile on the floor and make you re-do the whole table. I forget how many tables were in my store, but I know it was at least 6.

The other thing I hated was that the store had a marble floor and we had to wear non-rubber soled shoes with a heel. As a result I had shin splints allllll the time.

Sorry, this thread is just bringing back very bad memories :hrmm:...
Click to expand...

Did you have to wear 90% black, too?


(And weren't they very specific on where the 90% was supposed to show up? Like the outfit HAS to contain a black blazer and black pants and/or skirt?)
 
#8
claireZk said:
I worked for the Limited briefly in HS. VS is a Limited brand and everything is VERY standardized within the corporation. When I was there, the managers had maps of the salesfloor that said exactly where each rack and each product had to go. You ABSOLUTELY were not allowed to put something in the wrong place. Our music came directly from corporate-- it was about 10-12 songs that played on a continuous loop all day long and we ABSOLUTELY were not allowed to play anything else. We didn't make commission, but we had quotas for how much we had to sell overall, how much of a certain product we had to sell and how many cc applications we had to process. Employees HAD to get a certain number of people to sign up for credit; that's why cashiers at the Limited always ask about it. They could fire you for not making your quota, however you were not rewarded for meeting or exceeding it. Each employee had an id number that had to be entered in the computer before ringing up a sale and then you had to enter it again to credit it to the right employee so they'd know who was making quota. That's why they always ask you who helped you. But basically what would happen is that certain people ALWAYS worked the dressing rooms and the floor while other people ALWAYS cashiered. The people out on the salesfloor were clearly the ones helping the customers, but when the cashiers rang up the sales of course they'd enter their own number. Every once in awhile they'd enter someone else's number so the managers never caught on. So basically you'd bust your @ss all day helping customers and at the end of the day your total would be $50. My discount was 40% off my first purchase as an employee and I think 15 or 20% off additional purchases, excluding sales items. My discount was not good at other Limited brand stores except during friends and family week, where I could get my 15 or 20% off at BBW, VS, Express, Structure (now it's Express for men) and I think NY&Co. Oh and we had to store our bags in a locker and every time we left the store, the manager HAD to search through ALL of our bags, pockets, belongings, etc.

From what I hear, VS is better than the Limited, but there WILL be many similarities. I barely made more than minimum wage and I got treated like sh*t, as did everyone else. It's a VERY "Big Brother is watching you" type of environment. I would never work for Limited Corp again. I don't mean to burst your bubble, JMHO...
Click to expand...

Hahaha, I worked for bath and body works back in the day, your comments made me laugh, the little charts, the music. Gosh I hated christmas time with those tapes they sent us, I STILL have the loop in my head, Loved the non trusting walk out were they would check your bags and pockets, if only they knew how many lip pots I had in my underware!! JUST KIDDING!! Thanks for the memories, I was kidding about the lip balms in my undies I swear!:roflmfao:
 
#9
im one of the managers for victorias secret and actually in the process of leaving, if your looking for retail id look into going to coach, ann taylor, sephora, saks..companies that take care of their employees as well as they take care of their customers. Limited brands as a company itself doesnt treat their employess as well as they should be. Expect to be working hours that are all over the place as an associates n doing floorsets hours at a time a few nights a month
 
#10
Oh God! You'd have those women that just had a bridal shower and evidently a number of people gave her the same slip because she's returning it . . . balled up in a grocery bag!

It's like, I know you don't want it, but someone might and you leaving it all balled up like that means we have to then steam it for someone else!





Or how 'bout those women who come in and say "I put my bra in the dryer and it just fell apart!" Um, first of all you didn't put the bra in the dryer one time, you must've put it in a number of times. And you're not SUPPOSED to throw your bras in the dryer!
 
#11
I was the one that actually posted this on etiquettehell.com:


I used to work in Victoria's Secret, and one day a woman comes into the store and asks me for my help. She is going to be a bridesmaid and she needs a bra to go under the dress. I show her the selection of bras and one of them is the exact same color as the bridesmaid dress (a very light green). Even though we had that particular color, I suggested she get a nude bra. It would look better under the dress than the green one because the nude blends with the woman's skin. Also, she could wear that after the wedding. Her response: "I don't know, I have to check with the bride first." I know the bride decides the bridesmaids dress but I didn't realize her jurisdiction extended to what underwear the bridesmaids would wear. (The bride did agree with me that the nude one would work better, though).
 
#12
caitlin1214 said:
Did you have to wear 90% black, too?
Click to expand...
^ Nope, we just had to wear Limited clothes (not Limited corp, actual Limited brand). I used to just buy mine at Marshalls since my discount sucked :amuse:

And all your VS stories are hilarious because I did work at a privately owned lingerie shop, too. That job was actually good, but the customers were freaking INSANE. Trannies, cranky old ladies, and Bridezillas galore :sweatdrop:
 
#13
At the time, my coworker was a bride-to-be as well. After the bride and her bridemaid left, I turned to her and said, "The bride really gets to decide the underwear, too?" She responded with a matter-of-fact, "yeah."

I would think that the bride would make some suggestions, but making it so that the bridesmaid would have to check with her first to see if it's a good idea (of course it's a good idea!) is a bit much.
 
#14
I haven't worked at VS but I have worked at different retail stores and everything the previous posters have mentioned is on par with what I experienced. I would suggest checking out jobvent.com. It has ratings for different companies from previous or current employees. You can just do a search on the website for any company and most of the bigger ones have reviews.
 
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