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Job Title: Sales Associate
Location: LA, CA
Submitted on: 16-May-04
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There is a great deal of press concerning how Norstrom has all the
answers in a difficult retail environment. Having been an insider for
over 1 1/2 years, I can tell you that they do not get it. They talk
about customer service being the primary goal. It is really not. Their
primary goal is to be sure that you make your sales per hour. They
demand calling lists for special events, they want you to follow up with
your customers but not on their time. I have received more favorable
customer service letters then anyone in the store. These are
unsolicited. However, I have never been praised or acclaimed for this
achievement. That my sales ration to returns is very low, less then 8%,
which indicates a willingness on my part to spend time with a customer,
providing that elusive service to them, means nothing to my store
manager or my department manager. The store intensive competative drive
of pitting one sales associate against another, encourages co-workers to
try to steal each others customers. I do not play this game, nor do I
chase customers around the department in order to "score" a sale.
Needless to say, my sales numbers are not high enough to accomplish an
unreasonable goal of $146.00/hour in a department where the price point
for an item is about $39.00. Do the math. Now multiply that by 5. There
are that many people selling in a very samll department.
The store manager insists that the department managers work the floor
so, basically, they draw up schedules that are condusive to their being
on during some of the peak sale periods. They receive a salary and the
commission and then bonus amounts based on increases. All this leads to
an unhealthy and unsatisfyimng work environment for the lowly
salesperson. By the way, do not believe the reverse pyramid garbage.
While the customer comes first, the next level should list the Nordstrom
Boys. etc. The Sales Associate is still at the bottom of the heap.
The reason I am taking this amount of time to write this is because:
1. I would hate for anyone to believe the artificial hype and take a job
thinking that they will make a difference, and money.
2. The Nord is not a forward thinking organization. Their management
ideals are based on 1920 robber baron perceptionsand servitude.
3. There is not individual appreciation or acknowledgement of a job well
done. It is all political and very much tied to the sale numbers you
offer up. you will get a smile from store managment if you are on the
top 10 list of sales for the previous day.
4. If your basic personality is that of a used car salesman, with the
exception of being able to say "You can return that item" and not feel
anger that you spent a great deal of time helping a customer, only to
have the customer return, against your number, the item 1 year later,
dirty, and well used, this is the job for you.
5. If you can accept the premise that a lot of customers, not the few
they talk about, have a shopping skill called "Buy one/steal one, return
2" this is the job for you.
6. If that co-worker who you have had lunch with for 8 months is told
that they will be fired for not making draw, steals your customers and
sales, and you think that this is justifiable, this is the job for you.
7. If you have read "Dilbert and the Way of the Weasel" and "The
Norstrom Way" and do not see the correlation, you will grow up to be a
Norstrom store manager. Congratulations.
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