Working in Retail

I shed glitter when I walk out the door. I dress like the mannequins. I live on the business end of Macklemore’s “Thrift Shop”. From muttered comments to hit songs, I have heard it all. Yes; I work in retail.

I am employed by the teen clothing giant Aéropostale. At first, I never really saw myself fitting in with “that crowd”. From the time I started seriously thinking about getting a job, I assumed it would be at an ice cream stand or a Subway. But after three months of searching without success, I decided to give Aéropostale a shot despite the “if you work at a clothing store, you’ll be a douchebag” comment from my illustrious brother (and he now works at American Eagle; funny how that one went!).

“Somewhat to my surprise, I ended up enjoying my job there.”

Not only were they hiring, they informed me of a group interview that was to take place three days after I placed my application. That was the twenty-first of June, 2012. I have worked there since. Somewhat to my surprise, I ended up enjoying my job there, and I still do. Though it mostly consists of folding clothes, greeting customers, and telling other people how good they look without reciprocation, my job at Aéropostale is something I am able to like. My perfectionist personality helps; no stack of clothes goes unfolded under my watch, and I like it that way.

The biggest thing that I’ve learned from working in retail (besides the highly guarded secret of how clothing stores fold their clothes) is how irksome it is when a customer walks in and flips through every shirt in a stack looking for the right size, only to find that the size isn’t there and walk away leaving the whole pile overturned. Dear valued customer: you know I could have just told you that had you asked me, right? That’s what I’m paid to do. To prevent that from happening to others, never again will I leave a messy pile of clothes for the employee to deal with simply because “it’s their job”. I know firsthand how annoying that can be!

“What I love most about

my job is the people I work with.”

The music is loud, the dust collects under every shelf, and the customers can be downright difficult. But I like the technique involved in folding clothes and I like even more the feeling of having a perfect store for the district manager to see on my account. Beyond that, what I love most about my job is the people I work with. According to the sign tacked up “out back” (our endearing term for our storage room and bathroom area), Aéropostale was listed as one of Fortune 500’s top 100 companies to work for in the U.S. in 2012. And I can see why; the work environment is fabulous when you have co-workers like I do. My managers are fun to talk to, and the teenage associates are real people who have the same feelings as I do, go to school like I do, and like the same things I do. It was quite a surprise to find that I didn’t have to be a supermodel to work at a clothing store.

Retail can sometimes be a tedious job with a lot of hassles, but it is as fun as the effort you put into it. I have fun whenever I work a shift, and that’s why I love my job. There will of course be many other jobs in my future, but retail will always be my first experience in the working world. The people I work with and the working environment have made it a great experience for me; I wouldn’t trade it for any shabby job scooping ice cream.