Unless you are a student who is doing this as some part time gig for pocket change, do not work here if you are looking for a steady income. For a high-end department store, when you train they promise you so much making it seem like you are going to be making so much money and working in this fantasy land. Reality is, you barely make above minimum wage because they take so much out of your paycheck for taxes and the union, on top of that if you have their healthcare plan, that comes out of your check as well. You also are on draw vs. commission which means your checks are going to be super small. Checks are always fluctuating and inconsistent. The return policy is a year so they have a huge fraud issue with returns but the customer is always right and the managers never have your back which messes up people's commission. You basically are paying Bloomingdales to work and that is the mentality they have: that you OWE them. The management is not only racist and majority of the managers are white (lack of diversity) but the floor managers micro-manage to the max. There is no positive reinforcement and all they tell you is to make more money and to open up new accounts. The managers are the real-life version of mean girls and will smile in your face, and say the most horrible things about you to higher management . behind your back but will never say it to your face; leaving you completely unaware of the list of accusations they have against you. There was clear favorites on the
Prosweekly pay
Conslack of benefits, little time off, poor management, low pay
Perfect for students if you want a part time position
It's perfect for someone who is going to school. I worked here as a part time employee while in college, you have flexibility with your schedule and when you are a part timer most of the time you will be scheduled to close. Good thing is that you can always set preferences in advanced with your days so the system won't schedule you on days you are not able to work. It is a high end luxury store which handles lots of designers, you do get 20% employee discounts and there are some days where you get an extra 20% on some designers which was good.
The pay was draw vs commission which means that for every thing that you sell, you have to cover your draw first in order to make your commission, and that was really hard because it depends on which department you are and how many coworkers you have to compete with, you do have to sell constantly and pretty much follow people around. If you don't do that, someone will and that person will take the sale from you since most customers do not really care even if you speak to them first. They changed the attendance policy at the beginning of the year and now you have to keep your attendance percentage above 97% to be in the green zone and consider yourself reliable. Anything bellow that could place you on red zone and you are at risk of losing your employment. That attendance policy is so unfair because basically you have to be on time 97% of the time you are schedule and if you miss one day the reliability percentage is affected drastical
Unfortunately, I had to endure this place for years.
"Executive management" non existence, diversity on the selling floor yet, not diverse for promotion. Security is racist and profiles as well. Culture you ask? there is absolutely no culture. The culture or a day in the life would be shaking off the bad morale set by management in the morning, fighting traffic to which you have no idea why it is there, 'oh yeah it's Santa Monica' a store to which you are NOT allowed to transfer to a closer location near your home because that would be far to much paper work for the Human Resource department and 'they can't let another number - [they meant person] leave' the revolving door they call a store.
When you get to work you must shake all the complaints of your co-workers off in the break room after quickly putting your lunch in the little super cramped frig. Complaints and concerns that you agree with but cannot bare to hear another day, for if you did... you would for sure go crazy. Go onto the sales floor, have a random manager verbally attack you for no reason and another walk over your new black shoes without making a sigh (a hello to peasants would be way too much to ask for). Oh yeah... did I forget. You must wear BLACK every single time, everyday like a funeral. Navy, Dark Brown, and Dark Gray are supposedly permitted but beware the dress code of those colors and Black changes depending on who has it on and what time of the day it is, or even which manager you encount
Good for someone wanting to get experience in a high luxury retail store
It's perfect for someone who is going to school. I worked here as a part time employee while in college, you have flexibility with your schedule and when you are a part timer most of the time you will be scheduled to close. Good thing is that you can always set preferences in advanced with your days so the system won't schedule you on days you are not able to work. It is a high end luxury store which handles lots of designers, you do get 20% employee discounts and there are some days where you get an extra 20%.
The pay was draw vs commission which means that for every thing that you sell, you have to cover your draw first in order to make your commission, and that was really hard because it depends on which department you are and how many coworkers you have to compete with, you do have to sell constantly and pretty much follow people around. If you don't do that, someone will and that person will take the sale from you since most customers do not really care even if you speak to them first.
If you are not selling enough, you might fall into deficit which means you won't see any commission until you are out of deficit. Your coworkers sometimes steal sales from you, especially when it comes to exchanges and the return policy is generous so you might think you made a good sale but it will be a return later on, sometimes on the same day and you might leave with negative numbers for the day. You might spend a long time with a customer and sometimes they don't buy anything and if
always being busy, attentive, and talking but also a place you would like to stay and have a job
For Bloomingdales i worked as a freelancer and still do just that there are no hours available for me. The month i was there was pretty easy with the store being in a busy community and being busy itself with customers. I can say i have improved my customer service experience, having to attend multiple customers at a time and not having a problem with any of them. Bloomingdales is all about fashion so appearance meant a lot when showing up to work. A typical work day i would stand next to the colon or perfume i was selling or representing and luring clients into buying them or sort of persuade them to buy the colon/perfume i was selling. Of course to complete this kind of job i would be talking the whole day in a suit but having the chance to meet a different variety of people you would not see in any other store. Bloomingdales i can say gave me a lot of tips on customer service and experience in working with customers especially those who are not having a pleasant day overall. Decency and respect was never a failed option for me or being late either. Co-Workers in Bloomingdales treated me like family me being the new guy and it was great. They made my station comfortable so i would not have any issues during my work time frame. I learned a lot from this job being a high class work satisfaction and believe because of Bloomingdales my customer service experience has greatly improved, of course still room for improvement. Always keeping a smile on your face and keeping mood swi
Productive and fun workplace where you work competitively as an individual and as a team
A typical day at work usually involves opening the store, which includes opening the registers and making sure all of the product is displayed neatly and with the proper sensors. Through out the day I help customers find apparel that satisflies their needs and wants. This process includes going around the store, to help them find the right items, hold items as they find other merchandise, assist with fitting room needs and finalize their purchase at the register. Along with helping the customer, each employee is responsible for putting away a customers unwanted items after they are finsihed in the fitting room. There can be some down time in between customers. During this time it is key to reach out to your previous customers, which building a connection, stronger relationship and drive for them to come back. At the end of the day, making sure the floor is clean and neatly merchandised is the priority before closing the registers.
Through out my time at Bloomingdale's I have learned about the Helmut Lang product I sell, and a variety of other brands carried in the store. The more knowledge you have about the product, the more comfortable a customer becomes, resulting in more sales. I have a great team within the Helmut Lang section and the rest of the Elements sections. The hardest part of the job is balancing that teamwork with your personal goals and sales. Since we are Draw Commissioned based, sometimes co-workers with fight over sales and customers. It is important to
No work life balance. The management is awful, never give seasonal reviews then finds a way to dock you on your annual review. Extremely wishy washy, one day they want to do their job, the next day they care less.
-Will never back you up in the return policy with difficult customers-what’s the point of having a return policy when they take back used items?! Such a LAX return policy. They allow people to return more than they buy. Keeping all the gifts with purchases and samples
-Always nagging for people to open a 24.99% store credit card
-Always wheeling and dealing with the customers. They always want more gifts when they’re getting a lot. Very greedy
Company always find a way for you to donate or ask for money to charities.
Lack of stock. They want you to do outrageous numbers but won’t give you stock. They get stock, it sells out, you have to wait 3 weeks to get key items back in. Eventually this store will be a show room
Lack of technology. Computers always freeze. Not able to order items because system is down. Lots of hoops to jump through to do a simple task
Business managers can’t even pull numbers for daily business if the department manager isn’t around
Customers return and it comes off of your business because you took the return
Horrible work life balance. A computer generated schedule that will have you open 945-630 with an hour lunch, next day have you close 12:30-915 next day open at 945-630. Mandatory one hour lunch, always short st
ProsOccasional free lunches, employee discounts, benefits, paid time off, 401k
ConsLong hours, horrible work life balance, customers are needy and pretentious
If you enjoy building relationships with customers and remaining a sales professional then this is the job for you.
When I first got hired at Bloomingdales I was very excited. Everyone seemed so nice and they seemed to care about your success within the company. They placed me in the fashion accessories department where I worked with the jewelry and watches. I really enjoyed my first few months there and I grew to love my co-workers. When I graduated college my manager came to me and asked me if I was interested in the Sales Manager in Training (SMT) position. I was very interested and I applied. I was interviewed twice and I felt very confident about the interviews. Unfortunately I did not receive the position, which was alright but I feel that the management could have handled the situation better. They really made me feel like I got the position when I really didn't. They offered me a position as the Coach Specialist in handbags and I accepted it.
After I applied for the SMT position and was rejected I started to feel very insecure about this job. I knew that I could be fired for anything and I was very cautious about everything I did. They began putting pressure on me to perform high sales numbers for our sales events. I felt that the goals that I was personally given were unattainable because my clients were not clients that purchased handbags, they often purchased jewelry and watches. Of course I did not make my sales goals for the events and I felt like I didn't accomplish anything.
This job is perfect for people who like to be challenged with unattainable sales goals, calling clien
Working at Bloomingdales was a very enjoyable experience due to the fact that I enjoy interaction with people and the scenery in the store intrigued me so much. I enjoyed helping each and every customer who talked thru the doors because it gave me an opportunity to become acquainted with the products itself and learn more about the services and products /goods Bloomingdales offered in my department or in another. I enjoyed working at my department because we weren’t confined to our department if our client felt comfortable enough to ask us to continue our assistance in another department. Working at Bloomingdales I learned how to communicate and interact with customers on many socio economic levels. My co-works were truly a partial component of why I also looked forward to coming to work. We all enjoyed another and we worked very well with one another and were of assistance to any one who needed help at the cash register, with a difficulty customer, shift change or exchange, products, or we were just having a bad day we would at the end of the day lift each theirs sprits. Our customers each were very unique in their own way, however we always managed to encounter a very difficult customer who would make their shopping experience a bad one No matter what. All in all there really wasn’t a part of the job that difficult. The most enjoyable part of my job was assisting each customer that came in because we were bound to run into a celebrity, Musician, or a high profile business t
There is no true team environment at the store. you feel like you are on a team but they will be quick to throw you under the bus if you make a mistake without any clear warning. Now I understand it's a business but I don't feel like a person can learn or grow without messing up. I was terminated after my first month for making a joke in the workplace which wasn't offensive in my opinion or the employee's opinions that I still talk to at least. They had plenty of chances to tell me they were offended or something and I would have definitely apologized because I understand but that wasn't the case. Instead, they pretend everything is going fine and I work hard to really earn my place and gain people's trust which I've been doing but all to my knowledge those people were lying about me to HR and building a "case" and terminated me. I'm not scorned, I'm not even upset. I got a way better job as soon as they let me go with a company 10x better in my opinion the real reason I'm doing this is to tell you if you work AP at Bloomingdales watch your back, keep your mouth shut and do your job because they will get you out faster than they put you in and that's sad to say because I met a lot of good people there. I wouldn't recommend this company to anyone that trusts easily or like to I would say have fun at work this definitely isn't the store. The managers are very loose but secretly they are waiting for you to mess up and that's super toxic to me. Overall I'm really glad I did get t
What is the work environment and culture like at Bloomingdale's?
Asked Jun 19, 2016
A boring waste of time, day after day. Management never shows their faces and colleagues steal sales right from under your nose. Stressful and you’re ready to leave early whenever you can.
Answered Jun 6, 2019
Too much work, very little pay.
Answered Oct 18, 2018
What advice would you give the CEO of Bloomingdale's about how to improve it?
Asked Jan 30, 2017
Look into the management politics that are happening in your stores. Favoritism! Politics! What happened to promoting employees from within? Full time employees who have worked hard would like a shot at open management positions too. Overlooked everytime for outside candidates. Sad.
Answered Aug 18, 2019
Get rid of draw vs commission!! It is a scam way to pay hard working employees! There is never a way to make money on this pay scale because you are always paying money back to the company. The turnover rate in the stores that are still using this ancient unfair pay method are suffering the consequences. You think they would open their eyes and see it.
Answered Aug 18, 2019
What is the best part of working at Bloomingdale's?
Asked Dec 1, 2019
Sometimes they offer wonderful things to the employers around the holidays
Answered Nov 8, 2020
Comradery with some of the nicer sales associates
Answered Oct 30, 2020
What is the most stressful part about working at Bloomingdale's?
Asked Mar 17, 2018
The managers
Answered Feb 29, 2020
The stock walks and the shortage of other sales associates.
Answered Jan 29, 2020
What tips or advice would you give to someone interviewing at Bloomingdale's?
Asked Jul 28, 2016
Never ever accept an offer on draw vs commission. You will quickly put your life in financial debt.
Answered Aug 18, 2019
Don’t worry - they are desperate for bodies since turnover is so high. Just show up and you will basically get the job.
