sales associate

sales lead

retail assistant manager

engineering team leader

associate

Clarks

TERRIBLE PLACE OF WORK RIVERSIDE NORWICH CLARKS

I applied for sales member team. Nothing of the job ad or interview process was as described. None of it. 

I was bullied from day one till day three when I walked by all three of the managers and supervisors there.

The Interview process was extreme and intense including very lengthy group interview.  However the job they forced me to do was physically climbing a ladder all day 9-5. Not selling shoes.  The stockroom is industrial high level with literally hundreds of shoes in no order that expected to find in literally seconds. 

My problem waa that they forced me for 9 hrs to climb to the top of this industrial height ceiling, which should NEVER have been attempted ONCE let alone as a full ti.e nine hr task everyday. All I did was go up and down this ladder. Nothing to hold on to, then forced to climb the rest of the way up the industrial height building balancing on the EDFE OF THE SHELVES, while being forced to pick out shoe boxes like the game kerplunk. How with nothing to hold. When I said I would nt go higher tbey forced me. The sales colleagues (who were all fine), said the they shouldn't be making me do it.

There was no health and safety.  I told them I would break my neck and spine,  so they sacked me and said don't talk to us or contact us again we wont relpy to you. 

Theres also an archway half way up to the industrial height ceiling and shoe boxes were stored there and staff told to get them at unsafe heights. Horrifying. 

They picked on me not letting me have break on first day,  then issuing discipline on first day saying late back , when didnt leave !! When said not late, LIED AND STARTED AN ARGUMENT IN STOCKROOM WITH ME.

THEN all the females are FORCED TO LINE UP IN THE SIDE ALLEYWAY INSIDE EVERYDAY BEING SPOKEN DOWN TO AND TREATED LIKE TRASH AND SUBJECTED TO  DISCRIMINATION.  EG I AM MALE STAFF I TALK DOWN TO YOU HOW I WANT AS YOU ARE ONLY FEMALE. No man staff sales member was lined up like cattle like this.

Plus throughout all day everyday you are exam tested (all staff not newbies) on why you didnt sell (when did make sales). These exams are hrly and nasty. 

Told off because I allowed customers to sit in the 'wrong 'area.adults not allowed to sit in childrens area even when stood there for over an hr ! I felt sorry for the customers stood for an hr !!

Your targets are literally several thousand pounds per STAFF per wk. If not met, face discipline action. Not achievable. 

Finally these so called fantastic shoe measurements everyone goes for are not accurate.  All machines give different readings.  You are then forced to bring customers different shoes from what they asked and the wrong sizes to make up these targets and sales.

It was so wrong and so ethical. Argument witnessed by customers and staff (not me) as to why deliberately selling wrong sized shoes when claim they are experts at measuring.

I didnt want to be injured or spoken down to so I left. They threatened me even after Ieft.

Also forgot, they told me I HAD to come in everyday half an hr before shift for targets talk FOR FREE! Work for free ! Really.

The store manager was very condescending  and always wanted to be right. He never took up for any of his associates when the customers were obviously wrong. He liked to belittle us when we asked questions by answering with a condescending response; making us feel ignorant. He was simply a jerk who only cared about sales and upselling SHOES, ACCESSORIES, & SHOE CARE. He would print out a report showing how bad each employee was doing as far as sales numbers and recommended silly ways on how to better upsell, which did not work. He had great employees working for him but over time people realized that they weren't appreciated on top of the commute time and left. The store manager was manipulative and tried to convince his associates that his way of running the store was by the direction of the district manager; which wasn't all true. He was very competitive when it came to our store being on top of sales. He was also a woman bully. He spoke to the male associates with way more respect than his female associates. The assistant manager was okay but at times made the work environment negative and he made it very obvious that he didn't want to be there. My coworkers, however were nice and helpful and made it one of reasons that I was a little sad to leave the job. On the flip side the 50 percent off discount was great and there were some customers who were sweethearts and even some who've worked in retail themselves, so they understood was we dealt with.
Since this was an outlet location, we usually got customers who demanded additional discounts on shoes that had the tiniest blemishes on them. There were a lot of non-English speakers who came in to shop and usually left the store looking like a tornado had come through. Since people were leaving almost as soon as they were hired, our team was so small that usually all of us would be on the schedule on weekends, and during the week only 2 people (an opener and closer) would be working. Our store had some of the slowest and oldest computers, despite Clark's having millions of dollars. A small investment like upgrading the technology wouldn't hurt. All in all, if you don't mind the commute, you desperately need a temporary job, or you don't mind working in a retail environment, then this place won't be that bad for you. If not, stay away, run.

Working at the Clarks Outlets chain is an exercise in humility, the store closures around the company have you constantly expecting your store is next. As a sales associate, you're putting out shoes, unboxing shoes, flipping at the end of the day, doing all the cleaning, and also the one finding shoes in the stock room. Typically, you're given a menial task to keep you busy, this often interferes with sales (outlets don't get a commission, so no incentive to upsell) as you're expected to be everywhere simultaneously. Unlike full-priced stores, an outlet can literally be a team of two people at a time, making closing the store that much more strenuous. Another key difference with an outlet version of Clarks is that there is no stock room staff, you will be the one finding the shoes, and often a customer loses patience as you try to meet their demands.

Customers routinely argue with promotions and try to insist that coupons for the website or full-priced stores are applicable to your outlet promotion. Customers can also truly be sweet people or absolute nightmares with Napoleonic complexes who try to demean you into giving them a better deal. Corporate seems to care very little about this wing of the company, often leaving you with constantly broken computers and fuming customers who whinge over things like Associates not being able to process returns.

The aforementioned small staff per shift means you will be run into the ground, and often times left bewildered and a bit miffed over even the littlest things. Clarks really needs to think about this wing of their company, we need all the help we can get. Management and the team at my store are all stellar people, but the Clarks work environment is a disaster in an outlet mall. Corporate are their own worst enemies, and often times I'm absolutely baffled at how clueless these people are. Demanding the most out of your employees does not mean you will get their best work ethic, and your almost predatory sales tactics towards your older clientele is a bit shameful. All in all, I would not advise working at a Clarks outlet store unless you truly know your store will be fully staffed, and that you are in a good area.

I worked at an outlet location, and it was so much fun. My greatest reason is because of the Manager in Charlotte. It's true when they say management can make or break a store. They stuck to their word, were as accommodative as possible, and reflected the respect you gave them. I enjoyed my time there enough that I still keep in contact with them-- THAT's something that 95% of my retail peers reading this right now are laughing at. It's rare. The district manager was also great and would visit the store occasionally. 
It was a fast paced store for such a small building, but some weekdays during colder months were painfully slow- plenty of busy work to speed the days up. Since it's an outlet store, many customers expected full-service products so there was a lot of customer-negativity every day through phone calls and such. Their prices and sales were great to the point idk how the company is making money at this point. The cashier systems were rarely reliable so we'd have to go on wild goose chases for shoes by calling other stores, hoping and praying they'd have it or actually take the time to look for us. 
Nonetheless, every company has its tweaks, but out of my long history of retail, my quality of life within a job was at its peak with this specific location, and that's even including the hour drive I had to make everyday. 

A great, iconic global brand that has lost its way. 

The leadership lacks a strategic point of view and has not pivoted quickly over time to recognize the significance digital commerce plays in an omni-channel environment. Additionally, a healthy balance has not been established between the wholesale and owned business channels where risks reside in both. 

The strengths of the each global, geographic region have not been played through or optimized across all regions - regional best practices are not implemented globally.

Last, there is not enough mutual respect demonstrated across the functional areas and little regard for the health and well being of their associates. This is demonstrated on a daily basis where there is low regard and lack of trust in functional expertise. This was further demonstrated this year by the way in which leadership chose to manage through the pandemic - with furloughs and job elimnations - Many highly talented professionals have been personally and financially impacted by these decisions each year during my tenure with the organization.

It's all very unfortunate and I would not recommend transitioning a career to Clarks at any level in their organization.


I worked at Clarks one Holiday season during the pandemic. It was a weird experience that I would not want to revisit. I went into the position aware that there are company sales goals the location has to hit and told the manager I want to to try my best at selling but I got assigned to tasks not on the floor, aka stock room or greeter. Roles are not clearly defined and employees are put where they are "needed" with the managers doing a lot of the selling. I know they're busy but the managers were negative and judgey and gave off bad vibes. They ignore their employees and aren't friendly to them and talk to each other behind employees/customers backs which I happened to see. The team leads are great people who are encouraging and friendly. I learned way more from them and felt more comfortable under their supervision. Unfortunately all the non-full time staff including me were let go halfway into the holiday season due to retail restructuring from corporate so I was told. As I said, a very weird experience. I know this was just a seasonal position but if the company doesn't need/can't afford seasonal employees why bother putting out ads and hiring and letting them go before the season ends? 

This job was a complete waste of time for the 5 months I was there.

Asides from the absolute bare minimum training to operate the point of sale and to locate shoes, there was no product knowledge training or sales process training, so you're on your own to figure that out for yourself.  And as an assistant manager, asides from opening and closing the store, no additional responsibilities are given to you to grow your skill set and to set yourself up for possible promotion.

Store management and district manager enjoys writing you up if you do anything wrong, or for any type of customer complaint. Since there's no encouragement or employee coaching, any type of issues or behaviors that could be easily resolved with a simple conversation gets put on written final warnings.

Team members are quick to turn on you if you have any disagreement with them, which makes for a very poor team dynamic.  

And finally, don't expect any type of quality bonus if you're lucky to hit your sales goals.  A measly 2% on everything that you sell, if you're store hits 100% of it's target doesn't provide any type of motivation to sell. 

In all, I wished I had never joined this company.  Yes, they sell a nice product, but that's all they do well.  

After coming from a big box store and working with highly trained and high caliber managers, it was a real let down coming into Clark’s. The store manager up to and including field managers are low caliber and immature as far as professional growth. Their equivalent counterparts in a big box store would be that of a team lead instead of a district manager. Yes, it is a really easy retail job with little demands but you suffer with an inferior management team. If you are looking to grow as a professional in a retail world, this is not for you. This is for someone just looking to gain a title as a manager with nothing to bolster your growth and education. You will just become someone they call a manager with no clue as to how to manage people or the business. Go to a big box retail for this growth  where you are held to a much greater standard. Listening to field management interact with subordinates is a joke. What they think they know and what they actually know are two different species altogether. Good luck. 

I got to know a lot of amazing people working for Clark’s. Field Management is personable, enthusiastic, and passionate. However, management will always watch out for those they favor. 
The in store work environment started going downhill fast when the store manager began a personal, intimate relationship with a sales associate. This sales associate was given an easy pass on many tasks and even received pay bumps higher than that of the team leads in the store simply due to this relationship.
I, along with several of my coworkers, eventually felt we had no better option but to move on to better career paths. 
My time here did allow me to gain managerial skills which helped me succeed in my current role and continue my career growth. You are given opportunities at Clark’s to prove yourself a hard worker and a team player as well as to learn skills to utilize in future endeavors. With that being said, I would definitely use Clark’s as a means to begin your career and build the vital skills necessary to succeed in the work force. However, I would not look at this as an opportunity to growth internally.

It all depends on the store you work at.  I worked at good stores in other cities and I worked at poorly managed stores. The last store I worked at I do not recommend in SF based on my experience.  As a company in comparison with other stores, its not that bad.

Tips: 
Ring-out your own customer to be safe. It's retail, commission is involved, people are shady. This is including management. 

The better you sale the more hours you'll probably be offered. On top of commission, there are weekly opportunities to earn more money toward your paycheck.

Managment/Culture of this store:
The backroom is always a mess and hard to find shoes for customers. As far as cleaning up "drags" you might be responsible for everyone mess depending on the location. It really makes a difference when you have a clean store. The form of communication about inquires including scheduling, showing up late, etc. are unprofessional and need to be better managed.

Overall:
Other than that, it's retail. What is a consistent trend through all Clarks stores I worked at is, it is a family-like environment and its very welcoming.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Sales associate 12 salaries reported	$14.56 per hour
Sales lead 16 salaries reported	$18.17 per hour
Retail assistant manager 2 salaries reported	$18.99 per hour
Engineering team leader 6 salaries reported	$17.40 per hour
Associate 9 salaries reported	$16.58 per hour

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