Dollarama

Best part about this job is that its easy work and doesn't take too much thinking. As a sales associate/merchandiser I work the cashiers and put out product/maintain appearance of the shelves and walls. All of the duties are repetitive so it becomes very easy to grow lazy and bored of it all depending how long  you stay there. Management at the store I work at is constantly changing, assistant managers and key holders are coming and going monthly. This makes it hard to build personal relationship and trust with staff. Co-workers are usually amazing and make the job worth the while. They are there to talk to when the store is not busy. I have learned from this job that being at the management level in retail is very stressful and doesn't provide many pros for wanting to move up the ladder. Dollarama is a great starter job for high school students or anyone without job experience. Dollarama is a multi-billion dollar company and should consider upgrading the benefits for full-time staff and offering a more competitive wage or offering raises every so often.

I've been working with the company for 2+ years now. 

Typical day at work:

As a Cashier: 
Line ups run for days.... this sounds terrible but let me tell you that it makes time go by quick!! You meet different kinds of people (good, bad and ugly personalities) I currently work in the downtown core so I definitely get all three! Patience is definitely a must for this particular job. 

As a Merchandiser:
FILL! FILL! FILL! Is all I ever hear from my co workers! They want the store completely filled! Back up on cash when needed. Working in such a busy location you have to constantly fill certain areas (popular items etc.)

Management:
Learned to deal with THEM as much as possible. The beginning was all peachy keen until you see their true colours. Let's just say the newer Managers being trained currently have a chance in the long run whereas the current Management gotta step it up.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Dollarama is an amazing place to improve your communications skills; dealing with many customers improve your listening and understanding. you will meet very interesting people there. This job is far for sedentary. Lifting, walking and all body movement all day long. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Switching seasons within 24 hours time frame

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Depending on the staff and Managers you work with. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Flexible starting hours, pretty quiet  time in the morning for paperwork, daily inventory and store setting up.  Then, getting busier around lunch time till the evenings.  PA days, holidays eve and Christmas time very stressful and busy. Depending of the store location, it could be almost out of control in terms of tidiness and display recovery.

A typical day as a Store Manager is unloading skids of product alongside your team; and merchandising said product on the sales floor so that it remains full for customers. 99% your role is merchandising; with very little focus on actual Management duties besides opening and closing the store and creating schedules. 

Work/life balance was a challenge. Inconsistent scheduling, working 2 hrs past scheduled shift finish time and being contacted by staff members while off the clock seemed to be commonplace for the role. 

The Christmas season is extremely busy; with even less work/life balance during this time; which is unfortunate for the holidays. 

Staff morale was low, and professionalism was lacking in staff and Management alike. (Gossip, disrespectful tone/language, etc)

However, on a positive note, it is a very physical role, so you remain active. 


Unrealistic expectations leave most managers no other options but to work hours without clocking in, effectively working for free. But I guess we are not doing this for the money in the first place; even though Dollarama is worth over a billion can$ the average manager makes just a few dollars above minimum wage. And be ready to be making that much for a long while as there’s almost zero chance of being promoted beyond the position of manager unless you’ve been working for them for close to a decade. Lots of DMs are hired from outside.

Training is basically non-existent; they just expect you to land running.

I have worked for Dollarama for a while now. I trained at one store and was sent to a new store. They tend to mass hire, and then mass fire employees. My co-workers are wonderful. We are not paid properly. The company penny pinches. If you are scheduled until a certain time and punch out 2 minutes early they dock your pay. There is not a lot of communication between management and staff. We are currently understaffed at night, which in my opinion is dangerous. Today I saw on BNN that their stock has fallen by 30%. This is bad news for employees. Your staff is your strength. Most of the staff I have had the pleasure to work with are: smart, hard working, friendly, and helpful. Pay us more than minimum wage.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Everything is organized, coworkers are kind, and you’ll never have to work earlier than 7am or later than 9:30pm. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The company does not provide enough hours to management to get all their tasks accomplished. They want a perfect store but are not willing to pay for a perfect store. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Everyone is kind and respectful at my store. The company service is helpful, and the company is very open and encourages feedback.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Show up, open boxes and put them on the shelf, move onto the box. Occasionally you will be called to the cash, given you are not already the cashier that day.

A typical day at work is arriving on time with a great attitude, getting to my station, interacting with customers and keeping everything neat clean and in order.
  As a cashier at Dollarama, I learned how to work at a fast pace, pay keen attention and correct any mistakes quickly. 
   Dollarama is a very diverse working place with a lot of different cultural customers and employees. 
   At first, the hardest part of the job was paying attention. However, I learned quickly that this is a very important skill to acquire because it helps you work more efficiently.
    The most enjoyable part of every job is doing things correctly, engaging with customers and having positive comments about your work ethics, whether that be from your coworkers or customers.

Very demanding workload and high expectations. 
God forbid you get another cashier to open when there is a huge lineup and your expected to keep the cash going while you today clean put out stock full all sections while your the only person with one other employee on to get this done and the next day asked why the store didn’t get tidy. 
My first day as a lead I had one employee besides myself that came from another store to fill in  that never worked there before to run tidy fill and serve customers for 5 hours. Didn’t know where the lights were how to properly lock the door terrible manager 

I started here as cashier but right now I am the Store Manager, I really love this place. My former manager was so nice to me.
 I've learned the importance of efficiency and adaptability in a fast-paced retail environment from her. The most enjoyable part is seeing satisfied customers and working with a dedicated team."
There are two things which I dislike rude customers (bringing dogs to the store/not understanding company’s policy which includes no return no exchange no refund , second thing is shoplifters, I really get upset as we are working hard to make living they just come and steal their needed things. 
Overall okayyy


Working at Dollarama: Company Overview and Reviews

Dollarama

Dollarama Ratings

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected