stylist

retail assistant manager

assistant store manager

store manager

assistant designer

Free People

The brand itself is creative, beautiful, and inspiring, and the people that work here genuinely care about the customer and the product. The company attracts hardworking individuals, and there is a strong sense of pride among the workers. Higher ups are great at being involved at the store level and providing frequent feedback for your own personal growth. The company is very generous with the discount which is very motivating and is a great benefit that keeps a lot of employees. The company provides tons of resources for managers and is extremely organized in regards to operations, which is greatly appreciated. DMs really make an effort to show appreciation, and you get the opportunity to meet so many people from other stores, states, and even countries. There’s a creative aspect in merchandising and floor setting which is very enjoyable. 

However, the expectations placed on management are extremely difficult to sustain. Managers are salaried but often expected to work long days, frequent weekends, and extended holiday schedules without the flexibility or work–life balance that many comparable companies offer. Because management is exempt status, you don’t get paid overtime but are still expected to frequently. There is also an expectation to be available on days off, check emails frequently, and adjust schedules last-minute, which makes it challenging to have a life outside of work. The salary is very low for what the job expects of you.

It can also be discouraging to be held to sales and profitability goals that don’t always align with the location or customer base. The pressure to perform is very high, even when external factors make hitting targets unrealistic.

The managers that thrive here are the ones that center their lives around the brand and are more work-obsessed. But if you are someone who values boundaries, holidays, having hobbies, and personal time with family/friends, the culture can lead to burnout quickly.

What is the best part of working at the company?
for me personally, nothing was good about it

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
management expects you to convince customers to spend over $100 on jeans or any of the other overpriced items or you get your hours cut. there are no deals or sales to help either, i get that it’s retail but most retail stores at least have deals to help with sales. instead FP expects you to convince ppl to spend half if not their entire paychecks on one or two items. if you don’t meet sales you get your hours cut and the pay is already $12.50 and bi-weekly. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
toxic. again they don’t make selling easy, with the prices and no deals, they cut hours a lot, despite the very low pay and bi-weekly pay out. management SUCKS. definitely peeked in high school because they are bullies. key holders micro manage and time your already 10 minute break, you can’t talk to the store manager about hours or anything really because they’ll go gossip with the other managers 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
folding clothes, spacing hangers, and cleaning up the sales section. also being forced to harass customers

Very competitive, revolving  door across teams, drama and strong personalities. 

Competition and revolving door go hand in hand. Because there is high turnover across almost every department, it creates reoccurring role vacancies that are often filled by current employees. It become competitive when you realize the person who started after you got a promotion because someone quit. 

Because URBNs hiring process is so rigorous, the emotional and mental demographic of employees is pretty  much the same. Hard hitting, outspoken, self starters… which can cause conflict because everyone is a bit cocky and outspoken to the point it’s rude and not typical at other retailers corporate. 

 ALOT of drama. It’s easy to stay out of thought by not contributing to gossip and veering the conversation if something is brought to you. But it’s inevitable you will be pulled in at some point! Don’t trust anyone unless you’ve seen them break company policy, lol. 

All in all, if you want a standout career in fashion, Free People or any URBN brand is where it’s at! Personally, the pros outweigh the cons.  

What is the best part of working at the company?
I’d definitely say apply for this job if you’re looking for something that keeps you actually busy, allows you to meet new people easily and want a good sale discount on clothing. Hours can be a underwhelming if you’re part time and inconsistent, but I think overall it depends on management at your location. You will be on your feet a lot and it gets very busy during peak season so you have to be alert & ready! I enjoy this job, just wish they could increase the salary since it doesn’t quite match the skills/energy required imo.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Dealing with customers during peak season. Multi-tasking on sales floor.
Communicating with team and customers at the same time.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The work environment is laid back but you’re expected to be friendly and interacting with customers most of the time. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Checking in with key holders, doing go backs, preparing fitting rooms for customers, folding/organizing items, interacting with customers to engage sales.

I transferred to a much larger store after working in a boutique-size store for a year and a half. I had more experience than the girls who were working as senior stylists, and I was clearly a valued team member, but it took 5 months for them to give me a promotion, and within 2 weeks, the minimum wage in NYC went up, so I've been making a dollar more than I would have been if I weren't in a senior position.

After holiday, we had a lot less payroll, so the schedule was very thin and we'd work only 4 hour shifts. It became obvious that the stylists were only there so managers could go on break, and I began to feel a little exploited.

I loved the people I worked with at the beginning, but almost all of those managers have left the company. I have no ill will against the company, but I am feeling a little burnt out after 3 or so years. Free People is very focused on money as a large corporation, and it's hard to escape that fact after working there for a while.

I have been with this company for 5 years and it is a great company to gain valuable skills in business, sales, customer service, and management. I was promoted several times over he past 3 years to higher management positions and have personally ran 3 different stores. There was always a new opportunity and room for advancement. The pay in the lower management positions leaves a lot to be desired but once in a salaried Store Manager position the pay was fair to my experience. I make my own schedule as a store manager and focus on developing my team to ensure that the business runs smoothly. Downside really is the dreaded retail schedule, weekends and holidays are required. It can be difficult to have a good routine with a constantly varying schedule.

Working at Free People has taught me a great deal about retail and the importance of the consumer. I've had the experience of working on busy holidays like Black Friday, while understanding the importance of store standards and product presentation. I've had to work longer than expected because of events like extra shipment and emergencies in back stock, and I was glad to do it. I also had and continue to have the opportunity to work with lovely people who make the work day fly by. I have wonderful managers who have all been sales associates themselves, so they understand the position I am in. The hardest part of my job is having too many tasks to accomplish when the store in understaffed or unexpectedly full of shoppers. The most enjoyable part of my job is working with my fellow co-workers and having the opportunity to speak with many lovely customers.

The URBN corporation does the absolute bare minimum when it comes to its treatment of employees.
- no holiday pay or weekend pay
- they pay minimum wage
- you get the legal minimum for breaks 
- you are not allowed to sit or rest at all on the floor 
- my (now former) manager would assign me 2-5 tasks whenever I would go drink water so I wound up being dehydrated for most of my shifts
- there are really not that many chances for promotion and there are no raises for stylists 

The company expects you to go above and beyond with your work performance while treating you like dirt. They have high turnover rates for their retail workers, so they don't really care about fostering a good work environment and improving working conditions. It was an easy enough job but ultimately a complete dead-end. I wouldn't recommend this job to anyone, especially if you are autistic or struggle with sensory processing issues

I have worked in retail management at various different companies and this division of Urban Outfitters, Inc stands out amongst the rest in its creative environment, love of culture, putting clients first and excellent procedures. I would recommend anyone interested in high end retail to work there. They treat their employees as the invaluable assets that they should be, treat their clients as top priority and give considerable compensation for hard work. It is a moderately heavy workload (each store runs as its own small business with employees doing everything from complicated display setups to training to its own marketing) but this fosters learning and responsibility wonderfully.

For the first month I worked here, I felt like I couldn't talk to my fellow coworkers about some of the obvious issues because it felt like everyone was happy little free people robots. I later found out everyone was just as miserable as I was. The pay is low for key holder positions, especially given all the work they expect out of you. They refused to keep hiring a security guard after covid, so not only are you juggling three tasks at once; you are also required to be a defense against theft. They will schedule you right up until the point that they would have to give you benefits. Refuse to hire more people that we desperately needed. We were expected to get emotionally involved in sales goals for "the company." Unless you're just obsessed with Free People clothing and "the culture"..... I would steer clear. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Stylist 6 salaries reported	$12.15 per hour
Retail assistant manager 2 salaries reported	$14.88 per hour
Assistant store manager 1 salary reported	$21.00 per hour
Store manager 7 salaries reported	$59,786 per year
Assistant designer 3 salaries reported	$60,698 per year

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