retail sales associate

store manager

tailor

seasonal associate

assistant store manager

JoS. A Bank

Working at Jos. A. Bank is unique to most retail jobs. There is a high learning curve to classic men’s apparel (suits, slacks, dress shirts etc.).
Most store's management are highly knowledgeable when it comes to all things Men’s clothes and they can guide you through the nuisances that is men’s fashion. The first experience of providing a perfectly fitted suit for a customer is extremely gratifying  and that feeling never gets old. 

Everyday will be a different experience in this business because of the versatility of the product we carry and the uniqueness of each situation you are tasked with facilitating. Every wedding you consult helps give a couple the celebration they always wanted, every job interview ‘look’ you put together has the potential to help someone achieve their dreams, every tux rental you create helps those have memories for years to come while looking their best, every ‘going out’ look you orchestrate gives the potential for a night everyone will remember.

The customers and their needs always change keeping the job fresh day-to-day. The required tasks needed for the store’s functionality can become repetitive but the coworkers and the relationships you build as a team keep operations of the store fun and upbeat. 

A typical work day is about 8 hours with a break. It is not very physically demanding but it is mentally taxing. You are faced with many challenges for your clients due to the nature of the business. We are known for tailoring garments in-house on a quick turnaround for clients in need. Based on the severity of the situation and the availability of the product it can lead to a stressful experience trying to satisfy every need for the customer. But that is what we are there for.

I have found that those who display loyalty to the company, work hard, and achieve their goals on a regular basis are pushed into management positions when they performs on all levels.  Sometimes very quickly depending on the employee’s skill set and ability to learn. 

One thing I enjoy most working for Jos. A. Bank is the ability to build a full wardrobe from casual clothes, business casual, business professional, formal and even lounge wear. The quality of the product is undeniably high (and for the price) which means that you can feel good wearing clothes from work even on your days off.

Upper management seems disconnected at times and can make our jobs more difficult. However the communication from the store level to corporate has significantly improved this year (2021) and issues in their decisions can be resolved quickly. Due to updates in our company intranet allowing us more freedom in communication with our team members in the corporate offices.

This is a company that is goal based in your ‘behaviors’ and not solely set in the dollar amount. They train us to provide for the customer’s initial request making sure they leave with what they came for and it is our job to expand their horizon and show them how they can use the versatility of their new garment by recommending product that will expand their wardrobe. We are discouraged from ‘pushy’ sales techniques as this does not put the customer first. We always tell each other that ‘the customer comes first’. We try to uphold that idea client-to-client to make it a welcoming place to shop and build a meaningful relationship with the associates in the store. 

What I appreciate most is that this company and the managers I worked under helped me realize my passion and love for this job. Not for the clothes, Not for the money, but the opportunity to be engaged in the moments that matter most for our clients, friends, and family.

I'd like to preface this by saying I recently stepped down from assistant manager II to a regular sales due being a college student. 

The Sales Assistant:
I joined Jos. A. Bank my senior year of high school as a Sales Assistant expecting it to be an okay starting point to the work environment. My co-workers were fun and the job was pretty easy. I was outgoing and a hard worker so I had no trouble fitting in and working with customers. However while my friends were over at Starbucks making $15/hr with college scholarship benefits, I was at Jos. A. Bank making $8.50/hr and no benefits (back in 2017). Currently as of 2018 the position is now going for around $10/hr to 12/hr if your lucky with no benefit and is STILL not up to par with most other companies for the work you do. 

The Assistant Manager II:
Most will call this title "the 3rd key". After a few months of learning the material (as a SA) and showing promise one particular store in my region was doing particularly bad and needed a 3rd key. My manager told me about it and I accepted the challenge. Going in with no prior sales training and no management training I was hired in at 5.75/hr plus commission (I believed this to be atrocious for a manager pay and pushed for $6.00 but I was assured that this was the best starting rate for my position.) I'm not sure about other stores, but at this particular store I did all the work. Although I was 3rd key I handled issues that the store manager should have dealt with, and pretty much ran the store aside from making the schedule. (Though this was likely just my store) 

The Sales Executive (Regular commission sales):
As I stated previously I recently stepped down due to college and the only thing that has changed is my pay. I am payed $5/hr plus commission. I do basically the same thing to spite my store bringing in another manager to take over my position. There is nothing special about this position. Expect a lot of headache as this position, especially if you are part time. I find that I often will get my commission messed over by another sales. This is detramental to me because of the fact that I am part time and trying to make a pay check, I don't feel that I need to fight for sales with elderly men that don't understand the fundamentals of our P.O.S. system (our checkout system) 

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Jos. A. Bank is perfect for people who need FLEXIBILITY in their schedules. 
The ideal person to manage and work in this industry (KEEPING IN MIND HOW MUCH THEY PAY) are young kids in high school to college kids. This is also a perfect job for retirees. 
Due to the low pay range and allowable flexibility it is perfect for high/college students and can be used as a good opportunity to make connections and to move out of the industry. 
If you want Jos. A. Bank to be your final end all be all, DO NOT settle for just Store Manager, their pay ranges from $15-25/hr and they only make 3% commission (+bounuses). Climb that Corp. ladder! Get up there! Then you have a shot at being on par with the rest of the jobs out there.

TL;DR: My store has been without air conditioning since late May, and is still, as of September 1, without air conditioning. Corporate does not care whatsoever about working conditions or it's employees, and the company deserves to fail.

I was very excited about my job selling suits at Jos. A. Bank. The first year or so was good. I liked my physical work environment, my coworkers were kind and understanding, and it was fun to dress up for a retail job. However, within the past year, the rails have completely fallen off this company.

Starting mid-2024, our store began seeing shortages of common items, such as white dress shirts in sizes like 16x33, and common suit pants sizes. Racks and shelves were bare. Looking back, this was a bad sign of things to come.

At the beginning of this year, 2025, we began to be simply inundated with inventory. We were sent 8 of the same size big and tall jackets for suits that weren't selling. We had back stock of pants, dress shirts, and sportswear that continues to pile up on display tables as we simply have no space to properly display them, or enough demand to eat through our overstock.

Then, the final nail in the coffin of my opinion of the company - our store's lack of air conditioning.

In late May of this year, our central A/C crapped out. We thought it couldn't be long until they replaced it, as it was starting to get very warm out, but little did we know we'd be in for a multi-month saga. Apparently, our A/C unit's replacement wasn't covered in our lease, so corporate was responsible for replacing it.

First, in June, we were told they couldn't find a unit. In July they told us it was a money issue - then told us we had our best quarter in years. August came, and they never filed a permit with the township to replace the unit.

All the while, the store consistently stayed at a temperature no lower than 84° from dawn until dusk. We came in one July morning to do inventory - and the indoor temperature was 87° by 7:30 AM.

Due to this high heat, our store closed early most days during the summer - however, it often didn't close until around 3 PM, meaning we still had to work in temperatures up to 93° for at least 4-5 hours.

When our store did close early, we were inconveniencing customers, as they never knew when we'd close day to day.

On top of all this, our inventory stream picked up, leading to more piles of overstock merch piling up - which we had no chance of selling through, as the store itself was often open no more than 35 hours a week.

Our regional manager never even showed his face while without A/C, even though he visited all stores around us.

Please don't work here. They don't care about you.

I'm just gonna list everything I feel is a joke about this company. And I hope somehow their corporate HQ reads this.

First off when I started working here it was great, I had management helping me, and the customers were awesome to work with. 

I soon switched to a store located in Naples, FL. Worst mistake ever. Management was a joke. I was interviewed by the new regional for a full time position. The regional claimed that he "never hires anyone full time" until they prove them self otherwise... That was the first problem. Second problem was that somehow someway it took them over a week to get me into their computer system to be able to ring people out. A friend of mine worked at another location and went back to Banks around the same time and it took him a day to get his log in. So with no number, I had to work a week at $5 an hr with absolutely no commission or any reimbursement for the sales that I had lost. Not to mention, during that time, my so called "store manager" told me that he would be the one to help throw me some sales to make up for the lost money that first initial week back. Which he didn't. He never threw me a sale. He would take sales, knowing that he makes about 70K a year, but continued to take his 3% commission instead of helping me or anyone else in the store. 

That was just the beginning. As time went on I started to learn that he didn't know his job one bit. He would have other managers close on certain days so he could have them do his paperwork. He would harass me about the other location I worked at, asking questions that did not pertain to his store or way of working. He would make you do uncomfortable things in the store with customers because that's how he felt it needed to be done. The best part was, he claimed and claimed that he was the reason that the store had turned around. Sadly every employee he has hired (that didn't work there before he came) has either walked out or quit. Before he came the store was doing about 1.8M a year, and about a 150% on travelers crease. Since then the store volume has dropped to about 1-1.2M a year and the travelers crease is at about 50%. 

The one thing I found most interesting about this company though, is the lack of knowledge of their employee's at corporate. No background checks are done. NONE. No drug screenings are done. Absolutely nothing is done, and this is a corporate company! One of my managers was a child offender... HOW DO YOU LET SOMEONE LIKE THAT WORK IN A STORE? And let them work there for at least 2-3years none the less. 

Ever since men's wear house bought them, things are a night mare. Terrible pay, and unhappy customers, with absolutely no way to make good money (unless you are working by yourself) and absolutely no room to grow and move up in the company.

I worked for Jos. A. Bank for just under 3 years. I started just before Christmas of 2010 as casual help and I was terminated Oct, 2013 as the Assistant Manager, but more about my termination later. I enjoyed the work. I'm very much a hard worker and I love to make things function and look better. There is no honest down time, when on the clock you should be continually working on something. It's a matter prioritizing task. Somethings need attention at any time, somethings need attention immediately. The products are a very good quality but, the price is always changing to be preform the job correctly requires being very familiar with both the products as well as the many price variables. It's far to easy to over charge a customer, and witnessed those around me over charge continually. Sometimes a dollar or less but also easily fifty dollars or more. This all hinges on the honesty of the individual sales associate. The job requires very high aptitude for customer service and patience. The very discerning customer needs to be identified and made to feel like he is with professionals, but the customer far removed from his element also need to be recognized and mad to feel comfortable in asking the simplest questions. This is a skill learn only though practice. I thoroughly enjoyed my work and serving the customers directly, and working with fine merchandise. I had the most trouble with the structure of management. There was very little unity when it came to having a team direction, or the order of authority. This problem eventually lead to my termination. I held the third key for the store but if I had a problem with a subordinate there was never any correction. I worked extremely hard to be honest to both the customer, the company, and my fellow associates. This caused those below me to feel resent me for my level of hard work, and those above me to have contempt for voluntarily offering the customer every discount the company allowed; I became a target Without breaking a any code of conduct or the ability to defend my actions I was falsely accused and found guilty. I was even able to present a third party eye witness to the specific incident, but the truth was never the goal it was all a cover to fire me dishonestly. They're free to fire me for any reason, and I would have moved on to other job opportunities. The trouble is found in the lies told about my behavior I have more than enough evidence to clear my name and I'm perusing them with the corporate managers. 

It was an enjoyable job to me, but honesty and integrity are not welcome nor are they encouraged.

The company weekly connected it sales as a numbers driven production. The store management strived to meet the needs of it's clientele and sales promotions. The sales were very successful, but the management from further up the chain of command often denied the basics to support additional staff during busy season. Consistently rolled out new proceedures during the Holidy Season, burdening the management teams with 40% increase in shipping, receiving new merchandise, and no improvement in the processes of their off site tailoring services. The majority of complaints I handled, as a manager, where processes beyond our control. Late arrivals of tailored clothing, poor tailoring, and employees lack of communication with clientele. Working in a University Town store, and influx of clientele travel, with purchasing garments and not having the customer satisfied within 14 days of purchase was always a breakdown in process. Transfers of seasonal merchandise was never consistent, burdening the stores with cash wrap sales and deliveries to save money, created many customer issues, and distraction for the purpose of meeting current needs, and/or present customers in the store. The size and layout of stores are not consistent, and merchadising the stores to meet demand was always a challenge, and many customers disliked store presence during this time frame. Received first employee evaluation after 19 months working in the store. No consistancy in trainging from management on processes. I strived for a uniform traiing of every employee, and new employees were seldom introduced to current employees. Often new employees were never told who would be training them on processes, and proceedures. I was successful becaue I was well training by a previous retailer on the fashions, processes, fitting, and selling techniques, and previous experience as an account manager, recruiter, and business developer. The commission structure was never improved and the underlying attitude is do not question your earnings. New programs were engaged to increase personal volumne, but inconsistent in working with store management.

Mornings consist of receiving inventory and or selling.

The rest of day is selling and maintaining the store. 

There are a lot of variables for a good day which are: luck (door turn), foot traffic, good sale days, and then selling skills are last.

A good day is obviously making a lot of sales (commission) and giving what the customers need at the same time. I enjoyed returning customers telling me how many compliments they received and the amount of confidence they got from me helping them. 

Teamwork is a must for the store to flow well. Management should enforce teamwork with co-workers, the in-house tailor, and themselves. 

I was able to learn how multi-task under pressure in a retail environment and learn to improve my customer service skills better. You deal with people all day long and they are all different with different needs. Most customers were very nice and understanding. 

Management is okay and I understand they have to meet objectives and goals and sometimes they can lose sight of their employees for their own personal ambitions. 

Management should get more insight from their salesmen because they are the ones who knows what works and does not work. 

The company overall should invest in their employees more to deter them from leaving so quickly. 

The hardest part of the job was not being able to have any other type of commitments, even if management was aware of them from the start. Management will push you to the limit. 

The overall work culture is good if everyone gets along well. This is a good part-time job or someone who enjoys being in a selling/commission environment. 

You will get outstanding discounts on suits and professional attire while working there. 

Overall the job is good if you have a work work mentality, but most people will not last if they have any type of ambition to be promoted or get paid more in a reasonable amount of time. For a good worker I see most people lasting 1-2 years tops and young men (18-25) under a year.

I started out loving it. I was new to retail sales but I was a natural and advanced quickly with a plan in place to learn the business and then advance. The plan worked well. 
There really was no typical day. Seriously. Things happened at such a rapid pace, but for the most part, a day consisted of making sure my store was clean, merchandise was looking good, my employees were well prepared to sell, sell, sell and making sure they knew the sales that day because they would change at a rapid pace. Making sure co-workers and clientele were content, yet my store was successful.  I had to manage a $1,000,000 dollar store plus a tailor shop, as well as an emerging tuxedo rental business. 
I learned so much it's not easy to condense, but among those things learned was how to manage people effectively and fairly. I learned how to merchandise as well as master my selling prowess among a vast number of other entities.
Management was tough but in turn it made me tougher. It wasn't for the thin skinned.
My co-workers were fantastic human beings. I cannot say enough about them. I made life long friendships.
Hardest part of the job was the work/life balance. I pride myself on being a stand up person and when I have nothing nice to say, I keep it to myself but in this case the demands were beyond anything reasonable.
The most enjoyable part of the job was definitely my co-workers and my clientele. Fantastic, loyal people. I also enjoyed the selling aspect as well as loving to witness my employees succeed in something they thought was not possible.

My typical day at Jos A Bank, Opening and or closing the store as a key holder and getting registers up and active and shutting down at EOD.  Then once clocked in, seeing what assignments  that are needed to completed via my self or delegating to others who have been trained to be able to do so as far as their position allows when management  projects are needed. If training is needed, I can do so.  Welcoming every customer with open arms and seeing how and what we can provide ( Keeping in mind some have certain time frames for product do to completed to keep the customer). I make sure it is done in a timely manner with no mistakes to make sure the customer is happy with results. We love to have repeat customers because of their regard for our services.  Myself has done training for others if needed to help their growth within the company. I have stayed consistent with my tasks for 10+ years. We have as store have gone through 9 managers since my hire in 2015. We communicate well, and if one cant finish a task, its delegated if suitable. Hardest part of the job is working until past 9pm. As we close at 9pm. I live in Oxford PA. It is about a 25-30 min drive depending on road work and traffic. The most enjoyable part is to be able to create connections with customers, and fellow employees. The customers are more than willing to shop again with us exclusively at our location Based off our customer service and timely manner at Longwood Shopping Centre. 

A nice work environment. The management and employees change which determines the feel of the store daily. A bad manager makes things stressful.The pay rate begins low, well under minimum wage for a "probationary period", and goes up to the maximum (still below a living wage) and stays there. If you are an SA, sales assistant, you might get $ .25 raise after a year. The advancement encouragement would be to become a key holder - if it's available. And this means opening, closing, no weekends, all depending on the fairness of the store manager.  They don't pay a living wage and are now  paying  every two weeks. A weekly paycheck was a necessity for me. As a member of the working poor, the benefits they offer come out of your paycheck and if you go to take advantage of the medical, vision or dental, the co-pay will strain your bank balance. The key holders are told of glorious sales commissions, and if a sales goal is not met your hourly pay is far below minimum wage. It isn't what you are told your salary will be. Any returns of items you sold means the commission goes back from your check. Male employees are expected to wear the clothes sold in the store, so look to rack up a PDA, product sales bill, yes there's a discount but the clothes are high end. They have many women working in the company, as an old male-established business,  there is a bit of disrespect and misogynistic attitudes intact to delicately navigate.  If we are here for the paycheck, my advice is keep looking.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Retail sales associate 11 salaries reported	$17.76 per hour
Store manager 9 salaries reported	$23.26 per hour
Tailor 8 salaries reported	$21.47 per hour
Seasonal associate 1 salary reported	$16.88 per hour
Assistant store manager 6 salaries reported	$24.83 per hour

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