retail sales associate

shift leader

retail team leader

retail sales leader

assistant store manager

Road-Runner-Sports

Run far away from this place. I worked here for a few months and in the beginning, I enjoyed the fast-paced atmosphere and the people I worked with. Give it a few months and all of that will change. It’s a toxic environment- a lot of favoritism...certain employees get away with things that i was basically crucified for. I was promised growth potential and soon found out that was a lie from my coworkers themselves...employees who have been there for 5+ years and gave their all to their job did not receive any promotions or raises, instead they hire random, unqualified candidates instead of promoting existing employees who deserve it. The job itself is exhausting...they tell you upon hiring that you are not judged based on your sales metrics but that’s also a lie...they put a lot of emphasis on your ‘numbers’ and upselling. The sales approach is a gimmick- once I was told by a supervisor that if a customer has orthotics from their doctor, to tell them they’re not good enough and advise them to buy our cheaply made, overpriced orthotics instead- completely unethical- also, they push us to sell memberships and the way we typically coerce customers to sign up is by not mentioning that there’s a hefty renewal fee and that their card will be charged...I had customers come in upset because no one told them they’d be charged every year. They take complete advantage of employees and customers. They literally verbally assault you if you don’t ‘greet’ a customer within 10 seconds of them walking in the door like a pushy car salesman. On top of that, I was a full-time employee often working 10 hour shifts and I was maybe given 5 breaks total out of all my time working there...the job is physically and mentally demanding and if you ask for a break or a chance to sit down and eat something, they’ll act as if you’re lazy and crucify you- sometimes, I’d go to the bathroom and sit on the floor just so I could take a quick break. I would often run back and forth in between customers to clean up the shoeboxes from my coworkers’ sales that they left all over the sales floor and got scolded for ‘not spending enough time on the floor’ when in reality, I was making multiple trips to the stockroom so the store looked presentable. While the hourly pay is decent for retail, It is way too stressful for a job at a shoe store. Also, while there are very few employees who have been there since the store opened, turnover rate is ridiculously high and you’ll be left picking up the slack of employees who quit last minute without receiving any credit for it.

I made the Title of this LONG because I have a lot to say and I really meant what I said. When I first started working for this company I was very interested and I cannot deny the fact that they try to help those who need help. What I mean by that is they will analyze your feet and show you things you would never have thought of. You will walk out of there spending a tone of money but to better your feet, back and every day living. That is the one thing they did right!. Also, they have a program that allows you to wear the shoe and if its "NOT THE PERFECT FIT" you can exchange them.so its kind of a win-win. You can also manipulate the system as well. Management suck!!!! What I mean by that is, All they do is stand around. You will see 7 Blackshirts just looking around while you have fit experts with 6 people, shoe doggers busy or sometimes not be doing anything for hours, and Finish-liners either busy or just disappear. while they just talk on their talkies. Worst of all if not being able to get a lunch until your on your 6 hours or even 7!!! You don't say anything because you care about your customer as you should. They only care about them selfs. I've seen a lot of employees go from fit experts to a black shirt and still all they do is stand around. Even though before they became a back shirt all they did was complain about how no one does anything. Not even help out the employee who have more than 6 customers.  This company used to pay their employees commission and that what made all the headache and no Lunches ok since you received a decent check. Now good luck, hours suck, always call outs and Turn around in this company is crazy. But hey they can always get a new person and then they quit or not show up. There those who've been there for 6 plus years and I feel sorry for you guys. I hope one day you realize you want more out of life than selling and working for a Man who took away the great part of working for that company.

I've been with this company since shortly after they opened a distribution center to service the population centers in the East/Midwest in 2008 (Something like 60% of the US population can be reached within 6 hours of Columbus, OH). 

In that time I have seen at least 5 facility managers come and go, all but one a complete train wreck. I've also seen people promoted just for being friends with managers (that caused an uproar and they now post openings instead of just filling them).  Management company-wide is lazy and ineffective at best and downright hostile at worst.

The company has no desire to compensate it's employees.  In the 6 years I've been there I have had 1 raise (no cost of living raises) and that was .25.  No, that's not a typo, I received a quarter raise.  Our yearly "Share the success" bonus has shrunk by $200 each of the last 3 years and recently (Sept '14) we found out we won't be receiving the portion we normally receive IN AUGUST.

As far as other benefits go they do offer paid vacation (you earn X hours per pay period based on seniority), sick time (I'll cover that in a moment), they pay for a portion of your health insurance, but it costs more than any other job I've bought insurance from, 401K (no matching contributions) and that's about it unless you'd like to count the picnics they throw about every 6 months.  The sick time is that in name only as you are penalized (via attendance policy) if you use it because you have the flu or a cold.

Coworkers are mostly OK with some really great ones, but because the company has run off so many people (a large agency will no longer provide temps for them because of this) you get a great deal of under-qualified and lazy individuals.  

We are rarely provided with the equipment we need to do our jobs and have been using computers that were outdated when I started since that time.  I could go on but if what I've already written doesn't make you say "Nevermind" to this job nothing will.

One of the worst companies to ever work for. Instability caused by uncertainty, beginning from the top. The master plan is always changing but not for the better. It's a guessing game and the one's paying the price are the customers. However, collateral damage is being done to the everyday employees and lower-level supervisors and managers as well because they deal with the Brunt of the horrible planning and angry customers. Nothing wrong with change, but at least respect those that you are asking to constantly change and the difficulties that are being created when doing so. Retail in itself is difficult , but this company adds to it by putting the wrong personalities in charge while the upper management gets fatter and fatter. I believe that the plan was sincere and well-intentioned in the beginning but has deteriorated now to a point where it's only a continuous cycle of misleading customers and asking some exceptional employees to do the impossible, which is lie and manipulate a customer to the point of submission. At whatever cost. A desperate company grasping at straws when the outcome has already been seen & could have been avoided. The proof is in the dwindling numbers in revenue,customer loyalty, sales expectations and goals and the raising of prices across the board. No loyalty to the everyday employees doing 90% of the work in the stores. Good old-fashioned math, right? 90% of the work being done by 10% of the company.

As a Road Runner employee, you're expected to greet every customer with a "Welcome in VIP" and thus the giant list of scripting begins. You're supposed to get the customers signed up at Shoe Dog, our gait analysis system, which is also a helpful selling tool. It's all about planting the seed about what's important for runners and walkers alike so that the Fit Experts can more easily sell socks, insoles, injury prevention items, and other stuff. Working retail overall can be horribly demeaning, as coming across rude and inconsiderate customers happens quite often. But working with individuals who have been hired because of their positive energy and happy attitudes gives all of us the opportunity to commiserate over poor customer experiences and make the days pass more enjoyably. 

My boss works his tail off and boosts our self confidence and esteem. He gives out positive incentives for hitting our KPI's, as opposed to threatening us with write ups when we don't. Co workers are amazing and happy, and we all rely on each other to make the others smile when we're having rough days. 

I truly enjoy working with people. I wish that the majority of people we work for weren't so rude or condescending, but that makes me appreciate the awesome customers that much more. 

Road Runner does a great job of hiring great people. And even though our expectations and job descriptions constantly change, it keeps us on our toes. 

Compensation, as long as we hit our KPI's, is fantastic. Bonuses are not always easy to come by, but pay out well. 

We get lots of free shoes and gear and that stuff helps us sell more stuff.

RRS is a fun place to work as it is a small enough company that you can actually watch progress or change take place and be effective. Conversely though, they notoriously underpay all corporate-level staff (except for the executives who make more than triple of the income of those they oversee). In addition, they do NOT offer annual raises or promotions--except for executives. Oftentimes when an essential staff member quits (which is OFTEN), they just outsource the work to freelancers (ineffective) and bog down the remaining staff with the person who quit's work. That being said, because of the lack of hands-on upper-level management, one can learn A LOT a RRS because you'll have to! You will receive a lot of training to do your job, too, which is nice. OK, the bonuses are a LIE. In the more than 2 years that I was employed there, I only got one. And it was VERY SMALL. I was cheated out of a big bonus because I was on maternity leave which was ridiculous but I was so dang tired from working full-time with a newborn that I didn't bother being a squeaky wheel about the matter, instead I just quit and found a new job that paid me fairly with annual raises and merit-based promotions. Great company for under 25-year-olds to get their feet wet and learn something. Not a good place for more seasoned professionals to grow, or advance their career, or earn a fair salary.

I have been with the company for over a year & a half and was lucky to start my job off with a good manager. He was a great guy that cared about his employees and made work fun, but when corporate fired him his replacement destroyed any shred of decency about this company. The company continues to screw over its employees, by taking away commission, forcing employees to bring out certain shoes due to contracts that the company is getting paid for (not you), and just awful managers. My current manager has received more than a dozen complaints and corporate has done nothing about it. The management is absolutely the worst. It started well, I loved working there due to the friendly coworkers and the original management. But as a retail chain with over 40 stores, the company is selling out and not caring for its hard-working employees. I work very hard and actually care about my customers, but this current manager is unprofessional and incredibly rude. His attitude to his employees is terrible, his attitude in the backroom is terrible. He treats us as animals and does not communicate with us at all. I am looking for another job due to the lack of action from corporate and upper management. As a store, we have lost over 10 employees due to this current manager and they still have not realized that the manager is the problem. THEY DONT CARE ABOUT YOU.

A typical day consists of answering calls, one right after the other, for customers wanting to purchase new shoes, exchange shoes, or have their complaints, issues and problems resolved.  Management relies on what they call LOD;s (leaders on duty) of which you have to go to for everything.  I guess it would be beneficial if they were actually there to assist you but it feels as though customer service is constantly in a battle with them to get the customers taken care of in the fashion they should be especially since they are required to be a VIP and pay dearly for the little bit of benefits they receive.  That is the hardest part of the job for me, going back to my customer and explaining that I can't do for them what I'd like to because I have absolutely no authority to do anything the LOD's do not approve.  I enjoy my customers the most and they are reason I've stayed as long as I have.  Helping them determine what type of shoe is best for them and helping them pick out shoes and accessories that really accommodate their needs not just the companies bottom line.

Road Runner Sports is a complicated workplace to briefly describe. Your experience here will ultimately depend on the type of person you are and how much you value your time. 

If you have a passion for entry level sales or running shoes/accessories then this job can be pretty rewarding at times. 

If you don’t like entry level sales or achieving KPI goals then this job will become unbearable. 

Overall I like Road Runner Sports in terms of my pay/commissions and working with the team members that we have left. One of the only things I would say negatively stands out is the corporate management. They’re very impersonal and constantly micromanage over you which makes it really difficult to enjoy your job when they are present. 
(*Especially the district manager)

Age and lots of job experience is a plus (any job experience) although sales/shoe sales experience is preferred. It’s less likely you’ll advance in your job if you’re young of age and have less job experience than others regardless of job performance.

With almost 8 years of experience at RRS I went through multiple managers who never stayed consistent with their training.  Every other year the new AM/DM would critique your daily routine but never give direct guidance like a leader should.  Their method of training consisted of one or two days of conversation with no real development.  The pay scale was off and low compared to jobs similar to our job description.  

There was very little work/life balance and days that consisted of working open to close was regular.  The job will eventually work you into the ground with little to no investment into your own future. 

If the above isn't enough of a deterrent, the business is 100% focused on key performance indicators.  The metrics that are set up are designed for most to fail and this creates a nightmare for managers to balance.  Customers should come first and should have been more than happy to have them in our store.  Instead, it was focused on pushing product towards them in order to increase sales.  Finally, the mark up on the products is staggering.  If the customers come first...why doesn't RRS start creating that environment?



Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Retail sales associate 2 salaries reported	$18.50 per hour
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Retail team leader 18 salaries reported	$19.42 per hour
Retail sales leader 2 salaries reported	$20.50 per hour
Assistant store manager 7 salaries reported	$25.64 per hour

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