Retail Sales Associate | Temecula, CA | May 29, 2021
You'll regret being born if you decide to work here... I'm serious.
Unfortunately I don't think there is enough space on my computer hard drive to write out all the negatives about this workplace... let me first start off by saying that I had worked at multiple Hobby Lobbies and the store in Temecula was truly the worst of it, I came from another store where I loved everything about it only to downgrade to this store. With it being the district store and bigger than most it was always a life and death struggle to work here. From management acting like working here was open heart surgery to constantly nit picking your work to the point of personal insults it soon became a place where you would get anxiety coming to work because you knew you would get reprimanded from your previous shifts on things you didn't do right to being blamed for things that weren't even involved in. Your coworkers are probably the only thing that will help you get through the day if it isn't some customer mad at you for you being sold out of an art supply it will be management being personal with you and a pure lack of boundaries or respect. I cannot tell you how many times I had seen employees treated unfairly to the point where it would become normal to see employees leaving the office crying. Most of the new employees that came for the seasonal roles would quit within either the same day or within the next week or so after being thrown in on truck day our hardest day to be seen if they could "weed out" the newbies. I can guarantee you after one day of working on the
ProsFellow coworkers
ConsThere are too many to name, just read the review....
Great place to work if you don’t like social interaction and just trying to rack up your $$ bag
Workplace was fine. For IC you have a quota to make every shift so just keep that in mind. I feel like it’s common sense since you’re in a warehouse and there’s hundreds if not thousands of items IC is responsible for keeping an accurate count of. And they get on to you if they see you talking. Makes sense when it’s effecting your quota but they also made it a point to get onto you even if someone was helping another person out with their count.
——-Does management care?
Management cares which is huge for such a big corporation. I’ve worked at a couple of other big companies where management couldn’t care one bit about their workers but this place does. At least for IC (inventory control). I’ve heard some other positions not so much.
——What’s the turnover rate like?
The turnover rate is pretty high for this position but I worked the overnight shift so I was getting paid differential pay. And understood why the turnover was higher for the overnight shift, reason being they couldn’t keep up physically and complained. And the hours are kinda weird. Which if you’re coming from a daytime desk job and you WANT a more physical job, definitely go for it. But if you’re coming from a daytime desk job and aren’t used to physical activity/work, or overnight hours don’t bother. I had seen so many people complain and never show up for their next day. They’re really strict when it comes to their point system, so even if they care about you as an individual, there’s not much they can do i
Looking to jumpstart your career at Hobby Lobby well you came to the right place. I will be your tour guide giving out tips and tricks to help you to live a creative life. I know what your thinking Hobby lobby is a retail workers dream! You look on the outside and say wowwww they are closed on Sundays their hrs of operation are 9-8 Mon/Sat . The full time pay is above minimum wage. The company holds such family life values . This is the company everyone wants to work for. What’s the saying don’t judge a book by it’s cover?
So let’s get into it you think your ready to be an Hobby Lobby employee well let’s see if you meet the standards that they have in place.
1) This is a real big deal to hobby lobby and going far with the company so if you want to have a work/ NO life balance. Allow them to force you to work 10+ hr shifts, work sundays, coming in early mornings, stay late nights. This is the company for you.
2) If you want to be told the harder you work the more you suck at your job and your not to company standards. This is the company for you.
3)If you want to watch the lazy and toxic workers continuously get rewarded and not have to pull there weight. This is the company for you.
4)If you want to watch them hire new people, be told you have to train them, for you to be paid the same amount of money as them after working there for multiple years, this is the company for you.
I know what your thinking this doesn’t seem fun but wait there is some fun. The fun part
Can be a fast paced work environment, only because of massive under staffing. Contradicting directions from Corporate level to store level.
Example; a typical Saturday morning... Manager or Co-Manager, a Framer and a cashier for the first 2 hours of opening.... Framer covered Fabrics/Framing/Art/Wearable Arts/Toys&Hobbies/Jewelry and Crafts.... basically the back half of the store!
Associates cannot provide excellent customer service AND complete busy work in allocated time.
Nice and sweet in your face, but backstabbing, gossip riddled co-workers, Closed Corporation (Family) Greed and excessive Micro management via middle managers.
Hobby Lobby does NOT follow their own company mission statement.
"We are committed to:
Honoring the Lord in all we do by operating the company in a manner consistent with Biblical principles.
Offering our customers exceptional selection and value.
Serving our employees and their families by establishing a work environment and company policies that build character, strengthen individuals, and nurture families.
Providing a return on the family’s investment, sharing the Lord’s blessings with our employees, and investing in our community."
I had researched the company a little and giving them the benefit of the doubt, I applied for a job at Hobby Lobby. I very much liked what Mr. Green wrote in his book, "More Than A Hobby", that enticed me to work for Hobby Lobby.
I have no doubt that when Mr. David
ProsNothing special
ConsMinimum wages is all they pay for Part Timers, no advancement.
I worked at hobby lobby for about 3 years. It was a good job until you realize that they have 90% busy work that doesn’t make a lot of sense at all to do. Preferences of store upkeep are based on the current district managers personal tastes and can change at the drop of a hat as soon as they’re replaced or move on. Once you become too self aware of the work you’re doing it’s game over. You’ll question the practicality of moving aisles up or condensing on a super busy Saturday etc. all which can easily land you in a bad standing with the management.
They teach you lots of safety rules of which none are abide by, and hardly ever taken seriously. Shoplifters are actually encouraged by the companies business practices and ridiculous placement of security cameras. Even if you see someone steal an item and you report it, they won’t do a single thing unless a member of management sees the individual pocket the product, and follows them around the store until they leave. And even then, they’re not allowed to apprehend them or accuse them without risk of being terminated. They send out a BOL at MOST to other stores and that’s that. Bottom line there is that you’re more likely to get in trouble/fired/scolded/written up.
The registers and inventory system are stuck in the dark ages. Nothing is scanned and all the prices are typed in by hand. You have to memorize what goes on sale by the ad signs that are switched out through the store each week. (Don’t even get me started o
Unexpected Job Responsibilities Beyond the Job Description at Hobby Lobby
My experience at Hobby Lobby took an unexpected turn as I found myself assigned job responsibilities that were not outlined in the initial job description. While the company has its merits, this deviation from the agreed-upon scope of work posed challenges and created some frustration.
When I first joined Hobby Lobby, I was enthusiastic about the specific job description and the role I was hired for. However, as time went on, I began to realize that there were additional tasks and responsibilities expected of me that were not initially mentioned or discussed during the hiring process. This lack of transparency led to a sense of imbalance between the expectations set and the actual workload.
The added job responsibilities often fell outside my expertise or comfort zone, making it challenging to perform them effectively. Without proper training or guidance, I struggled to meet the expectations for these new tasks. This situation caused unnecessary stress and impacted my overall job satisfaction.
Furthermore, the additional responsibilities often came with increased workload and time constraints. Balancing the original job responsibilities with the new tasks became overwhelming, leading to longer work hours and potential burnout. The lack of adequate support or resources to handle the added workload made the situation even more challenging.
It is crucial for companies to provide employees with a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities from the beginning. This
I worked for the company for several years, only recently got full time and only because I changed locations. During hectic times, like holidays and inventory, managers tend to make their own plans but then expect you to make plans so you know what you're doing during the day, but then ignore the plans you've made and ignore the plans that THEY made, causing extra work by refusing to get other opinions. Also all co-managers are brought in from outside companies many of the ones I've met have been from like a Walmart, almost never from within the company and usually are made into store managers after about a year, especially in 2019 when the company built I think close to 100 stores within the year but couldn't give any store level employees a pay raise.
The company has gotten significantly cheaper in product quality and store supplies over the years. Stores are generally understaffed, especially outside of the holidays. And the company's cheapness has really shown during covid because the company's "preparation " includes using vinyl from the fabric department to section off the break room and refusing to use actual acrylic barriers at the registers and service counters like most other stores do. There's only been one raise in the last four years. The shirts that most employees are required to wear are entirely polyester and don't breathe, very cheaply made, very cheap quality and alternative options like aprons are entirely up to managers discretion at that store.
If part-t
Working at HL (Hobby Lobby) as part-time while going through college was nice. At the time, they paid better than other retailer stores nearby. Their shifts were shorter than most (except holidays) and my store manager was very flexible to work me in the schedule.
Typical shifts at HL were from 9am to 3pm and 3pm to 8pm (or later to finish up the store). Truck days are basically mandatory. During the interview process, you should ask what day the store has truck day (different at every store).
Sadly, every store is not treated equally. The store I worked at required us to hand price 85% of products and manually punch products under a particular department on the register. We had only hand scanners (rarely used hand scanner) and no check verification machines. Although, when we ordered products for the store, we did everything on iPads. I was told by one of my assistant managers that there were stores still putting orders in by paper.
One other thing that is not brought up is inventory day. Inventory day happens once a year on a Sunday. Typically all full-time employees are scheduled and some additional part-timers. You come in to count and/or weigh products in the store to mark down on sheets. This process takes all day, so your shift will be between 8-12 hours.
After I graduated from college, I had a rare opportunity to become full-time, so I took the pay increase, longer hours, not-so-great health/dental insurance, and the additional duties for about 6 months. Keep in m
ProsPTO (full-time only), health/dental insurance (full-time only), decent pay by hour especially as full-time, learning new things every day, occasionally left early after closing due to slow business, celebrated holidays/birthdays/special events, yearly holiday bonus check (full-time only), flexible schedule especially as part-time, some paid holidays (full-time only), purchased products through iPads
ConsNot much opportunity for job advancement, mediocre health/dental yet no vision insurance (full-time only), no insurance or PTO as part-time, no yearly performance evulation for pay increase, there is no separation between PTO and sick leave (full-time only), inventory day, expected to remember weekly sales ads, high expectation on accuracy and speed while on the register
A typical day varied as you have to know all aspects as a full-time employee, from register, to fabric table, cutting fabric, pricing fabric, knowing what is and isn't on sale, typically working 5-6 days a week, off on Sunday's as the store is closed Sunday's. Store department test, where the district manager comes in once a month and checks each department form 3-5 random items that you're responsible for having. If not it can result in a write-up if constantly out of items it can result in termination again mainly for full-time employees who are department leads. Registers are dated. Patterns from the sewing department and reciepts for returns are the only things scanned everything else is manually entered in the register and rung up under the appropriate department that you're responsible for knowing. Random District Manager pop-up's are not fun. You're to have you vest on at all times. Trucks are unloaded by most employees on the shift, sometimes management helps, sometimes they don't. Customers will argue that things are on sale or not on sale, it is your responsibilty to know or have a idea of what is on sale and not on sale as sales change weekly. 30 minute lunches. Store zoning is key, a very big deal, most nights you will not leave until all merchandise from returns, put backs etc are put away in the appropriate home. Relays happen in every department year round, you're given set hours to complete relays, sometimes it takes longer than given sometimes it doesn't. Cu
ProsFamily like experience, opportunity to learn various departments
ConsManagment does not take responsibilty for anything unless its positive, peak season is mandatory hours 50+ a week, not optional. Favortism is played, no real seniority if management likes you they will work with you.
I was a General Manager for Hobby Lobby for almost fifteen years giving me a broad view of company operations rather than a limited snapshot. The financial strength of the company offers a career security that is rare in retail these days. Although the religious beliefs of those who own Hobby Lobby has been well known all along, I have personally never experienced or seen any litmus test of such sort or been made to feel uncomfortable relating to those beliefs. The biblical principles which the company touts as crucial to the success which it has enjoyed are universal and are just as closely associated to basic human relations skills. These principles requires management to carry themselves with integrity regarding all of their words, actions and interactions which empowers others and encourages them to “pay it forward”. The standards the company holds regarding store operations are very high but are in direct proportion to the contribution they make towards the continual success of the company. These expectations are challenging at best and overwhelming at worst given payroll considerations but most importantly reachable through belief in the self that you sold at the beginning and a steadfast belief in your team. Managers are compensated well for being accountable in these areas and the complete package as a whole represents itself very well within the retail industry. The success enjoyed at the store level would not have been possible if the support team at corporate had
Questions And Answers about Hobby Lobby
What is the best part of working at the company?
Asked Nov 23, 2019
Definitely my coworkers. They are all awesome.
Answered Mar 12, 2023
Not working on Sunday
15% discount
Answered Jul 2, 2022
What is the vacation policy like at Hobby Lobby? How many vacation days do you get per year?
Asked Mar 13, 2018
Depending on length of time worked
6mo.- 1week
1 year- 2 weeks
5years- 3 weeks
10 years- 4 weeks
Answered Jun 8, 2023
Good luck getting the holidays off.
Answered Jun 5, 2023
How often do you get a raise at Hobby Lobby?
Asked Mar 14, 2021
Been working for 15 months for same rate of pay, no raise
Answered Feb 7, 2023
Rarely
Answered Aug 10, 2022
How often do raises occur at Hobby Lobby?
Asked Jan 29, 2018
2+ years
Answered Jun 8, 2023
Yearly if management
Answered Jun 4, 2023
If you were in charge, what would you do to make Hobby Lobby a better place to work?
Asked Aug 28, 2018
Give your employees medical benefits. How can you call yourself a christian company and neglect your employees by not giving them simple eyecare, short term disability, and not making them pay an arm and a leg for medical care.
Answered Oct 23, 2022
Give the Cashiers the option to work every other weekend instead of every weekend. Bring in normal registers with scanners that you can scan items instead making everyone type prices in, it would speed up the check out process & people wouldn't complain as much able the long lines. Do not make employees feel like they aren't allowed to have a life outside of the job. Also do not make employees feel bad for calling in sick especially if they are literally sick & not faking it. If you live in the part of the country that tends to have blizzards & snowstorms, close the stores when visibility & road condition aren't ideal whether the employees live near by or far away.
