assistant store manager

store manager

sales associate

district sales manager

Spencers

My part time hours got cut dramatically after the manger told me on many occasion I would be getting promoted. Manager would often call me "boss" as I have great organization, prioritizing, communication, product knowledge, walk through cleaning skills, and overall mature presence. I was the go to person for mostly everything that didn't require manager codes. The manager even went as far as starting to schedule times we could start training for my promotion. Shortly after that, the manager brought their friend as the assistant manager. My hours got cut back from almost full time hours (34-40 hour weeks) to one half shift a week. The manager bullied me out of the store, forcing me to quit (because they had no reason to fire me.) I wasn't the only person bullied out of that specific store either. I seen it once before myself. Spencer's felt like high school with all this drama. I didn't fit into the clique when I was hired on, but I was never hated. If the manager knew the possibilities of hiring someone instead of promoting me, the manager should have never mentioned the promotion to me over the course of 2 months we had been talking and training. I'm aware what the Spencer's brand is, however, there still needs to be professional standards and practices. Once the management team and some coworkers started talking poorly behind my back and to my face I had to quit. I wasn't going to let those people walk all over me by giving me non-constructive criticism that had no relation to my job.

Deal with customers at the till and on the floor, making sure their needs are met and their questions are answered to the best of my ability. The store sells intimate toys, intimate apparel, jewelry, hats, t-shirts that are all licensed. Often a bit behind when it comes to bringing in merchandise from big trends when fidget spinners were popular they were not received till the end of the fad. Do not expect any type of hours that you could remotely live off of unless you're at least a supervisor and even then the pay increase isn't worth all the extra responsibilities that the position requires compared to a sales associate. Sales associates will get maybe one or two shifts a week for most of the year outside of November and December and they won't keep it consistent unless you tell them that you have another job. The relationships are usually very amicable between employees of all ranks and those who don't mesh well don't last long. I have worked here 2.5 years and have not received a raise because they no longer provide raises for minimum wage or near minimum wage employees. They claim they want less employee turn around but they do virtually nothing to keep current employees by providing enough hours as all the budget for hours is used on supervisor positions. despite this, it is a fun place to work if you're looking for a little extra cash but not to pay any serious bills.

The company itself is supportive but it can take weeks for HR to get back to you if you’re not persistent. If you move up from sales associate you’re going to be paid essentially the same because minimum wage in ON got raised but no one else’s wages did so you’ll be doing 3x the work for almost the same wage as an associate. You will be called in on every day off and god forbid you need time off. If you ask specifically “please do not call me in on this day” they will still call you in. 
The company is inclusive and I found majority of my team was super inclusive and great to work with, however when it came to disabilities a lot was to be desired. Accommodations request with a doctors note were straight up denied and evaluations attacked my abilities because of being disabled. 
My management team was great until we lost 4 supervisors in less than a year. When I was the last one I was the scape goat and was pushed out of the company by creating an environment so toxic I couldn’t return. I reported issues to corporate but despite their support no change was ever seen and no issues were ever addressed again. 
I’d recommend working here as an associate but if you want to become supervisor, assistant manager, or manager, you should think twice. 

Best job I’ve ever had! But still has its faults. 

The  customers are by far the worst part of the job. Much like any customer service job. But due to the nature of some of our products some guests think it’s okay to be inappropriate and vulgar to staff. On top of that we deal with a lot of theft and some very questionable folks. I truly feel like we aren’t paid enough to deal with this kind of harassment. 

The hours the company gives each store is very low for the amount of staff they expect each location to hire. The only employee that makes full time hours is the store manager. Nobody else will likely hit more that 35 hours a week. Seasonal hires often only get 4-8 hours a week.

The team is incredible, it’s a great place to work with like minded individuals. Very accepting of LGBTq+ folks as well has those of us that struggle with our mental health.  If you’re looking for coworkers to become life longs friends this is the place. 


District management is also pretty great. Understanding and easy to talk too. 

Benefits for store management is pretty decent.

Overall a fun place to work if you can handle the customers and are okay with working less than 40 hours a week.



I'm still waiting on benefits which were promised more than a year ago with my last promotion, the company always says they work for you and the stores not the company as a whole but they're always talking behind your back. I'm hearing from my staff that some of my superiors want to fire me but when I talk to them they say they are trying to make this a place I would want to stay, if the right team is assembled this can be one of the best jobs out there, relaxed work environment, fun people, full of jokes and fun times, the company doesn't seem to know how to run itself, a lot of the product has swearing yet we aren't allowed to swear ourselves? How are we supposed to sell things when we can even read them out to the guests. Mandatory pocket checks are great to try and help reduce theft but they go against some of the companies basic rules when it comes to the harassment rules and regulations we are taught within the first week of working here. The company takes anyone who actually likes working for them for granted and abuses the fact that they like working here. If management doesn't like you you can forget about going anywhere in this company

Working at Spencers Gifts is a joy. Between tasking and serving customers, there really isn't any reason you should be bored. Considering this has been my first job in retail, I've learned just about everything I'd have to know going into any other retail job.
Management at Spencers is dedicated to getting things done right. Though can be unreasonably snappy at times, all was in good reason and for the sake of the store.
The Co-Workers all come in the same. Shy at first and a little quiet for the upbeat energy of the store. But after maybe a week or two, they learn to be as outgoing and as helpful as they can. Really putting in 100% of their effort!
I'd say the hardest part of the job is the same as any other retailer; Christmas season. Through the hustle and bustle of the busy times, there have been plenty moments where we wouldn't have time to catch our breaths. But the most enjoyable part of the job would definitely have to be being part of the Spencers team. My co-workers and management team have been the most lovable people I could've ever met in any workplace environment.

The only upside when I worked there was a lot of the customers were people I could get along with easily. The pay wasn't worth it for the amount of hours I was made to work, had to work 60 hours a week just to afford bills, rent and gas, even after being promoted I wasn't given a raise, the only raise I was given happened when minimum wage went up and they were required. The upper management heavily played favourites, I watched one of my co-workers, who worked more hours than I had, be passed up for a promotion because they thought someone from another store, who from experience working with, didn't do their job 90% of the time. My coworker quit after that and the new person they brought in left not long after. The expectations at the time were too high, a rule in the company policy is no swearing however 50%-75% of the product says those exact things, so you're expected to sell things without being able to talk about them, and can, depending on who you're working with, get in trouble for saying those words while talking to customers.

I was always asked to work late yet I was asked to clock out at closing time. The managers had zero communication amongst each other and we're always telling you to do one thing when the other one told you not to. I was constantly promised a promotion, three times I was promised and then they just gave it to somebody outside the company. Everyone constantly talks behind each other's back and I was even penalized over a rumour that somebody heard that I did not like them ... I then went from a full-time employee to not getting any shifts for 2 weeks! There were lots of crude comments from the males, including managers. The way we are forced to stand and directly stare at people to make sure they aren't stealing is ridiculous especially when we're not even allowed to do anything about it if we did witness something. This is all I can think of for now but I'm sure I'll remember more to add later...

What is the best part of working at the company?
The amazing community withen the workplace, helping eachother when needed and managment is amazing , you feel accepted and they care about your strengths and qeaknesses in a very good way.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Sometimes it getting busy can be hard, you can feel quite stuffy in the normally smaller stores.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Fun , caring and like you can laugh at any moment, joke about things and still maintain that buisiness like workplace. you can lose track of time in shifts because of how relaxed and easy it feels at times.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Coming into work being greeted by everyone on shift with you, you get on the floor and do your party plan and are instantly in action. You can make small talk at times and it's your 10 in no time. You eat your snack or scroll and then are back out there. Shifts always feel fast, even the long stock days or slow customer days.

Typical day would consist of me stocking shelves, making sure that whatever in the back was on the floor. I worked cash when asked. I also helped customers when they were in need of assistance. Even if they were just browsing I always went out of my to make sure that they were doing alright. I learned to be more confident in talking to people, that definitely expanded my social skills. Management was decent. Our managers are quite young. It was nice in the sense that I could relate to them work wise and personally though they dont quite know exactly how to run a business. There has only been one conflict between the Store Manager and I, but it was quite the conflict. It could have been easily prevented if the manager knew more about how to do her job. The hardest part was making sure that we got everything done on time. Some people would slack off, including myself in some areas. But we manage. My favourite part is working with my co-workers. They're all very nice, and never once had I had a problem with them.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Assistant store manager 208 salaries reported	$19.86 per hour
Store manager 109 salaries reported	$23.83 per hour
Sales associate 101 salaries reported	$16.84 per hour
District sales manager 21 salaries reported	$1,101 per week

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