sales associate

department manager

asset protection agent

counter manager

cosmetics manager

Nordstrom

So lets start in the interview. Brand new store, brand new staff, everyone is excited...
I ask two important (to me) questions. Will I be guaranteed 40 hours a week? And is there a dress code?
I was told yes, absolutely you will be get 40 hours a week and the only rule for dress is that its professional. 
Perfect. I quit two amazing jobs thinking that I could climb the ranks at Nordstrom. 
During training (which took a month) we set up the store while learning about the policies and procedures. Any questions that our department managers didn't know usually came back with two or three different answers...depending on who you asked. Plus because they really didn't know what we should be doing between lessons we were often left to our own devices, then reprimanded for not keeping busy...even though we didn't know what to do.
So after we opened the store and got into the swing of things I look at my schedule to see I only have 28 hours a week. That's what they consider full time. And I get scolded for wearing sandals. Only certain departments are allowed to wear sandals...good thing there's no dress code right?
Then all my co workers turn into enemies because we're all fighting for customers and commission. Managers are encouraging their staff to go in other departments and poach customers. We can't keep important supplies at our cash because they would rather the cash wrap look nice and have me take 5 minutes to go get a gift box from the back room on the other side of the store. Then it's the 'look busy' rule. Meanwhile my department is spotless and there's no customers in the store. I'll just unfold and refold this scarf. 
So after allllll that. I decide to look for another job. Leaving work angry every day wasn't worth it.  I found one, so I put in my two weeks notice with HR. Because of their open door honest policy I thought I should tell the real reason why I'm leaving. I thought it was a horrible retail environment. After I hand in my sheet and go about my merry way I get called back to HR and brought in a little room. the HR director tried to ask me about why I don't like it there and I was honest and said I really didn't want to talk about it and my manager knows all the details anyway. She said 'Well since we don't know that you'll give Nordstrom quality service because you're unhappy here, today will have to be your last day' Meanwhile, I'm at the top of my department and have gotten many customer compliments about my service. I demanded she call my manager (who didnt even know this was happening) and because he knew the whole situation he fought for me. But I was so insulted I just left.  
Since I left I heard they have fired two managers, two assistant managers and at least 10 people have quit for similar reasons. 

If you can put on a fake attitude and take orders no matter how dumb they are and you don't need this money to live, this is the job for you. Don't let the free food and 'prizes' fool you. They want your soul.

Honestly it was an amazing experience being able to work closely with the brands I've always loved but the biggest downfall would have to be the stores management skills. 

If something were to occur they don't bother to speak to you in private, I've been yelled at in front of all my coworkers  over something as petty as having a drink on the sales floor despite my shift being over and I was on my way home. They have no regards for your personal life, they want you to be about Nordstrom quiet literally 24/7. 

As for the workplace culture, it seemed to be a friendly environment at first but as the time went on I felt like I was back in high school dealing with petty drama everyday. People were constantly arguing about stealing sales from one another while others would try and get someone fired because they claimed to have "stolen" their customer.

It seems like all I've said were just a bunch of bad experiences but that's honestly all I could remember after working there. Just about the only positive experience I can openly admit to having would be that I met my best friend there and gained the opportunity to travel to South Korea, a place I've always dreamed of going, but of course with that I had to quit working there because they weren't willing to give me the designated time I needed off for it... Yet somehow their managers always seemed to despair for months on end then magically returned and claimed they were "sick".

But don't let me cloud your judgement, maybe you'll end up having a better time than I did.

I quit a job I enjoyed due to promises about pay and moving up in the company during my interview. I quickly realized I was lied to and led on. I was treated like a child by being micromanaged every day and being talked to in a way that made me feel like I was about to be put in time out for not forcing customers to buy products they didn't want.

A typical day at work is being given a huge goal while the floor is overstaffed with no customers. If you start doing too well you'll be given tasks to not be paid commission and then made to feel like it's your fault for not having a decent pay. I went broke during this job. 

I learned to not agree to anything in a job without having written and signed proof of the job description. 

Employees are put down every single day. Me and many others had cried on breaks from being put down by management. They change the rules every day so you can get ''talks'' about dress code or policies you never knew about. The hardest part of the job was not quitting on the spot and having to hold my tongue while I was put down or while management would contradict themselves. They even touch your phone and look at the home screen if you have it in the back room. Don't let you talk or be friends with the other staff so there's no team-work. 

There's also no work/life balance. I would end at 11pm then have to come in some days at 7am. I was too exhausted to do anything on days off and would sometimes have to work 9-10 day stretches during sales working 9 hour days. 

I do not recommend working for this company.

A typical day at work would be coming in and checking updates (new stock/product, customer e-mails and following up), after that would be just focusing on selling and giving amazing service. 

At my time here at Nordstrom, I've learnt more about how business and service works comparative to being in business school. There's such an obtuse amount of skills to learn, especially when you make your own paychecks. The big thing I learnt was it's all about the connection and the relationship that is built when you meet a customer, you want them to come back to you because you connect with them on a different level and not just trying to sell to them. 

Management is a interesting thing here, it changed quite often as they promote within; So there's a lot o movement within the company every so month or two. Managers are generally very pushy when it comes to making sale goals but that just has to do with the nature of retail. Although, my experience with management has been for the most part positive here. They genuinely care and want you to succeed as much as possible, there are times were its not very consistent about their support.

The hardest part of my job is when working in commission its very unstable but also as much as I love working as a team there are people who will absolutely dislike you for being successful in sales. It makes it very hard to work with, but when you are successful, other successful people surround you with positivity and customer can see that and enjoy being around you and creating a relationship, that is what I enjoy the most.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The community. The customers. The company values are something i was proud to represent. My co-workers were also amazing. I could have seen myself working there a lifetime but unfortunately Nordstrom closed down Canada-wide.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
What some people might call stressful i saw as opportunities to overcome and learn from. The shift into the Christmas season was one of those times. A whole lot of new product with not much room to work with meant we had to get creative with the unloading and merchandising process.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Inclusive, dedicated to the customers and staff, and most of all fun with such friendly and memorable personalities working alongside me. Having a good time while working makes being productive come completely naturally. If were in a good mood, we can provide better service to our customers. We had such a good energy and i think the customers felt that and noticed it too.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Routine receiving and merchandising process consisted of receiving skids of product from the trailers at the dock. We prepared it for the floor and merchandised it. 
Cleaning and organizing displays. Hanging and folding clothes.
Maintaining a clean work environment.
We made sure all inventory count matched what we had in the system

Sales, Customer service. Solution oriented, merchandising, scheduling, hiring, training and development, shrinkage. Perfectly Bilingual French and English with 18 years experience in retail. Great communications skills, also a great listener. Flexible, organized, detailed oriented
Reliable, team player/ leader , self disciplined. Achieve and exceed goals. Proficient at
MS Office, Word, Outlook ADP payroll and Yardi management. Work with UPT/DPT
Evaluate employees performance, Ensure company standards are followed Reports and paperwork done in a timely matter. Loss prevention and inventory controls. Organize stockroom to standard and above and behond.
Work with little outside direction, driven, self motivated with a positive attitude..
Manage with creativity and style in very high level of customer service with 128 employees 
Understanding and coaching the steps and the procedures in order to exceed in retail selling.
Keeping up to date with the latest on the market, as well as what the competition offers. 
Budgeting. Adhering to policies and procedures. Reliable/dependable, work on a flexible schedule.
A keen business sense and have excellent negotiation skills. Organ I am proactive in solving problems and have an entrepreneurial spirit.

When I started working for the Nordstrom company back in August, they promised the world to us. We started with 800 employees all so excited to work for a company that believed in us. Slowly as the We are down to less than 300 now. Most of the good employees realized what the company was about. They were not going to make the money they said we were going to. Months passed and sales were coming in. Returns were rolling in as we were supposed to tell the customers "We have no return policy, you can bring it back for a full refund anytime" This affects your pay and the company wins by gaining the customer. The pay is terrible if you are trying to support yourself. You can work at McDonald's and make more money. Management steals your customers and they have a schedule with at least 6 different time slots. You cannot plan your life around that. Evening shifts you need to wait until the restaurant is empty before you can do your cash there are nights you will leave passed 11pm  Management promise you the moon just to keep you going but they are all empty promises. It's a lie, they don't promote within maybe 10% the rest is hired from outside. Find yourself another job where you don't expect empty promises and work for a  team of inexperienced managers.

Great place to work if you are looking for friends! I've meet a lot of people, the entire work place is a family environment The work is easy - Sell! However there are downsides,
Management can be condescending and unhelpful, they will push you to sell the most however at the same time over-staff the floor. Meaning you are fighting over 1 customer with 16 other department employees (point of view from jewelry department). This creates a hostel work environment. The return policy conflicts with your pay cheque much more then it would if you were to work elsewhere. 
It's fair to say at this job that is commission based.. you can not judge how you are as a sales person. They set you up to fail. I personally did in-between average sales to top sales per shift, I have had to struggle through fighting over that 1 customer during slow days and have huge returns on items that have been clearly worn. 
The company has lost many employees due to have too many people working at the same time. This is not a job you can live off of! It's a good time for part-time students I suppose, if you meet their part-time requirements.
Great benefits, all management once started as a sales person therefor they only promote within which is good if you have the patience and the money!

Typical day would include going through the back entrance to clock in and heading down to the sales floor. At that point my shift would begin and helping customers find what they are looking for in the jewelry department on a commission salary.

I learned a lot about having my first full time job. It was during my year gap in between high school and university so it taught me how to save money etc. I also learned a lot about jewelry which was actually quite interesting. 

Nordstrom had a heavy emphasis on promoting from within the company which was good because that means managers were once sales associates. This relationship was closer and therefore results on the sales floor were a lot better in my opinion.

Nordstrom prides itself on it's culture and making every customer as happy as they can be when they leave the store with or without a purchase.

As a guy the hardest part of my job was actually selling jewelry. I couldn't relate or give advice to women who were asking questions, however I tried my best to do so.

The most enjoyable part of my job was seeing the happy faces walk into the store ready to buy something or try it on and leaving happy with items from the store.

A typical day at Nordstrom included organizing the sales floor, including shoe racks, processing and reciving new merchandise and bringing it out to the floor, making connections by enrolling customers in the Nordy Club program and by interacting with coworkers to make the job smoother and more enjoyable. I actually still keep in touch with a few coworker friends I made there! Most everyone was very happy working there and some of my former coworkers have been recognized for their hard work and have received promotions! The hardest part of the job was honestly just navigating my way around the store itself, as it was the biggest place I've ever worked in to date. The most enjoyable aspect was making connections and being assured that I had a team to support me and whom I could support. That reassurance made the actual work easier and more enjoyable. I actually wouldn't believe how fast the day would go and would have a difficult time saying "goodbye" to my coworkers once I got to know them!

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Sales associate 9 salaries reported	$21.64 per hour
Department manager 4 salaries reported	$83,250 per year
Asset protection agent 16 salaries reported	$22.49 per hour
Counter manager 2 salaries reported	$22.29 per hour
Cosmetics manager 3 salaries reported	$23.13 per hour

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