retail store manager

assistant buyer

retail assistant manager

asset allocation research analyst

retail manager

YM inc

Working at YM Inc sounded promising however after experiencing the actual day to day I would unfortunately have to discourage anyone from working with this company. Pay is cheap, workload is high and overall attitude towards employees is "replaceable". I've only met two good district managers, the rest were unprofessional. Regional managers and their superiors understand the fundamental issues with this company however do not make a push to change for the better. This company expects loyalty for nothing in return. There are better opportunities elsewhere. 

The company's response to COVID-19 was unfair for the store level employees as they had kept the doors open until the very last day. On the last day notice was given to employees that they would be laid off WITHOUT 2 WEEKS PAY. They were left on their own to lock the doors and get out. The only direction given from head office was to ensure the deposits were brought to the bank.

Flash forward to today the bare minimum requirements can be seen in their stores (hand sanitizer, makeshift visors) however no real PPE was given to staff. Hazard pay is non existent - all store level employees are minimum wage. 

Worklife balance: As a salaried employee myself I was never limited to a "5 day work week" however was expected to be on call even on days off. It was not uncommon for others to bring their phones on vacation to deal with work. After calculating my base salary + bonuses divided by the actual amount of hours worked it came out to $12.90 / hr on average. I was quite above minimum wage.

Salary: Base salary is below industry standard. Store level employees are minimum wage (exceptions for store managers who make a bonus on very high sales targets), DMs have opportunity to make an average salary with bonuses (~60k) however due to this structure enormous pressure is put on stores to make money. As a result of focusing on sales figures ("plan") welfare of employees is consistently disregarded. I almost forgot about raises and it turns out they did too. 

Scheduling: Stores have a set amount of hours allowed to them per week which are cut drastically very often. Employees rarely get full hours and if they do it is usually as a result of nepotism. Nobody can live on sub 20 hours a week at $15/hr. Most stores will only have 2-3 people working at a time if lucky with a schedule of 15+ staff. This puts an unmanageable workload on the employees.

Nepotism: From store managers threatening to kill themselves in-front of staff and customers, drug abuse, stealing, yelling, swearing, and kicking objects at staff - this is the reality of who the DMs have hired and KEEP to represent the stores. Keep in mind most store level staff are underage.

Benefits: Basic for salaried employees.

Vacation: 2 weeks NOT PAID. Must be banked first before the company will pay. Industry standard anywhere else is 2 weeks paid upfront regardless of banking or not. Realistically in today's world 3 weeks is bare minimum. Furthermore vacation cannot be carried over to the next year.

Sick days: 1/2 day accrued per MONTH worked. Absolutely ridiculous. 5 sick days minimum per year without it having to be "banked" is standard. 

Job advancement: Non existent and would not recommend fast fashion retail as a place to obtain a career. There are those few who have been at YM for 10+ years which is a feat of endurance.

Head office: Disorganized with high turnover. Makes getting things done in the field futile when there is no support. Several lawsuits for wrongful termination on-going.

Don't work here if you're looking for a job. EI pays more.

I worked there for around a year now and the job itself is pretty easy and straightforward. I usually have a lot of fun there but... 
There's possibilities for advancement that comes fairly quickly if you already have work experience since most workers are very young. However, the hours varies from week to week, for example I used to do 30 hours a week during the summer and in autumn I sometimes had 5 hours a week. So if you have an apartment or anything that needs a stable income, I do not recommend working there. 
I did two location and in one we were sometimes refused lunch hour. and twice in the months there, I worked a 10 hours shift without a pause, when I complained she told me it was usual (ps. It's not). They 100% do not respect the breaks and lunch time you are suppose to have so good luck with that.
The chain of command is sometimes weird and I have found that some bosses have a real problem with respecting their employee. In a year and in many times seeing him the 'big' boss (not my direct manager but the one over her) has never answered any of my hello's or smile.
It is crowded (obviously) during Christmas and the back to school time so these are harder times to do but the hours are better. 
I recommend working there if you have limited time to work (so as someone in school) but apart from those wanting to advance high in the company, it is not a job one usually stay at for long.
I ended up with a good manager but I heard horror stories from workers in different location so I wouldn't hesitate to leave if it comes to it. 

I was responsible for the visual presentation of 25 stores, as Visual Manager of Western Canada.  
Duties included, analyzing the region’s sales, and merchandising strategies.
Set up an action plan to elevate company standards, by managing and implementing company directives.
Working with the operations team to increase sales and create an excellent environment for both customers and staff.
As the region’s Visual Manager, I trained associates including, Managers, District Managers, Regional Managers and Visual Merchandisers, with the tools and skills to be more efficient in the stores visual presentation and readiness.
Responsible for recruiting qualified associates to fulfill current and future positions in visual presentation, train colour stories, lighting and product placement. As well as conduct seasonal audits while reviewing productivity and making adjustments.
Responsible for leading the region, by coaching teams to increase a high level of capacity and to maintain a high volume of merchandise.
Implement team building and succession plans by training and developing the Visual Merchandising team with on-going workshops throughout the region.
Lead over 20 store openings across Canada –including overall space planning, product placement, windows and lighting, as well as train store management with expert advice regarding merchandising standards and store maintenance.

This company is actually horrible. The employees are disposable and the way they leverage the bonuses for the district managers etc negates any of the needs of the employees on the ground floor. There are no reviews for employees even though they are promised. The DMs/GMs are a unprofessional and continually make work dramatic. I would NEVER work for this company again. They are ignoring employee labour laws, and pay their workers very little. There have been multiple complaints in our mall about how they run multiple locations. They do not care about who works for them, retaining the talent or encouraging growth. This is a dead end job unless they happen to actually promote someone into an upper management position in the corporate office. Our staff was amazing, and all have left and are working for other places that value their input and work. They have lost so much talent to other retailers (thank you for that) just sad to see such a giant company treating the people that make them their money the worst. If you want a future in  retail or sales go start anywhere else. Get trained properly and don't invest your time in a place that treats you like you are disposable.

Don't bother with ignorant individuals that this company is filled with.

Overhired employees to help open the new store and help organize products, but "had to let them go" after a month not because it's legal, but because it wasn't in budget and they weren't understanding that hiring and just letting people go has a greater impact on the livelihood on the full-time employees.

Urban Behaviour/Planet over MGMT culture is toxic, and does not know how to actually onboard new employees while opening/managing a new store. I wasn't paid correctly since day one of opening, communication is broken among managers unless you have their direct #, and even when repeating to correct your pay cheque they'll still forget to adjust even after mentioning that you have a mortgage and responsibilities. 
Typical training, but they assume that everything was taught when they haven't. As a Manager in Training/Store Administrator 14.50 is given, or apparently 14 for myself as an administrator. 

Would not recommend this company as a whole even the District Manager speaks more than he can selfishly chews. While I was asking what my pay is he rudely said, "$14...is that too much *insert a laugh*".

The hours are very long and breaks are not guaranteed. The pay is very low for such a profitable company. The HR department is a joke especially the VP. The company is all about making money and saving face. Issues were not resolved, upper level management do not care about employees. You are expected to be a robot. The environment is toxic and employees are greatly unappreciated. The job and the tasks itself are fine. Although I didnt receive proper training I learned the job very quickly and was able to problem solve and understand how to smoothly operate throughout my tasks. Training was awful. The person who trained me was 2-4 hrs late everyday and I was left to learn the job on my own, not having proper working knowledge with also no access to the network due to not receiving all proper tools that were supposed to be provided by HR. Biases and personal feelings are used against employees in this company as well. I treated everyone that I came across with the utmost respect, greeted and smiled and was told that I behaved opposite. This is a cheap company that I would liken to slavery if you are not upper management or a higher level executive.

I worked at YM Inc (Stitches, Urban Planet) a few times over my teen years and had a variety of roles. While I recognize it's a decent starter job for a teen if you are any older than that I strongly recommend you look elsewhere. Management on the store and regional level is abusive and tend to use scare tactics. It is hard to know if you are ever doing the right thing and you will be treated harshly for any mistakes. The company almost expects you to read the minds of those at head office. Expect conflicting directives, excess workload, and extreme stress at any position above part time sales associate. I often saw assistant managers and managers staying late (multiple times per week) unpaid in order to desperately try and keep up with the demand and when I was promoted I ended up doing the exact same thing. Instead of hiring staff they trust and paying them accordingly they rely on a revolving door of young staff and managers who are willing to accept the abuse. I often went home confused and in tears. Stores are large and keeping them up is almost impossible. Expect to spend most of your time cleaning and all of your time standing. Don't expect anyone to ever say thank you.

*Political environment especially in management and that caused unfair in between departments.
*Other department like accounting dept has adjusted/promo salary every single year, but the department I worked didn't. Other than that, we only got the gift card for the bonus but other departments got payment...
*Here is an example of my work life there. I needed to generate the shipment reports from AS400 when the warehouse finished picking the shipped items. Everytime I only had less than three hours to get the report and work on the export document, and on the other side, the forwarder in Florida had deliveried the goods to terminal and tracing me the paperwork in every second... There were 3-4 shipments per week, and other than this exports, I had handled the daily truck and ocean shipments as well... One time I worked on this doucment until 3pm then had my lunch... nobody care how hard I worked there and no one came to ask why I ate so late... Should I say that is a kind of flexible work hour to extend the lunch break :)



Get ready to work for free, be set up to fail and gain zero recognition. Upper management is a complete boys club so if you’re a woman don’t plan on advancement. Labor board violations happen daily and they constantly take advantage of those who don’t know any better. Store managers often have no idea what they are doing, have zero skills and constantly disobey basic labor laws due to lack of training. The HR department seems to be no better so no example is set for them anyway. Managers seem to be just chasing employees for signatures on office memos rather than having time to do their job. Upper management constantly talks down to managers and treats them like utter dirt, and expects them to work non-stop. The company could have potential if they’d invest in their own people by treating them and paying them well but instead play boys club and get nothing real accomplished. Shining stars are dulled in order to keep themselves in power. If only the owner knew what kind of culture they were creating and the money of his they were wasting and how much talent they’ve turned away.

wont be able to speak for the whole company but all locations in metrotown under YMINC is a joke. first: you have a workplace that is very hostile and highschool-ish environment, just overall not great for growth. second: depending on who your DM and SM is, but most likely unless you can speak up for yourself and you are "tight" with any of the management then you're basically replaceable and useless to them regardless of how good and how much effort you put in the work. third: this might be the cheapest COMPANY ever, again might be Wrong, just depending on who your DM and or SM is, they basically pay minimum and will take advantage of that unless you speak up. lastly, customer's treatment to employee's is like no other (in a terrible way) .cause the brand is known for being a low end, messy, market like environment and no class workers. people come in there to basically mess up the whole place, get mad at you for not giving them discounts on "dirty" items (usually customers fault too)

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Retail store manager 15 salaries reported	$20.48 per hour
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