Wondering through the mall one day, I decided to try and get hired at Victoria's Secret so I could quit my old yogurt shop job. I walked in, asked the first employee I saw if they were hiring. She said yes, as it was just a couple of weeks prior to their Semi Annual Sale. I then asked if it was difficult to get a job there, not wanting to waste my time. She assured me that it was not, and then went on to say that their hiring process is very much based on image and how you carry yourself, telling me that I had "the look."
So I went to the cash wrap to ask for an application, filled it out right outside the store, and brought it back. I happened to hand it in to one of the managers, and she gave my application a quick skim right then and there, and told me they would be in touch.
A week and a half later, I received a call for a group interview. I wore casual black pants from Gap, a sheer and slouchy black tee shirt, a black blazer, and black closed toe heels. They require an all black dress code, so I thought I'd try to blend in as much as possible. I also wore barely there red lips with my hair pulled back.
I was shown into a back room where every other candidate was already seated, waiting for the hiring managers to come in. I immediately chastised myself for not getting there earlier, but none of the managers seemed to notice.
We all sat around a large table while the three hiring managers asked questions. It was fairly casual, with each person speaking whenever they wanted to, or raising their hand when appropriate. I was seated closest to the managers, so I made sure to have great posture and eye contact, while listening intently to the other candidates while they spoke. With each question, I never answered first, always second or somewhere in the middle.
They asked questions like, "When have you had to deal with a difficult problem at work, and what did you do to solve it?" and "What does great customer service mean to you?" among other customer service and sales related questions. They just wanted to know that we could interact efficiently while maintaining friendliness with customers, and that we understood the "Very Sexy" brand, which is what they constantly push.
The managers seemed to like my answers, even though I was one of the only people there without retail experience. I was also the only one who shook each managers hand and thanked them at the end of the interview. They seemed impressed, and I felt confident.
I received a call the next day because one of the professional references I had listed didn't answer, and I had to provide another one on the spot. So be warned, they DO check references. That's very vital to the hiring process.
I received another call about four days later offering a seasonal position at $9/hr, I accepted, and then I was told when to come in for orientation.