Pros
Gained valuable new skills and a strong sense of discipline
Developed resilience and customer service experience
Cons
There is a fundamental disconnect between upper management and the operational reality at store level. Senior leadership demonstrates a persistent lack of understanding of the shopping centre environment, customer behaviour, and footfall patterns. Instead of investing time to assess these factors, pressure is consistently pushed downward onto sales staff to meet unrealistic and, at times, arbitrary targets.
Employees are frequently required to stand for entire shifts, often for hours at a time with little to no customer interaction. This creates an extremely demoralising and mentally exhausting work environment. Rather than acknowledging these conditions, management responds by continuously increasing sales targets—sometimes to multiples of their previous levels—and then criticising staff for failing to meet them. This approach is not only ineffective but actively damaging to morale, motivation, and overall team performance.
Store visits from higher management add little value. Repeated, performative comments such as highlighting poor monthly performance or demanding that staff “be hungrier” or “fight the competition” fail to address the root causes of underperformance. These remarks come across as tone-deaf and dismissive, particularly when the core issue—lack of customer traffic and brand confusion—is ignored. Many potential customers mistakenly associate the store with unrelated brands, yet no meaningful strategic action is taken to resolve this.
Operational decisions further reflect poor judgment. Staff are routinely sent on breaks early in anticipation of increased footfall that never materialises, leaving employees to return to prolonged periods of inactivity. This reinforces the sense of disorganisation and lack of awareness from management.
Compensation is another significant concern. Employees are expected to sell high-value items, often ranging between £5,000 and £20,000, yet are paid close to minimum wage. The financial reality is stark: individuals in their mid-20s to mid-30s are earning wages that make it extremely difficult to achieve basic life milestones such as renting independently, starting a family, or purchasing a home in the UK.
The commission structure is particularly discouraging. Commission is conditional upon both individual and store-wide targets being met, which are often unrealistic. Even when achieved, the reward is minimal—approximately 1%. For example, generating £2,000 in sales may result in as little as £20, or even less depending on store performance. This disproportionately low return for high-value sales is demotivating and does not reflect the effort required.
Career progression is also крайне limited. There are employees who have remained in the same role for over four years without promotion or meaningful development opportunities, indicating a lack of investment in staff growth.
Additionally, workplace policies are excessively restrictive. Employees are not permitted to have access to their phones during shifts and are required to lock them away entirely. This is enforced strictly, regardless of circumstances. Combined with the expectation to remain standing at all times—even in the absence of customers—this creates an unnecessarily rigid and uncomfortable working environment.
Overall, the combination of unrealistic expectations, low pay, lack of progression, and poor management practices results in a workplace culture that is unsustainable and deeply frustrating for employees.