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For a lot of shoppers, going to a designer shop would seem like a luxury experience. Aisles of clothes stacked in neat piles, colorfully coordinated, while friendly staff members wait nearby to lend a hand – all creating a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.
But underneath the surface, a lot of organizing goes on to ensure customers have the best experience, and for the shop to make the most sales. That means running a tight ship, and strict rules are in place for staff.
At one designer shop in the West Midlands, staff members need ‘permission to go to the toilet’. They are required to ‘memorize products on sale before their shift starts’.
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A staff member, who wished to remain anonymous, and works at a designer store part-time, said: “You have to be there 15 minutes early and, in that time, you have to log on to an app where you are quizzed about the company’s products. But you are not paid for that time.
“And if you don’t complete this, you are put on a list where it is considered non-participant and the managers will get on to you.” The shop-worker only works part time, around five to six hours, per shift, meaning she doesn’t get a break.
“I don’t meet the threshold for a break so I have to take drinkable yoghurts and small snacks to keep me going, as you are continuously on the shop floor,” she said. “I don’t like the fact that you have to ask to go to the toilet. I just think it is a basic human right.”
The shop worker said the majority of employees are aged between 16 and 20. “It is run like a militarily camp,” she said.
“It is run really strict, and the management want you to feel worried (about your job),” she said. However she said managers are helpful when it comes to “rude customers”.
The shop worker said restrictions are in place on how many customers can be in the store at one time, which can infuriate some, especially during weekends when it can be “really busy”. “If customers become aggressive, management will come over straight away and diffuse the situation, handling it themselves.”
But while she said managers are strict, and a lot of employees “did not have a good relationship with them”, she felt managers could also be “very fair” if the work was done well.
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