It’s been ages since I’ve posted. Finally decided that I would just start with an update on where I’ve come & gone from over the past few years and jobs. I think I was most active when I was working for Charlotte Russe a few years back, I’d say 2016, maybe? Then there was an unfortunate closing of the brand, and I found myself in an odd limbo. I reached out to a connection to find out there was an opening as a visual merchandiser at a F21 that was exactly my pace and skill level. Unfortunately, I didn’t stick there long, as I didn’t feel like a piece of the puzzle.
I then found myself being willing to take up roles as an associate once again. I bounced between being part-time between Bath and Body Works, and oddly (for me, anyway): shoes at Macy’s. I quickly moved from part-time at Macy’s to full-time, and stopped bouncing between jobs. About a year and a half down the road, Covid shutdown happened, and everything went wonky quickly. Role restructure, pay changes, product diminishment due to production halts, etc… things all retailers were dealing with, but for whatever reason: I felt stuck alone and helpless.
So, I went to the BA at the time, and voiced that I was falling behind in life. “My commission had been cut, I couldn’t survive on the pay I was given, and I was literally going bankrupt. “ is a condensed version of that painfully emotional conversation.
She suggested a new role.
She helped me get the pay I needed to survive.
I was background cleared and moved to Jewelry.
I’ve been in jewelry since. I’ve grown a deep love and passion for respecting the product, and helping customers understand ~caring~ for product. My entire life is now consumed with the word “care”.
I Care. I care that my customers are happy. I care that the product is well-presented, protected, and respected.
I care that the operational procedures are being done because it affects the bottom-line and product selection. I care to take time and merge customer desires with the standards and layout requests I’ve been given.
These are traits I carried with me from job # 1 because I watched a store manager who cared turn a fast fashion location in Barboursville, West Virginia into a top 10 store for its company.
When I started in jewelry 3 years ago, the department was sitting on YEARS of damages, and what came across as total disregard for value maximization in the product layout.
This past year we defied odds and had a roughly 12% lift in sales as the company trended down.
The team we’ve grown into now CARES.
A regular client of the store stopped in this afternoon & commented to me that she “doesn’t see anyone else care about the job” like me. My coworker, unprovoked, agreed and added that I “set the pace.”
I’d been battling a struggle with asking myself why I care…because a superior has been causing me question it. That customer reminded me that people notice when you “don’t care 🤷🏼♂️.” #care #drive #improve #seethedifference #settingthestandard
