Confessions of A Sales Associate
I have worked at The Gap now for about a year and a half. My shift yesterday was from one o'clock in the afternoon until nine-thirty at night. We had a crazy sale going on for the weekend and it was completely chaos. It was practically Black Friday in the mall.
To be honest, it is completely illogical for me to work there: I live about forty minutes away from the mall, I get paid minimum wage and I don't get nearly enough hours to justify wasting that much gas. I like my coworkers though and I love what I do.
I love helping people pick out outfits for wedding showers where they will need to impress family they haven't seen in years, or makeover a newly divorced father whose children want to help find a date. I get asked to help a teenage boy find new jeans to impress the cute kid who sits next to him in class. I don't mind folding a stack of t-shirts in a precise manner, or changing the layout of an entire section. I like dressing mannequins based on the pictures the company has sent us.
The company is by no means perfect. They are incredibly wasteful in terms of how they ship things to us - everything wrapped in plastic and sent in more cardboard boxes than necessary. They send us too many things, or don't send us things we need but expect us to display these nonexistent items in the windows. Though frustrating, I like the company a lot and the image it stands for.
This may make me sound totally materialistic, but clothes make me happy. Clothes bring me joy. I enjoy sweatshirts and yoga pants as much as the next college girl, but sometimes a good pair of shoes or great sweater can bring me just as much joy as performing onstage or getting lost in a book. I read a lot of fashion blogs, do a lot of reading online and in magazines and I watch what people around me are wearing.
We live in a society where our appearances matter most of the time, and while that can be unfair at times, we all judge others on what we see on the outside. They say that a first impression is formed within the first thirty-nine milliseconds. It isn't always important to impress people; someone is always going to have something critical to say about your appearance. We all stand a little taller with a new jacket, or walk a little sassier in heels. Clothes that make us happy also make us more confident.
Confidence is why I like doing what I do. I like helping that thirty-something single woman find a dress that shows off her hourglass figure and will knock her family's socks off. I like helping that newly divorcee with his two daughters find a nice sweater and some new jeans to help him catch the eye of one of the carpool moms. I like helping that shy teenager find something that will give him the courage to approach his classmate and say hi to him.
Yes, I am a sales associate. I work in retail. I don't exactly plan on working in retail for the rest of my life. I love what I do. I love helping people and making them feel good about themselves.
To be honest, it is completely illogical for me to work there: I live about forty minutes away from the mall, I get paid minimum wage and I don't get nearly enough hours to justify wasting that much gas. I like my coworkers though and I love what I do.
I love helping people pick out outfits for wedding showers where they will need to impress family they haven't seen in years, or makeover a newly divorced father whose children want to help find a date. I get asked to help a teenage boy find new jeans to impress the cute kid who sits next to him in class. I don't mind folding a stack of t-shirts in a precise manner, or changing the layout of an entire section. I like dressing mannequins based on the pictures the company has sent us.
The company is by no means perfect. They are incredibly wasteful in terms of how they ship things to us - everything wrapped in plastic and sent in more cardboard boxes than necessary. They send us too many things, or don't send us things we need but expect us to display these nonexistent items in the windows. Though frustrating, I like the company a lot and the image it stands for.
We live in a society where our appearances matter most of the time, and while that can be unfair at times, we all judge others on what we see on the outside. They say that a first impression is formed within the first thirty-nine milliseconds. It isn't always important to impress people; someone is always going to have something critical to say about your appearance. We all stand a little taller with a new jacket, or walk a little sassier in heels. Clothes that make us happy also make us more confident.
Confidence is why I like doing what I do. I like helping that thirty-something single woman find a dress that shows off her hourglass figure and will knock her family's socks off. I like helping that newly divorcee with his two daughters find a nice sweater and some new jeans to help him catch the eye of one of the carpool moms. I like helping that shy teenager find something that will give him the courage to approach his classmate and say hi to him.
Yes, I am a sales associate. I work in retail. I don't exactly plan on working in retail for the rest of my life. I love what I do. I love helping people and making them feel good about themselves.
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