jobbite
Ok, I LOVE working for this company, so many positives. No it is not a perfect job, but those are hard to come by. For me, I believe it's all about the management. If you have a great manager, you're going to love it. I would say that I got lucky, compared to what I've heard from people who have come from or moved to other stores. My manager is very hands on, teaching us how to do everything on our own so we know how to take initiative and have confidence in our decisions instead of just doing a list of things she tells us to and running to her whenever we are unsure. They have the wonderful policy of "use your best judgement" which gives you more independence on the sales floor. I must say I have learned more from my manager in months than I ever have at any job. And thanks to her I believe I would be ready for any leadership position that opens. It is cut throat for those who want to move up, but any good position requires this I believe. Again, I did mention that I am lucky. Not ALL managers and stores operate this way, but majority of them can be a positive environment for someone willing to work hard!
The place started out being the best place to work, had a great reputation, everyone wanted to work there, and I got in!! Then a new building manager came and it began to sink. He had a reputation of being a head roller and that he was. They had specific "targets" to hit and I was one of them. Its funny when you get a new department manager and he meets one on one with everyone and tells me that, "some people dont think that you are gonna make it" What?? And then all of a sudden down went my scores no matter what I did, they were getting lower and should of actually gotten higher!! Well, there goes me out the door after almost 7 years! And the place is gossip central! WOW, the worst gossip place I have ever seen, ever!! Anyways, depending on who you are or who you sucked up to depended on how you were treated. You could be the worst screw off and get away with it, or be a hard worker and get let go. The place paid good though, and I do miss the paycheck, but not the stress that came with the new building manager.
I am currently employed with Nordstrom..and been here since 2004. I can't say the place is the best, but it's not the worse either.
I have to say that your view about any employer is base on management's approach to goals. I was fortunate to have great managers, who were very flexible with schedules and motivated. However people are always moving around in the company. I've witness more promotion than turnover when you look at the management team.
The bad thing about this work is that it is sooooooo high schoolish! Policy are no gossip...however there is ALWAYS gossip going around. It's good to know people or suck up with everyone just to get up, other wise you will probably not going anywhere.
This is the deal. I've been with the company 20 years. All in sales. Each department has a management team and about 7-10 sales people. You have to get along with your team. Including management. You all get along, you have fun and you can make good money. When i first started. Eric nordstrom (president) said there are two rules don't chew gum and don't steal. He said treat your store like it's your company. Just sell and have fun. This company blows away any other retail company as far as salary goes. Would i still be in the game 20 years if not. There fair just work hard. The harder you work, the more money you make. No limit how much you can make. My advice to anyone thinking about working here. Have fun and make people laugh. Build your clients. They will be loyal forever. After all we all love nordtrom. Remember no s at the end of nordstrom. Makes you sound like a rookie.
Worst year 34,000 best year 65,000. Shooting for 80,000 this year. Some sales people make over 150,000
Definitely not a job to base your future on, or even base your week on because you can be fired with only 2 seconds notice, if that. It’s like project runway-one day you’re in and the next day you’re out and they don’t bat an eye about it. Working hard and giving your all because you believe in the rumors that they are a good people business will only cause you great disappointment in the end, because humble and considerate they are not. You are a work horse who could be put down at any given moment. It is not a job you take seriously, because they DO NOT take your life serious. It is not a job you take if you "NEED" it for survival, it's a job you take ONLY if you can afford to be unsuspectingly let go, even if you have invested 2 years of hard work in your store you can still be suddenly fired without respectful notice or consideration. 2 weeks notice does not apply on their part, and they are no where near kind-hearted enough to offer it. They DO NOT CARE about your survival. The work environment is grueling without logic. Employees are required to dress in professional career wear but are endlessly tasked to perform laborious projects that are reminiscence of a warehouse worker, and the laborious task contribute nothing of value to the store operations and offer the customers zero benefit. The tasks are nothing more than a tool Nordstrom uses to work you to the bones, and due to it the customers are being neglected by the employees who are endlessly occupied with silly grueling projects, and employees dressed up in their professional apparel are unable to take on the role of a dignified sales associate because they are busy doing laborious task in front of the customers. Customers are actually in the way. The priority is not really customer service, it is keeping the floor merchandise filled. A customer removes a shirt within seconds, like superman, an employee should be filling in that empty shirt space, never mind that the customer may not buy it and may want to put it back on the rack but can't because the speedy employee had to rush and fill the space as dictated by illogical management. No need to specifically apply for a stock job because you will be given it regardless, only difference is you will be dressed professionally. Basically the duties of the stock team are combined with the duties of the sales floor associate. Customers come dead last and breaks don't come at all, maybe you get a lunch. In my experience I discovered that all the managers are just winging it, no real system of operation in place (unless winging it is their system) it’s hard to understand how they could possibly have such a good reputation for anything. I suspect that good reputation is paid for or from inside sources, because from what I experienced working there is a concentration camp nightmare and shopping there is a disorganized self-service disaster. All customers see is a bunch of workers sweating in suits rushing pass them to complete laborious projects that barely include keeping the merchandise in good decent shopping order, and greeting the customers, oh please. There's really no time for being a people person only time for labor. If you think you're going to have a job selling and interacting with people, WRONG. They claim it is because they are a fast paced environment, but what retailer located in a big city isn't a fast paced environment. They are no more popular than Walmart Ross, Marshall, or Macy's. Their products aren't flying of the rack any faster, and as far as I can tell they seem to have a better system, definitely more organized.
This job is for a someone with NO SELF-ESTEEM who doesn't realize they are being made a fool of.
Overall Nordstrom is a great company but all the care about are "results" if you are not making your sales goal then you get write up after write up and eventually you will get terminated for not making your sales goal. Nordstrom has really poor training and they expect you to learn on your own.
You're career at Nordstrom depends on your manager. Some Managers will try to steal sales from you because they are payed on Salary plus commission. It's a high pressure company and it does not matter what role you are in there is stress and pressure and many people leave because of that reason. Even if you work in customer service and you do not open up credit accounts you get in trouble.
Nordstrom does promote from within. I was only with the company for 6 months before I applied for another position (support role) and got hired. It is cost effective to promote from within because they do not want to pay for training.
As far as their "open door policy" it is a bunch of crap! Do not go to the store manager or HR manager because they are not helpful and do not follow up with you about your complaint.
Bottom line is it is a selling company and if you are not a good seller, your out! I felt like a tele-marketer , I would call customers all day just to try to get a sale. It is a wonderful company but it is not for everyone.
I used to work for Macy's and I would rather work for Nordstrom. It is more organized and all companies should be run like Nordstrom except for there pressure they put on employee's and getting fired because business is slow.
Pay is slightly above minimum wage usually by a dollar. If you are in a "draw" commission, than you only get paid commission. After working 1000 hours you start to get PTO if you work full time then you accumulate 8 hours of PTO for the month.
I disagree that Nordstrom is a place to work if you are desperate. Its a place to work if you have specific goals in mind and its all about the people. I began at the Rack and did such a great job that I was promoted to the full line store to sell off commission. After being there only a month, I am now being considered for an assistant manager position.
With every retail job there are going to be micro managers and unfriendly customers, but you have to keep your eye on the prize. My goal is to be human resources director, so I am rapidly moving my way up the chain. People that are only looking for a "right now" job won't understand all the benefits.
Pros:
Advancement totally depends on your level of performance.
Many positions, departments, and new stores are opening every day. If you wouldn't mind moving around, you'll advance even faster.
Cons:
You have to work at the full line store before you can be promoted to management positions.
Customer returns can affect your sales for up to a year.
There are times when you work your but off for a customer with return.
I have retail experience, and I understand that retail is retail, so your experience depends on your situation, but I can share some of the problems I faced that seem to be common. My job was with the Nordstrom Rack so my pay was hourly instead of commission; The job was still very stressful.
Even though high turnover is common in retail this place was very high. As much as I loved my assistant manager I am pointing fingers at our department manager, and blaming him for the high turnover. Our department manager was a micro manager. He liked to yell at everyone about ridiculous things to show people who's boss (no really), and he did not think we were smart enough to see that. He did not appreciate anyone. Even though my store manager and assistant manager were very happy with me I got a very poor performance review, and a lot of the negative things he was saying in all honesty were not true. He had all these talented workers, but he ran everyone into the ground until they quit; it's just bad business.
I had to quit after I found a new job because it was really getting to me. The environment is very fast paced if you like that. You just fold clothes, open fitting rooms, and sell sell sell all day. Time goes by fast. Everyone just seems impossible to please; that's just the nature of that business. Career potential is strictly based on how long you have been with them, so you will be ranked last for a while, but they don't want you to know that. The flexibility depends on your employee ranking that they post. Even the best workers deem it a "sweat shop."
The pay is $9.50/hour so it's a little higher than standard retail, but it's nothing to brag about and it won't pay the bills. Apparently it's my fault if the store does not meet it's goals; I'm supposed to be happy that the managers are getting their bonuses.
My coworkers were amazing; I could not have asked for better coworkers. They were a lot of fun as well as very talented. It's hard to see such wonderful people get treated so poorly.
Overall I would not recommend this job unless you are desperate. If your really need the money there are good hours available even when hours get cut...Horrible job though.
Here are some things that I did like about the job:
Great coworkers
Looking nice every day
Hour long lunches, and lots of good places to eat (in my location).
Open Door Policy (If you're managers actually listen).
Business Philosophy-Inverted Pyramid (Though I wonder if they're model actually does work that way).
The experience you will have at Nordstrom will vary greatly depending on your store. Nordstrom really strives to deliver the best service to their customers but I would say this does not carry over to how they treat their employees. The level of caring for employees can be described as mediocre. There is always a lot of pressure to hit your targets. Buyers tend not to listen to store management which makes things difficult when it comes to providing customers with the merchandise they desire. Diversity it welcomed and dress is formal.
There are opportunities for advancement but Nordstrom is not a meritocracy at all. When it comes to promotion it's all politics. This is unfortunate because this sometimes allows unqualified individuals to move into management. I will say though that is it a prestigious retailer to work for.
Salary plus commission. Managers of higher volume depts make more money. I earned in the 40s-50s.