Everything I Have Learned From Working In Retail

If you’re a university student, you’ve probably worked in either hospitality or retail already. Well, I’ve chosen the mighty retail sector and this is what I’ve learned while working in retail.

Whatever happens, keep smiling

The golden rule in retail is to constantly smile, be happy and approachable. And over time you kind of learn to swallow any frustration that might come up and keep a professional, happy front. This works great during your shift, but be prepared, you will flip at the tiniest thing at some point and completely lose it.

Say goodbye to your weekends and bank holidays

Weekends are usually the busiest two days for every store and even though you know you’ve signed up for this voluntarily, it’s hard to get up at 9am on New Years Day and go to work (probably still in last night’s clothes).

You subconsciously start cleaning up in other stores

Because you’re so used to replenishing the floor and maintaining the store nice and clean for 9 hours every day, you get used to cleaning up in other stores when you’re on a little shopping spree yourself. And let me tell you another thing, shopping sprees aren’t that great anymore when you’re surrounded by shopping environment everyday.

See Also

An Open Letter To Myself Before I Came Out

You’ll make some great friends

‘Cause you’re gonna be stuck in the same building for eight hours together. I’ve met one of my best friends at my first retail job and even though I’ve moved on to another job, we’re still in contact and gossip a little.

Staff Discount

It’s no secret that wages in retail aren’t the highest but the perks of the job are flexibility and, of course, the staff discount. If you like the clothes at the store you’re working at, then you’ll probably end up saving loads of money.

What have you learned from working in retail? Let us know in the comments below!

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