Pros
-There was a respect for life/work balance
-The atmosphere is fun and creative
-Decent makeup and skincare GRATIS!
-Really cool co-workers; a decent mix of male and female.
-Has an overnight stock team as well, so depending on your hiring contract you may be able to negotiate very flexible hours for your lifestyle
-20% discount on all items, 40% discount for Sephora Collection products, 10% off extra during the holidays
-the job may be retail and hourly but it's kind of glamorous to say you work there (as opposed to say, a fast food joint)
-depending on the needs of the store, you might be asked to fill in different positions on a
day-to-day basis besides your official title, so you get experience in all aspects of the store
-don't have to open credit cards!
-YOU DON'T WORK ON COMMISSION!
-...but they still have a bonusing system! When the store profits, everyone gets a bonus in their paycheck!
-Excellent training (that is, when management remembers to send you to Sephora University)
-Occasional free lunches provided either by the store or by brand reps
-I never had a problem scheduling time off, but that may be management-dependent
-Not perfect communication but daily "touch-bases" were way better than at my previous jobs.
Cons
-Getting ready every day without rushing took me about an hour once I did my hair and full face makeup. Natural looks are not encouraged; you must be wearing visible color or the season's inspirational looks.
-Typical retail butt kissing needed with managers to advance at all. Get ready to play the favorites game.
-Customer service is stressed as the absolute priority. You are always "On Stage" so don't even think about letting that smile slip when a client treats you disrespectfully!
-Employees cannot use gift cards with their discounts, so forget asking friends and family to get you one for Christmas!
-Working here for a makeup/skincare addict is kind of like an alcoholic working at a liquor store.
-Clients will judge you heavily based on your age/looks/condition of your skin and decide you couldn't possibly help them because you're not their race/old/young/have acne/don't have enough wrinkles/have too many wrinkles/etc.
-if you are seasonal, be aware that in your contract they CAN LET YOU GO WITHOUT NOTICE.
