-I don't think that the company cares for it's employees overall, at least not in the retail branch of the company. I was with the company for three years and have heard many stories of fellow co-workers who constantly called our Human Resources department with reasonable complaints and nothing was ever done about it.
-It's a fast paced environment. If you're doing everything that's expected of you don't expect to be standing around. And don't be surprised if you're nagged if you are standing around doing nothing.
-They *suggest* that you come in ten minutes early for every shift. Why not just /schedule me/ ten minutes earlier then????
-When a manager schedules you they don't always take into consideration how many days you are working/when you are working. For example I've worked 5 closing shifts in a row before, some eight or more hours. I've closed and then opened the next morning. And it becomes exhausting.
-They like to be open ten minutes earlier and close ten minutes later, which is a giant hassle at night, especially when you've got last minute shoppers who are "just browsing"
-CUSTOMERS ARE THE ACTUAL WORST. Seriously I think Forever 21 has some of the nastiest f'n customers. I'm not saying they're all terrible but They're not all peachy, either.
-Closing standards, let me give you a rundown --- 1) nothing can be on the floor 2) piles must be in size order, folded exactly the same and tags must be tucked 3) all piles must be scrunched 4) all shoes must face to the right 5) everything must be in the correct place 6) hanger tape (the strings in shirts and dresses) must be tucked into the product and not sticking out. And this can get very tedious when it is not taken care of as little as one night prior. 7) faceouts must be sized, same goes for 4-ways and/or any focal fixture. 8) all hangers must be leveled, even top bars and high faceouts: so you need to get on a ladder and fix those too.
with that being said, Closing is a very difficult task when you are in charge of 2-3 rooms, and if you've ever been inside of a forever 21 store I'm sure you know these rooms are not small. If you're on the register or in the fitting room it's even more of a challenge to get everything cleaned, because you have other duties to perform and checklists to complete (ie: clean the cashwrap/the fitting rooms) Cashiers also have to stay later to count the money with the closing manager, which can get annoying when it's already 11:40 and you've got to be there in the morning to open.
We typically spend an hour and a half to two hours cleaning the store, and that's after a moderately slow night. Of course this depends on the efficiency of your closing team as well but 9 times out of 10 a kid straight out of high school isn't going to want to do all of this work. The next morning your close will be judged, so to speak. Your visual manager (the person who dresses mannequins, places clothes around the store, does the overall design) will do a walkthrough of the entire store and make call-outs. If there is legitimately one piece of clothing on the floor you will be written up, as well as your closing manager.
-management is not the wisest, I've had my fair share of good and bad managers. Typically the 'good' managers never last long and the company will do whatever they can to weed them out. I truly believe they find ways to tick off the managers that people actually like to make them leave. The managers that have lasted are usually young, early to mid twenties. How can they possibly have experience/the knowledge to run a store at the age of 22???
-overall there's a lot of drama when it comes to management, and people are constantly promoted because they're friends with someone, instead of because they're qualified or because they deserve the job.
WORKING AT FOREVER 21 IS LIKE BEING IN HIGH SCHOOL ALL OVER AGAIN.
