Sur La Table reviews

3.1

41% would recommend to a friend

(1,058 total reviews)

Jason Goldberger

46% approve of CEO

31% positive business outlook

Sur La Table has an employee rating of 3.1 out of 5 stars, based on 1,058 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Sur La Table employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Ventas al mayoreo y al menudeo industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

1K reviews
1.0
Nov 1, 2015

Store Manager

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

This list would have been a lot longer a few years ago, but really the only pros were product trainings where you got free items and the discount, which is decent but not great.

Cons

As a store manager, you will receive little to no support from your district manager, area manager, or anyone in corporate office. When you propose an issue with directives or trying to understand why we're doing something a certain way so you can relay this information to your team and get their buy in you will get nothing. I know there's been several people leave in the corporate office, but the goals and initiatives change with such frequency that it's very challenging to gain any traction and actually accomplish the goals they want. Instead, you'll have weekly district conference calls where you're shamed in front of your peers for not achieving the goal of the moment. Also sometimes the target for a goal would change 3-4 times over the course of the year or nobody would know what the actual goal is supposed to be(e-mail collection goals). Out of all the companies I've worked for, the work/life balance is horrible. You're not given enough payroll to manage the store they want to manage them. Also, if you work in a store in the NYC area you will have the pleasure of regularly dealing with Investcorp employees, the private equity firm that bought SLT. More often than not, they're rude, expect you to break company policies for them in regards to the discounts and expect you to drop what you're doing with other customers to help them.

3.0
Sep 23, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

It's a fun store to work in, the 40% discount is great. Customers love the store because it's not pretentious, and the staff knows a lot. Lot's of choices of most items. You can also get free coffee/espresso/cappuccino, during all open hours. There is usually something cooking and available to sample too.

Cons

There is little to no training for the staff. My staff knew a lot because I did research off hours and trained them. Also, the store attract cooks and bakers as staff. There is far too much tasking, and far too few hours given to accomplish anything! It's a daily battle. Too much stuff made China - a pepper grinder "proudly filled in America" doesn't warrant an American Flag! Also, the pay is dismal. Getting hired for $9, and rarely getting more than 8-12 hours a week doesn't keep most employees happy.

1.0
Jun 1, 2015

Typical Retail

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The discount is good, and the on-site staff was a pretty amazing group of people. Most of the professional customers were a delight, and I always knew what new restaurants were opening up in town.

Cons

Corporate was out of touch with what really happened in the store. The zero complaint policy was impossible to live up to. Store management was expected to staff a store with bare-bones payroll but had to keep someone at the front constantly, to comply with legal breaks, and to provide impossibly flawless customer service. The sales associates were expected to be available all the time, but they were only given 5 to 15 hours per week.

Viewing 76 - 78 of 1,058 Reviews

Glassdoor has 1,087 Sur La Table reviews submitted anonymously by Sur La Table employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Sur La Table is right for you.