Pros
High hourly pay rate when you start Friendly coworkers Fabulous discount (the best part about working here) Company culture comes from a good place Our customers are a lot of fun and very grateful for good customer service
Kontras
Poor management structure: Quality of full time staff is inconsistent As a part timer, the store never hired from within for their full time openings. Frustrating to work so hard and continue to get passed over for a FT position Everyone is trained in multiple positions, but a shift spent cutting shelving with a bandsaw and lifting very heavy shelving orders earns you the same amount as a shift standing at the cash register. Staff members trained to process the morning money, which is much more responsibility than someone who only does sales shifts have a pay rate that never reflects the additional responsibility Inconsistent application of rules and regulations The "top 100 places to work" survey is something we are "strongly encouraged" to fill out, and each person is required to let management know when they've mailed it in. The focus on sales has become oppressive. Silly sales role plays at each morning huddle, talking to part timers like we are children. Tone deafness by management when a full timer is not really meshing well with the Part time staff. The late and very early (6 am) hours (in a market where the transit system isn't really available very late or very early) are presented as necessary to do to be successful, even though 6 AM shift or an overnight shift may not work for single parents, or etc. The culture can be seen as somewhat 'cult-like' from the outside of it, I didn't really find it to be like that, but can understand why others may not feel comfortable with it. After the xmas rush, the seasonal people are let go---but the little dirty secret of the container store is that anyone else who isn't 'working out' can be let go as well at this time, but they don't consider it to be a lay off, stop scheduling you, even if you haven't done anything worthy of being fired, and they will fight your unemployment vigorously.The CEO says that they don't lay people off----EVERY February they play the same game and get rid of people (even long term people who have been there for years) who aren't working out. You are walking on eggshells every year until you have your individual spring meeting to see if you still have a job.