The process took 4 weeks. I interviewed at Lush (London, England) in Aug 2015
Interview
The interview process was relatively long, first being asked for a covering letter and an electronic copy of my CV to the store I was applying to - following being successful in that first stage, I was invited to a recruitment evening.
The recruitment evening was a lot busier than I had initially anticipated, with nearing 30 others also attending after store opening hours. I personally didn't find it difficult at all, although as someone who is generally speaking quite happy to converse and chat with strangers (and doesn't mind making themselves look a slightly ridiculous at times), that will have likely made a difference as to how I felt the evening went.
It was mainly being spoken to by management and other permanent staff (who all introduced themselves in a friendly manner), and then for each of us to introduce ourselves and tell everyone a bit about what we were doing at present.
Throughout the couple of hours we were there, we were being watched by staff for confident individuals that were good at talking and happy to chat to strangers (we were paired off quite often to do small tasks).
If you made a good impression, you received a call/email to let you know and invite you back for a trial shift on the shop floor (it was an hour long) and then a one to one interview. I actually really enjoyed this experience and was interviewed by the trainee manager who was absolutely lovely!
Due to the lack of space in the staff room, we went to the coffee shop next door to the store and I was even bought a drink (which I thought again, was lovely) in all honesty, it actually just felt like a really genuine, nice chat and I got to talk about things that I'm quite passionate about (ethics/fighting animal testing/the high percentage of vegan products/campaigning/charity).
I then received a call very quickly (due to circumstances I had mentioned at the time) that they'd like to offer me a place as a temporary sales assistant.
All in all, quite enjoyable but I think that might depend on personality traits. If you're slightly shy and don't enjoy approaching people or talking in general, it might not be such a pleasant experience as mine was!
I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Lush (Dublin, Dublin) in Nov 2019
Interview
Application online, I enjoyed how personalised and in depth the application was. Was then sent an email saying I was invited to a group interview in the shop. Group interview consisted of being placed into different employee-customer scenarios and acting the part of a sales assistant. Next I was invited to a trial shift and final interview.
Interview questions [3]
Question 1
Tell us about an obstacle in your life and how you overcame it
I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Lush in Sep 2019
Interview
Stage 1: Group Interview
There was a group of around 30 of us and the night consisted of taking part in different activities. The first activity we got into pairs and demo'd different products on each other. We had to search the Lush website to find out about the ingredients in the product and what they were used for and use this information in our demo. Used things such as shampoo, body lotion etc. They want to see you are confident at communicating and comfortable touching and talking to others. Product knowledge is not necessary because they don't expect you to know everything, but it is helpful.
The second activity we were split into two groups, and in these groups separated into 'hot' and 'cold'. They emptied the gift box shelves and we had to make a new display based on size, what sold well etc. The hot group could only touch warm (red, orange, yellow) coloured gifts and cold could only touch cold (blue, purple etc).
Third activity we had to describe a person we knew and then find a gift for someone based on someone's description (e.g. they like sweet smells, they have fine hair, they are girly) and then present this gift and why we chose it. I was then invited to a trial shift 2 days later.
Stage 2: Trial shift
The trial shift was around an hour. There was a few of us on the shop floor doing the shift and they put us in the bath section to demo bath bombs, bubble bars etc. They showed us at the start how to do demos. All they want to see is your personality and that you can interact well with customers. Again, product knowledge isn't essential but makes it easier for you. Quite intimidating at first but you ease into it very quickly!
Two days later they informed me I had the job!
I applied online. The process took 3 weeks. I interviewed at Lush in Aug 2018
Interview
Applied by submitting CV via email. Received email saying that I was invited to an interview, a privacy issue made itself apparent when the names and email addresses of everyone else who received an interview invite was attached to the email. Went to a group interview, had to do very extravert activities to essentially prove our confidence and ability to sell products. The interview process is something which is very biased towards those who are willing to be loud and be somewhat rude so that they are remembered. There is little opportunity to sell yourself as it is always a competition of who can be the loudest and talk over everyone else the most.
Interview questions [2]
Question 1
In pairs, take a massage bar and give a massage to your partner whilst talking to them to find 3 facts that you will then present back to the group
