Pros
Growth opportunity: Opportunity to grow within the company, move up to higher positions then be able to list those positions on your resume for future jobs. No one stays around long, if you hang in there they promote you out of desperation, even if you aren't qualified or talented. This is the only reason I gave it an extra star. Job Security: Another plus is you can't get fired unless they discover you're stealing in some way. You can be completely horrible at your job and stay employed. They will cut your hours but they wont legally fire you because they want to avoid any possible legal issues. Training: You will learn a lot in this company that you can take elsewhere. Not from training (since there are no hours to actually train anyone) but from doing. If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.
Cons
Restrictions: You work by yourself all day, which means you're not allowed to leave the sales floor to use the restroom. The company doesn't tell you that you're not allowed to use the restroom for legal reasons, but they tell you that you can't leave the sales floor. Well, if you're working alone (which is what a usual day shift as a Sales Lead is like) then you can't use the restroom because you can't leave the sales floor. That means saving your bathroom needs anywhere from 3-8 hours. How they legally get away with this, I have no idea. Hours & Pay: Hours aren't horrible for a part time job (18-30hrs a week), but if you're looking for a full time job because you want to support yourself/family, this isn't the place for you. The store manager doesn't even get 40hrs a week. The pay for any management position is 30%-40% lower than what they pay anywhere else for the same position. A Sales Lead makes anywhere from $8 - $11, Assistant manager makes anywhere from $9 - $13, and the store manager makes around 35k-45k a year. Loss Prevention, Sales & Customer Service: The company prides itself off of "legendary customer service" but it is impossible to give great service. First off, you're not only a sales person, you're store security. While working alone, with a room full of several customers, there is no way you can ring up everyone, walk away from the register to help everyone else with their questions, and follow around shoplifters to prevent them from snatching products out of your store. Physically it is impossible, and laughable to expect anyone to be able to do all these things at the same time. Plus, while doing these things, you're usually expected to do "replen," which is what they call putting new items from the stockroom out onto the floor. On top of all those things you should magically be able to do all at once, you have to constantly worry about secret shoppers, who the company sends to stores. They pretend to be shoppers and rate you on how well you do all those things without you knowing it. If you get a horrible score they will treat you horribly for it. New inventory: Every other week, or twice a month, the stores usually receive a "new line," which is the newest collection of clothing by the company (it's usually recycled styles from previous years but customers are too stupid to notice). Usually, 30-200 boxes are received for every store. They give you almost no hours other than your usual hours to process this. This creates stress beyond anything I have ever seen at a retail position. This will be a nightmare. I was successful at my job, but it nearly killed me. I left because the pay for the amount of work wasn't worth it.