Suit Jackets

The next time you buy a suit jacket, have a sales associate look at the cut on you -- from the front, the back and the side.

The Front
Do the buttons seem to be pulling at all in the front? If so, you may need to go up one size.

The Back
Did you know that the sales associate should not be able to pinch more than one inch of material from the middle of your back? This means that the suit jacket is a good fit on you. If pinching more than one inch of material, you probably need to go down one size.

The Side
Stand straight with your hands at your side. Did you know that the sleeves of the jacket should reach the “meaty” portion of your hand? It should touch right where the heel of your hand meets your thumb. This means that the sleeves are a good length for you.

Finally, when trying on a suit jacket, raise your arms to a steering wheel position (9 o’clock and 3 o’clock). You’re never going to raise your arms above this height, so if the fit is not tight when at this angle, then you’ve got yourself a winner!!

“When Is This Going On Sale?”

I have been asked numerous times by clients when certain merchandise will be going on sale or when our next big sale will be.

Before I started working in Retail World, I always thought store employees would know far in advance when the big sales were coming.

Turns out, we only find out about promotions on the day the sale begins.

I had no idea that paperwork is printed that morning from headquarters (the “mothership”) and that’s how we find out what’s going to be on sale that day.

The same goes for markdowns. Once the paperwork has been printed, we are then aware of what items need to be marked down and by how much.

I hate to say it, but if you want to be the first one to be notified about sales, your best bet is to frequent your retail store of choice approximately once every 14 days. This will almost guarantee that you’ll be the first to see markdowns on items you like.

Or, you can ask a friendly sales associate to add you to their Client Book so that you’re notified of sales as they happen. :)

Inventory

I bet you were dying to know how new clothes make their way into our store.

Here’s the 411: We receive inventory shipments at least once a week. Sometimes we receive two boxes and other times we receive 50 boxes.

Each box contains a myriad of inventory. There could be t-shirts mixed in with scarves and jewelry. Or, there could be sweaters mixed in with shoes and coats.

It’s always fun to open the boxes to see what goodies have arrived that week. The best part is that if I see something I like and want to buy, I can try it on and purchase it before it even hits the sales floor!!

Every single garment is placed in plastic wrapping and perfectly folded with the price tag already attached. It is our job to remove the plastic “outside” to get to the beautiful “inside.”

Once that’s taken care of, we sometimes have to steam the garments in order to remove creases and wrinkles. I actually like steaming (if I don’t burn myself, that is… steam is HOT!!). I wish I had a steamer at home to reduce dry-cleaning costs.

Once the garment is ready, it is placed on a rack to be wheeled out onto the sales floor and then we hang it up in the appropriate location.

Ta-da!! A new clothing item is now ready for purchase.

Taking Trash

Have you ever thought about what happens to all of the trash accumulated from a single retail store? What about a mall full of stores?

Let me tell you… it ain’t pretty and it doesn’t smell good, either.

I was initiated into the task of “taking trash” a few weeks into my employment. One person can’t do it alone (with the exception of a single associate who does it by herself all the time for reasons unknown to me).

Here are the dirty (and I do mean dirty!!) details...

Two people load up the trash onto a rickety cart with wheels. This cart contains numerous plastic bags of trash, as well as a huge stack of broken-down cardboard boxes (in which our inventory was shipped). One person pulls the cart while the other person opens doors and pushes elevator buttons.

The cart is LOUD. You can’t carry on a meaningful conversation – let alone any conversation – while taking trash.

Part of the route for taking trash is to walk through the mall. People look at you like you’re so beneath them. Oh, if they only knew…

After going downstairs to the underbelly of the mall (let your imagination run wild here), the first stop is to unload the plastic bags of trash. Afterward, one person pulls the cart up a pretty steep incline of a ramp to unload the cardboard.

With the cart now completely empty, both people make their way back to the store. After this chore, I usually wash my hands like I’m prepping for surgery. There’s no telling what my hands have just touched.

Also, taking trash is worse in the summer than it is in the winter. Imagine the stench from thousands of bags of trash (a large majority of which contain leftover food from mall restaurants) in 90-degree heat. It’s truly disgusting.

And you thought life in Retail World was glamorous!!

Belts

I admit it. I never used to be a fan of wearing belts unless it was for a specific purpose, like holding up pants on my waist.

Now, however, I am a HUGE fan of belts!! Belts really do flatter everyone’s figure and they make your waist seem smaller by drawing attention to it (weird, I know).

So, the next time you’re shopping for clothes, try on a belt. Try it over a blouse. Try it with a longer cardigan. Try it with a dress!! You’ll be amazed at what a little cinching can do for your figure.

My BFF is Leaving

Everyone has a best friend at work, right?

At my full-time job, I am fortunate and blessed to have multiple close friends. I enjoy working with them Monday through Friday and I also love hanging out with them when we're not at work.

At my part-time retail job, I also have such a friend. I'll call her S.

S is the co-manager of my store and she's being transferred to another, local store. It's a promotion for her, actually, as the store to which she is being transferred does more volume than my store.

From Day One, when I was a retail novice, S trained me and showed me the ins and outs of Retail World. If S and I worked the morning shift together, she and I would get coffee before the store opened.

S and I would talk about anything and everything. She made it such a joy to come to work.

S is the only person older than me who works at the store, so she's like a surrogate big sister and mentor. S and I are two peas in a pod. And S is leaving. And I'm so sad.

S always scheduled me to work great shifts. She'd never overburden me or ask me to work crazy hours. She was patient when I screwed up, and she always helped to fix my mistakes.

S also has GREAT fashion sense!! I've tried on clothes that S has suggested (that I otherwise would never have tried) and she's taught me about the importance of accessorizing (belts, jewelry, scarves, etc.). I'll always be grateful to her for helping me create a new, stylish wardrobe!!

Although S will be just up the road, I'll miss her daily, calming presence at my store. We've already made plans to see each other soon and I know we'll be life-long friends.

But there was something about walking out of the store after my shift ended today, knowing this was the last time I'd work with S in the same place.

It's bittersweet -- I'm really happy she's getting this professional opportunity, but I'll miss her.

I'll miss my friend.

Get A Card!!

One thing that’s drilled into each sales associate is to open credit cards for this store’s national chain. I am brand-loyal with two such cards – one for my store and another card for another store at which I frequent.

The cards aren’t bad, really. There’s no annual fee and you can save 15 percent off your total purchase when you first open an account. That’s a significant savings when you spend a lot of dough on clothes.

Add to that the coupons and e-mail promotions you receive from this store year-round, and you have great incentive to take two extra minutes to apply for a card.

My personal best has been opening six cards in one day -- this just happened last weekend. There is a little tally sheet behind the register where you get to mark how many cards you’ve opened each day.

I always take great pride in marking down the number of cards I’ve opened. It’s like getting a gold star from your teacher on a homework assignment well done… my manager is always happy when I open a card and expects me to do it every shift I work.

I have found that the secret to having clients agree to open a card is to begin discussing the concept in the fitting room.

I know that when a client takes a large amount of clothes into the fitting room to try on, and comes out to admire herself in the three-way mirror and likes what she sees, this becomes the perfect opportunity to talk about the card and how to save 15 percent off her purchase.

Sometimes this tactic works, and other times it does not. In this economy, when people consider that they can save even $20, it becomes less work to convince clients to open a card.

I’ve also had clients open a card on a $10 purchase, which saves them $1.50 after the 15 percent is applied.

I’ve learned that if you don’t ask, the client won’t ever have the opportunity to say “yes.”