Many years back, we had a lovely mall store with these tall, narrow glass showcases inset into the walls. In the glass-fronted mall aisle, there was a stand inside that we would put our best items on, and there was a 2′ wide, 10′ tall glass door on the backside. We kept these scrupulously clean, as any respectable business would do.
As a department manager, I have moved around a lot. I worked out in the suburbs around London mostly, but I was appointed to head a department in East London after a couple of years at Old Kent Road. Most people know that as the first stop on the Monopoly board. You know, the cheap brown one you can build a hotel on without breaking bank. Going there for my first shift, I saw why it was so cheap to build a hotel. Not the prettiest part of London, not by any stretch. Monopoly knew that. I walked around on my first shift familiarising myself with the store…
Whenever anyone asks me what the best part of working in retail was, I always say it’s the people. There’s just something to be said about having a shared experience with people that understand what you’re going through. I once compared working in retail to being a soldier in the trenches during WW2. You know that your situation is shit and depressing, but at least you can find the small moments of joy in that situation with your mates. Except we weren’t being bombarded with artillery or suffering from trench foot. I did once get a nasty cardboard cut though.
