It’s a popular topic of discussion in the community: Anthropologie employee salaries and perks. Now the blog Brokelyn provides some answers with a survey of several popular NYC retail spots.
To qualify these results, while the perk sections are consistent nationwide, the starting salary expectations are unique to New York City. The irony being that the job market is so competitive here that starting salaries in industries like retail tend to be lower than other industries simply because the candidate pool is so big. Also note that these numbers are unconfirmed by the stores themselves, who refused to comment for Brokelyn’s article.
So what did Brokelyn’s survey respondents have to say about working at Anthropologie?
Retailer: Anthropologie
Who they hire: Bohemian-chic post-makeover cat ladies who will stick around. High schoolers and college students shouldn’t come-a-knockin’ for summer jobs.
Pay: Sales associates start at $9-11/hour depending on experience, and may receive a $1 raise when promoted.
Employee benefits: 40% on apparel, 25% on home, and no discount on sale items, except for on “employee appreciation” days, during which you receive 40% off all home and sale items as well. Same discount applies to Urban Outfitters, Free People, and Terrain. All employees get discount cards for their immediate family and one for a spouse, or whomever you like if you’re not married. Family discount cards are 25% off of apparel and home, and during employee appreciation they also receive a 40% discount on everything. An employee adds, “There are five to ten items each month that the company really stands behind. If you purchase, you get 60 percent off that item.”
Dress Code: Technically nothing HAS to be from the store, but everything should look like it COULD be. “No sneakers, no ripped jeans, nothing too risqué, and skirts need to be a little bit longer.”
Pros: See “Employee benefits.”
Cons: If you aren’t drooling all over yourself from the seemingly limitless perks, know that job stability isn’t their strong suit. Our sources said non-management employees are paid from each individual store’s individual revenue, so if the store isn’t prospering, employees’ hours may be cut.
Whew! Snarky article tone aside (Cat ladies? Really? What is this, 1993?) there are some intriguing points in here. What do you think? Do Anthropologie employees make out well? I think the perks are pretty sweet but the starting salary leaves a lot to be desired.
Thanks to Racked NY for the article teaser!
Further reading:
How Much Money Can You Really Make Working in Retail? (Racked NY)
Retail jobs: starting pay and employee discounts revealed! (Brokelyn)
