store manager

trade assistant

seasonal associate

sales supervisor

sales associate

Kate Spade New York

TL;DR: Terrific work environment/culture, but shady management, abysmal job benefits/ salary, unfavorable scheduling, and very mentally exhausting in the long run.

Detailed review:
Kate Spade Vaughan Mills is known for its sheer size and expendable team. It's an incredibly diverse team where you are fortunate to work alongside some of the brightest and giddiest souls in the retail business function. This is especially apparent in the high tenure and upper echelon of the team, as they pridefully exemplify the team culture throughout the year. Scheduling can be very flexible and can be adjusted to your personal life needs -- especially if you are a student (THERE ARE CAVEATS TO THIS).

As alluring and mythical as I make this luxury retail site to be, there is a terrifying catch to this alleged paradise. There are certain job roles that can be very soul-crushing and demanding both physically and mentally.. so beware. This is a kind of job that can either turn you into a diamond or crush you entirely. 

You will have to adapt to these new norms and push outside your comfort zones in order to meet the status quo. Because Vaughan Mills, in particular, is a big store - it is met with heavy traffic and thus requires you to move very fast.  

The management team is a bit of a double-edged sword. While you may come across a rare breed of fantastic managers who are fully understanding and open to cooperate with you both personally and formally, only 2 in 10 (Ratio) of the management team behave like this. The latter might completely overlook your well-being, enforce unnecessary restrictions to the workplace, and perhaps beset you on questionable job responsibilities with unrealistic goals. 

Job salaries and benefits depend entirely on the occupation you are hired for. For the Sales Associate III role, you will not be seeing any significant raises or promotions for a very long time (unless you exceed expectations SPECTACULARLY). Work scheduling is very unstable - you could see yourself doing many shifts in one week and then be left with no shifts for the rest of the month. 

Overall, Kate Spade was a great place to work. The team gets along with each other well and this leads to bonding as well as an amazing work environment.
    
   A typical day at the store location consists of very high traffic. Many people are coming in too the store to the point where it is overwhelming in some instances but, with our great management and associates, we use it to our benefit to convert it to sales. 

   At the warehouse or stock location, the traffic is not there but there is always a huge amount of product that needs to be processed and it does tire your body at the end of the day with all the lifting and tearing. 

   Management was lenient with our personal schedule and would always help to adjust or cover a shift if need be. Also, they are always their to support and go out of their way to make the day, working through their breaks and own time. 
 
  My favourite part of the job had to be the team. I made a lot of friends their for life and together I feel we accomplished a lot. I enjoyed my time there but its time to move on and expand my knowledge of retail.

To start off, management is beyond horrible! Not only are they disrespectful and fake, who talk behind your back openly in the back room, but they are also racially biased and discriminatory.
 
On top of that, they give 5-10 hours per week, when they made false promises during the interview process about giving up to 30 hours a week. Management tries to compete with you in selling despite the fact that they don't make commission, and how they specified that managers were helpful to associates in making commission is totally false. 

On top of having a sales goal that is purposefully unrealistic, the management team blames you for not reaching the store goals when it is not up to you if there is traffic or if people like a specific collection. 

If you are looking for a job that gives great hours and decent commission you should rethink your options and find a better place to work at. 

P.S: The new collections are horrendous and everyone that steps foot into the store runs away.

Product is nice and you get a good employee discount. Pay for management is reasonable. Taking time off can be difficult. One manager would not allow me to take more than 5 days off in a row, so my 2 weeks of vacation per year had to be split up throughout the year. That same manager took 2 weeks off to visit her home country and left me to mange the store in her absence. My vacation requests were ignored until the last minute, despite the fact that I submitted them 3 months in advance. The DM would wait until the workload calendar was released and then deny my request because “it’s not a good time.” Leadership encourages all vacation time to be taken in February because it’s the slowest month of the year when the company cuts way back on payroll hours for in store positions. 

Where do I even start. It’s a good time working here. You learn a lot of things very quickly both on the sales floor and in the stock room. Most things are organized but not all things are kept clean. Management and main employees like to gossip and complain about other people CONSTANTLY. And if you’re not a favorite of the managers, good luck because you’re going to get bullied. If you’re not aggressive with your sales, (or even if you are) management will constantly remind you to make a sale and sell more to customers. It’s not an industry for me if you’re interested in working in a wolves den then this store is for you. With that said the regular coworkers are a joy. Management is a bit arrogant but the regular workers are so much fun to be around. They support you and help you conquer your day. I wish they were more appreciated because they are sso near and dear to my heart.

i had a very bad experience with this company like never before. they have the most poor management. management don't follow the rules but they expect you to follow all the rules. They lie and steal your sale. The pay is so low for the work they require you to do, basiclly they expect you  to do everything all the tasks and including washing the washroom with minimum wage.
the employee discount is okay but the quality of their product has became very low for the money they get.
the store is dead quiet and they expect you to stand there and watch the windows or clean at all times.
basically if you ever decided to apply for this job know that you are being hired as a Cleaner not a sales person.

Loved working for KS. If it hadn’t been for the upper management in charge, I would’ve stayed for years to come. 
The benefits are amazing, the people and culture is also very special. 

Unfortunately there’s a strong sense of favouritism to the East Coast managers and stores which they (HQ) are ignorant to. Those who work in the West will always fall short, and no matter the hard work and effort put it, it will not be good enough. The scheduling expectations of managers are also quite specific and micro managed causing a friction point in work life balance. This was often the reason many managers quit. 



What is the best part of working at the company?
Getting access to see new products, and learning the behind the scenes of luxury retail. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Making sales, and product knowledge. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Friendly co-workers, very encouraging and willing to help you with making more sales.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
I arrive at least 15 minutes early, I get my supplies ready for the day and set up my sales goal card for my shift. At the end of the day, I clean up, count the till, and prep for the next shift.

Working at kate spade was a great experience and I believe had a great impact on me. Every day we would start off by making sure everything was in order before opening up the store and we would invite and interact with all the customers with a very positive attitude management was very organized and I believe helped the team stay up beat and set the tone for the joyful atmosphere among the staff. The hardest part of the job was probably the long hours thats about it, overall it was a great experience and it helped me gain more confidence and expand my knowledge.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The environment is team friendly 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Maybe the standing at first but then you adjust.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Inclusive and teamwork is second nature.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Greet my team, briefings on targets and stock, maintaining the store's appearance and giving good customer service for everyone who enters the store.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Store manager 1 salary reported	$21.81 per hour
Trade assistant 1 salary reported	$335 per day
Seasonal associate 1 salary reported	$15.50 per hour
Sales supervisor 1 salary reported	$19.00 per hour
Sales associate 1 salary reported	$15.50 per hour

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