Shoes and Sox

I worked at shoes and Sox for many years as a casual. The people who run the company are very diligent and easy to get along with - you feel like they care about you, however, the actual individual management of the stores can vary. Over the years, I felt as though there was only 2 managers who were fully competent and organised in one of the stores that I worked in and the manager of a different store that I worked in was exceptional.

It was because of the new management rotating around that caused great deals of disorganisation. We were sometimes expected to drop everything and come in with no notice. At times, management even begged me to come and work despite me giving them notice that I couldn't (weeks in advance). Shifts would also be cut with next to no notice.

Conversely, I felt as though near the end of my work at Shoes and Sox that this store was ran properly and diligently due to the hiring of someone that was extremely competent. 

Overall, the company at times can be inconsistent but is still a pleasure to work for despite the negatives. I feel as though the culture of family and the feeling that you're being looked after really shone through at times with the staff in charge of the whole company, however at an area manager and manager level it felt as though they didn't care as much but more cared about sales.

Working in one of the busier stores, we were often swamped by customers who require one-on-one attention but without enough staff to accommodate this, resulting in a lot of stress and disgruntled customers. We were also expected to work sometimes up to five days a week, full days but still manage to juggle studies on top of it?? As well as any other commitments you may have. Though the pay and incentives are good over the back to school period, this period is overwhelming - customers lining out the door with an average half our wait time to be served, constantly on the go.

Often lunch breaks are skipped or cut short. Friendly management, but they choose their favourites. There is a lot that you need to know about the way individual shoes fit certain feet, and because new styles cycle through often to do well at the job you have to really apply yourself. There is a friendly culture between staff and there are some fun times in store as well, but it is mostly fast-paced, stressful work.

Also, you'll get kicked in the face at least once.

I am very thankful for my experience at S&S. It was a great exposure to retail with amazing team and management always supporting my growth as a casual employee and as a person. The diversity in the workplace is wonderful, and there is always a new mission to look forward; both in regards to friendly weekly competition, or celebratory gatherings. I felt very comfortable with the management and other employees. The hardest part of the job was the lack of experience I had in a fast-paced work environment, but everyone made sure I felt confident about my work at all times. Everyone at S&S is very passionate about customer service. The company certainly has a mission and has brought together a great community throughout generations. The only real inconvenience ever for me personally was that my travelling took an hour and forty five minutes, and sometimes I was booked in for 3 hour shifts, which totally wasn't worth the travelling and time cost. Regardless,I would love to work at S&S again in any given day.

Typical Day
- Varied, depending on any promotions, as well as the day of the week. Work was still fun though, whether it was the children we were measuring and fitting, or us finding ways to make the day more fun for ourselves and those around us.

What You Learned
- To never rush in anything. More mistakes are made that way. And to be patient, but also, remove myself from any bad situations that may become unprofessional.

Management
- At my location, management was awesome. Made us feel comfortable and at ease at work.

Workplace Culture
- Laidback, fun, bright, uplifting, hard-working because of the positive environment. 

Hardest Part of the Job
- Gaining the confidence to serve customers with complaints. Second-guessing myself and my knowledge

Most Enjoyable Part of the Job
- Working with children. They make the day fun.

Working for Shoes & Sox was a different experience for me. I have worked in retail and sales for over 10 years but I haven't worked with kids, and I absolutely love kids. Sometimes challenging, sometimes easy, but that's kids. Parents I found more difficult, considering that we are a pretty personalised store which you don't find around too often anymore, we are personalised as we measure the children's feet length and width, even though you would very accurately measure and help, parents would go against your advice, making it harder to find the perfect shoe for the child. Upper management was always focussed on visiting your store and ensuring you are okay and being your best self. 

I worked in SNS while I was completing my degree at Uni. 

It's a rewarding job and you you learn so many skills.

While you are selling the product, it can just be a straightforward customer service position. However, this field demands a high degree of mental, physical, and problem-solving skills because the stores are always busy and you frequently encounter challenging circumstances in the absence of a manager. 

This place can help you make additional money if you're a student or someone looking for a side gig because they respect your time availability as a casual worker.

Thus it helps you to flex your time


Employees at store level are treated much differently to the cooperate/office staff. Every level of management is over worked and under resourced. Communication between different levels of the organisation needs improvement, no one talks to each other. Aside from that they are a good employer who care about their employees (unless you're a casual). Open to feedback but rarely will it come to fruition

I started my managing when a position came up at the southland store, when the previous manager broke their knee, i was put in as acting manager and when the previous manager returned head office asked me to continue on as manager i learnt as i went, learnt from my mistakes and tried very hard to have a successfull store..
the incentives that the company provided were very achievable and very rewarding to the handwork put in by the staff.

The company praises people who get complaints and disrespect those who work hard. Can't hold onto store managers as they leave constantly. Lots of unpaid work. They promise work life balance but are very needy and ask you to come in all of the time on your days off but then in the blink of any eye they cut you to 3 hours per week.  Casuals will have to do the job of the managers and assistant managers as they are incompetent. 
The casuals I worked with were the best part of the job .  

Started as a Christmas casual, and got kept on past that. After the Christmas period, shifts kept getting cut back significantly to the point where I only had one three hour shift a week. Clearly kept on too many Xmas casuals, and on top of that got a full time assistant manager which took a lot of the other hours away from people. Hard to live off of less than $100 a week, so looked for another job. 

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