Career with Petsmart

[High Brass]

Just curious if anyone has been able to have a successful career as a manager with Petsmart?

Thanks
Bob

[4ShotB]

well I haven't worked with them but...I am the type that says one can be succesful at anything with the right attitude. With that being said, I took a part time job at a well known large retailer (for you old-timers, think JC Higgins, appliances, catalogues and a well known line of tools) for something to do. I'm semi-retired and wanted to work part time just to get out of the house. i left after about 3 - 4 months....I found it difficult to believe how poorly the employees and customers were treated and how nobody within the organization seemed interested in any suggestions for improvement. This will not help you I'm sure but i am skeptical about the retail world now and applaud you for doing your homework. I'd google "retail employee forums" and see if you can learn more. Best wishes.

[baileydog2007]

Prior to what I am doing now, I worked for a regional retailer in MT, ND, MI, WI, and MN. Having moved a gazillion times and ending up in lower MI, I wanted to get back to MN. So I did apply at Petsmart and did interview. I was not offered a job, but one thing I will say is the pay is not good with them, or at least it wasnt then. But its all relative, I had been in retail mgmt for 16 yrs and doing OK, so it seemed like a bad pay scale. Not that it mattered, cuz they didnt want me anywho. I do know a gal from just south of where I live who goes to a couple Petsmarts and holds training classes. Nothing for sporting dogs really, basic OB and such, and she loves it as a PT thing and says they are great to work with. IMO, it would be an interesting place to work and at least aprtially in a field I like. Good luck in your search. FWIW, I would stop into or call a Petsmart, talk to a worker who does what you are interested in doing, most folks will be happy to share info. You might get an old crabass once in a while, but nmost folks are happy to help, especially if they like their job. Those who only bitch about their job, would likely bitch about paying taxes if they won the Powerball.


Retail, retail mgmt in particular, can be fun and rewarding, however, salary wise, the only way to make any money is a long term commitment and willingness to move up. Moving up, usually means actually moving as well. Which for a young person is fun, I wouldnt trade my work experiences for anything. Got to live in MT, ND, WI, and MI, taught me, I like MN for "home". (however, when I can be done working SD might be worht a shot).

Good Luck!

[tommyboy72]

Bailey out of curiosity, how did you break into retail management? I have a degree in finance and minors in marketing and business management which could have been majors. I would actually like to break into retail management and someday work for a large big box retail outdoor sporting goods retailer i.e. Cabelas, Bass Pro, Sportsman's Warehouse etc. but I was told by the only big box store in my area ( Wal Mart) that they could not hire me because I was overly qualified for the job. I also called Gander Mountain in Amarillo 100 miles away to find out some info. from them with a sincere intent to relocate if a job might be offered but was told they only hire retirees and high school and college kids part time in order to keep down overhead from insurance, paid vacations and benefits. I love sporting goods, people who like sporting goods and talking with people about sporting goods but it seems everywhere you go now and try to talk to people about their products you get some teenage punk that doesn't know anything about his department and moreover has no interest in learning while people like myself are precluded from these jobs. From an expert perspective what would you say the reason for something like this might be?

[GUNDOGS]

Just curious if anyone has been able to have a successful career as a manager with Petsmart?

Thanks
Bob

I have 2 friends that are managers here in ontario and i have a best friend that just finished their grooming program and she LOVES it..she gets 12 bucks an hour to start and FULL BENEFITS which is priceless for many..all of my friends love it and plan to stay there with a career..they are opening a new store here about 40 minutes from me (CHATHAM ) and one of my friends is moving there to be the new manager of that store so ive heard nothing but good about it..ALSO talk to GITTRDONEBRITTS (joe) on here cause he was very happy to get into their dog training program and is right now in Chicago going threw their program which PETSMART pays to train you, pays your motel and gas and then you have a job with benefits, cant complain these days considering the economy..i sure wouldnt mind talking to people about dogs all day and get paid to do it ....ruth

[baileydog2007]

Tommyboy,
I started with the company that I was with for 16-17 years when I was a sophmore in HS. Was my first job. As a JR and SR, I had enough HS credits, so I got out of school at 1, so I worked full time there from the time I was a Jr. After gradutaion, planned on going to college, actually went for a half a year, and the town I went to college in, the company had a store there, with the same district manager, which proved good for me, cuz I apparently had him fooled into thinking I was smart and a good worker. Long story short, I weighed what they were going to pay me without going to college vs continuing college and chose to work vs school. I cant say it was a decision Im proud of or that I would repeat, but I did well, ended my career there in charge of more than one store, and my store was the company flagship, 20 miles from corporate. While I love my experiences and met a ton of great folks along the way, college obviously would have been the way to go, they would have been there when I graduated. Ah, the beauty of hindsight.
As to your trouble getting in to retail mgmt, with being not privy to your resume, I doubt you are being turned away for being over qualified. Thats an easy out. Perhaps you are wanting to large of a salary, not willing to broaden your relocation radius, looking to start higher up the mgmt ladder than the particular company you are applying with is comfortable with. I would hire anyone/everyone I could who was over qualified, makes job easier and more productive and probably makes me better and teaches me something. In mgmt the work force in constantly rolling over, so I d rather hire one who goes on to bigger and better things than one who cant show up after payday cuz they were too drunk the night before or hasnt held any job longer than a month. Dont but the "youre over qualified" as reason for not being hired, it might be true, but it wont be the reason youre not hired, UNLESS those doing the hiring are incompetent. Over qualified could mean not qualified too. Dont mean in your specific case, but one with a ten college degrees, doesnt a good manager make.

Not sure of your age, but Cabelas and Gander (who I also interviewed with when moving back) are tough to get on with as mgmt IMO. You need to start PT possibly and learn "their"way. I honestly was floored in the Cabela interview. It was a little "business" and a lot of product specific questions and definate degree of "expertise" with their products (duh) is required. I didnt do well in that interview, at all. Im rambling, but if you have any questions you can PM me, be happy to give my .02

[Chukar12]

Tommy,

If you are serious about getting involved you may consider avenues like Home Depot or Lowes. Much like Bailey I started very young in the retail environment. I went through mnagement training sponsored by the company I worked for and found it to be a very fertile environment for developing leadership skills. You deal with a diverse work force from kids to retirees and due to sheer numbers almost every day is an adventure in conflict resolution and personnel development opportunities. Communication skill sets and decorum are finely tuned or you waller around forever in the middle.

Your education will be an advantage as you advance, but like Bailey's interview description with Cabela's business accumen probably will only be recognized in a career advanced to the point that your strategic input is important. Initially they will look for you to be competent and capable of tactical execution with three dominant skill sets (IMO).

1. Diplomacy and a desire to serve the public, the diplomacy part comes with the parade of dipsh___s you will encounter constantly.
2. An attention to detail (think merchandising) material sets are done by merchants in the administrative realm and the execution of those sets and their maintenance are the easiest metrics for supervisors and mid level managers up to district managers to stratify their various employees.
3. Leadership that is effective with the diverse workforce.

It takes patience, you pobably have a lot to offer in things like asset management and marketing that will not be recognized until you advance through the day to day ops and get promoted to more strategic positions.

fwiw
Joe

[tommyboy72]

Joe and Bailey I appreciate the input very much and Bob I am sorry to have hijacked your thread. After this post I will correspond by PM. Unfortunately the choices of retailers is limited in my area. Wal Mart is about it. I was told by one of the assistant store managers that I know that he could not hire me due to my educational qualifications. I really aspire to work for one of the large outdoor sporting goods store I mentioned earlier because I sort of screwed myself on my past career. I worked for years in Industrial Refrigeration and Boilers and made about 50 grand a year but I saw my supervisors making about 80-90 grand a year and thought I would go back to school to further that end. Unfortunately by being out of the field for several years for school and for the job I am currently at which was taken out of necessity not desire I am being told by my interviewers that it is commendable that I have a degree and they love my experience but they are looking for someone with immediate hands on experience. So I have aspirations of someday becoming a Cabelas mid level manager at some point in the future. By the way Bailey I will be 39 years old in August. I returned to school late after traveling the country in my past chosen career. I guess what I am garnering from your post as well as the post of Joe is that I need to start off at the bottom and work my way up. I completely understand this notion and to some extent agree with it unfortunately $9 an hour at 37 hours a week with no benefits will not feed a family of 4 so I guess what I need to do is just work a second job part time if I can even get hired. I have worked with a couple of staffing recruiters who have told me that I need to start at the bottom and work my way up as well but it just seems like I really wasted my time getting a college degree. The pay scale the recruiters talked about was in the 22-25 grand a year area starting out. I currently make right at 32 thousand a year in my current position but it is not what I want to do the rest of my life or even on the right track toward that end. I am a bit perplexed by going back to college to better myself and dropping my pay by about 25 thousand dollars a year from the 50 thousand I was making before returning to school and still having to start off at the bottom. Thank you guys for your honest input though, I appreciate it.

[baileydog2007]

Dont feel that going back to college was a mistake, I find that rarely the case. And as far as a Wla Mart asst mgr telling you he cant/wont hire you because of your educational qualification, I dont know, I was an asst mgr for wal mart in Sturgeon Bay WI for a year, and I can tell you, college degrees are a desired asset for the management team. Maybe ask to talk to the manager or a different asst mgr. Add to that, asst managers at Wal Mart DONT hire memebers of the management team, the store managers and district managers hire management personell.

In retail mgmt, hands on experience is good. Especially in learning your leadership style and being comfortable in situations which involve your elders, and needing to earn their respect. At 39, that wont be a huge deal, but it was for me, as I was a store mgr at a pretty young age. Experince helps. But college is also very valuable, dont think of it as a waste, at all.

The othe rthing I would point out, IF it were me, you might need to expand "your area". Of course I have no idea what you mean when you say the retail options are limited in your area, but if you seriously want to pursue that kind of career, your chances are greatly increased by expanding "your area".

I think you have the right idea, you "might" have to start lower on the totem pole than you'd like. Such is life, changing jobs/career fileds will definately cost you, financially, in the short term. But if youre not doing what you like/want to do, you need to find a way to change that, reguardless if you 19, 39, or 50. JM2C

[tommyboy72]

Thank you for the input Bailey.

[jimbo&rooster]

I work part time in the summers and a couple weekends a month through the year at a local Gander Mtn, (wish there was a puking icon) and from what I can gather and from the things I have observed I dont think that the #1 guy at the store does terrible, but Im not sure that I dont make as much if not more than the other managers/supervisors between what I bring home as a teacher and what I manage to bring home from the store every couple of weeks.


Tommy I will tell you as some one who did what you did, when I graduated from college the first time I had a degree as a diesel mechanic. I went to work working in the coal mine industry working on trucks and equipment in, on, and around mines. I made great money. However their came a day when all the money in the world couldn't pay me to lay in a half frozen mud hole knocking the drive line out of a dump truck. I went back to school and got a degree and a license to teach technology/shop class, even with about a $20k hit to my income I am a happier man. At some point going back to school will be the best thing you ever did for your family.

Jim

[tommyboy72]

Thanks for the vote of confidence Jim, I guess it just looks a bit bleak right now. I appreciate the uplifting story though.

[Scott Linden]

I've only been in a few times, but haven't seen much in the way of sporting dog gear. I joked once about hunting dogs and was given the cold shoulder by a couple different employees. So, the question is: do they support/tolerate/condone hunting? What is their corporate policy? Do they support PETA, for example. Anybody?

[ultracarry]

FYI cabelas was the worst places I have worked. The management was horrible, employee moral was destroyed, and management had no clue what was going on in the store. It seemed like every manager we had that was good and cared about the employees was fired or Hung out to dry. Management pushed sales on certain products that were garbage and wondered why sales are low and returns were high.

I think our department had the highest number of military members (part time employees) so we could care less about selling an item that would be returned. Didn't need the money and did it because we loved to work on the things we would sell and recommend. If you go in their store and talk to employees I can grantee you they don't seem as happy as other stores around the country.

[gittrdonebritts]

I've only been in a few times, but haven't seen much in the way of sporting dog gear. I joked once about hunting dogs and was given the cold shoulder by a couple different employees. So, the question is: do they support/tolerate/condone hunting? What is their corporate policy? Do they support PETA, for example. Anybody?

Its kinda funny you mention that, the other Trainer I work with at my Store breeds Wirehairs and Shorthairs and Is a Hunt test Judge as well as a CGC judge and does Completion obedience, Agility, and Rally, But with all that said the Company doesn't support PETA, they support the Ethical treatment of Animals but not to the Extreme that, PETA does. In all its been a great Company to work so far, I promise If you came into my store and Mentioned hunting you wouldn't get a cold shoulder at All. Although the store I'm training at, is Run by a huge tree hugging nut Job how is driving me Nuts !!!!!!

[jlp8cornell]

've only been in a few times, but haven't seen much in the way of sporting dog gear. I joked once about hunting dogs and was given the cold shoulder by a couple different employees. So, the question is: do they support/tolerate/condone hunting? What is their corporate policy? Do they support PETA, for example. Anybody?

PetSmart Charities supports HSUS- which in many ways is far worse then PETA.

[tn red]

've only been in a few times, but haven't seen much in the way of sporting dog gear. I joked once about hunting dogs and was given the cold shoulder by a couple different employees. So, the question is: do they support/tolerate/condone hunting? What is their corporate policy? Do they support PETA, for example. Anybody?

PetSmart Charities supports HSUS- which in many ways is far worse then PETA.

The very reason we never will set foot in Petsmart