Build-A-Bear Reviews

Cons

Apparently there is a lack of hours after Christmas but I wouldn't know

Cons

Along with the standard cons of working in retail (rude, entitled customers, run off your feet at the weekend/ Christmas etc.), there are quite a number of cons...

Bear-Builders (sales associates) are paid minimum wage, which is appalling considered the amount we are expected to do- regular 'retail stuff' like till work and restocking, plus heavily interacting with all customers, building the bears, being a child's entertainer, going above and beyond for every single customer, cleaning the shop, and hosting kids' parties (which has no extra pay whatsoever), all while maintaining a bright and bubbly persona. Contracts are 4-hour-a-week only for Bear-Builders, which is hard when this is an only job; and number of hours worked can vary vastly between weeks, with a single 4-hour shift one week, and 25 hours the next.

You are forced to up-sell extras to every guest constantly, even kids and grandparents just looking for a bear for their grandchild- it gets very tiring and I feel like it's really unethical. Each employee also has personal sales targets we are expected to meet, and a certain level of stress comes with this- it is a lot to expect from a minimum wage job with little prospect of advancement. Also, there is an expectation to pounce on and greet every single customer with a scripted set of greetings and questions as soon as they enter the shop (it all seems very American and in-your-face); and so you're fully aware of how irritating you're being, but you have to as it's part of the job. This also puts you directly in the line of fire for being yelled at by customers who want to be left alone.

Breaks are very short (or non-existent) for long, tiring shifts.

You're expected to clean up vomit and pee occasionally...

Parents just straight up filming you without asking your permission.

In short, this is an okay job to have if you're desperate for work or just need a weekend job to see you through college, but it's soul destroying, physically and mentally draining, and you're paid peanuts for the work you're expected to do.

Cons

There was a lot of unnecessary pressure on sales assistants, many managers prefer to delegate tasks than muck in themselves. This only becomes more frustrating as time goes on.

Cons

The customer the shop attracts tend to be more spoilt
At peak times, mostly on weekends in the Summer, the store was incredibly busy
There's not much incentive to work there for sales associates
Managers were mostly in the back because they didn't want to deal with the shop
Pay was close to minimum wage
The only benefits we could get were 20% off on the bear skins only not in conjunction with other offers, and a free BAB pen
Not much flexibility with shifts but that is with most retail

Cons

0 hour contracts, pushed to sell underwear (£3) for bears to grandmother's who just wanted to treat their grandchildren.

Cons

- poor pay
- lack of hours
- not much development available to someone wanting to progress into management.

Cons

Not enough recognition, minimum wage

Cons

Management took no control over shifts. There was a railway strike (told in advance) so I informed my manager I wouldn’t be able to do my shift that day (it was roughly 3wks away) and if I could swap and was told to take it up with coworkers and not him. Not the best pay

Cons

Not paid for call out time

Cons

- Poor wages for those under 18.
- A lot of four shifts so they don't have to give you a break.
- The company put a lot of pressure on staff to meet sales targets depending on deals that are on and typically if you preform poorly you get less shifts.