Click "Read More" for the transcript, but watch the video first.
Brenda: This is my 13th Christmas, and I love Boots. It's the buzz, the atmosphere of the whole store.
Hazel: I absolutely love it. I've been here 11 years this year, this will be my 11th Christmas.
Mike: I started at Boots in 2005, and I've worked through 6 Christmas periods.
Brenda: If I was [were] to summarise Boots at Christmas; challenging, it's fun, and excitement.
Hazel: I would say it's hectic, enjoyable...
Mike: People working in a team, helping the customers, and it helps you generate that "feel good factor" for the customer.
Hazel: It's just great when we get that customer feedback, ... it's what it's all about.
Brenda: Sometimes you listen to their problems, and in the end they go away smiling, that makes me feel good.
Mike: You get to use your individual, personal approach.
Hazel: It's job satisfaction that you get from that.
Brenda: The qualities I have are patience, product knowledge, customer service...
Hazel: It's having that passion, it's just going that extra mile. A lot of the customers come into store, but they've got absolutely no idea what they want, we can step in and, you know, put that perfect gift together.
Mike: There was a gentleman who came over to the fragrance counter, and he wanted to get a fragrance for his girlfriend. He knew what it smelt like, but he didn't know the name, so we spent a few minutes trying to find out which one it was, and then we eventually reached a conclusion that he was ecstatic with in the end, because he got the fragrance that he wanted for his girlfriend, and he also got it gift wrapped. It gave me a sense of pride, knowing that I was able to help a customer who was lost and didn't really know what he was looking for.
Brenda: It's the expression on their face, they're thrilled. You know, they're really thrilled that they've got what they came for really. And they go away happy, and they always come back and see us.
Mike: The worst Christmas present I ever received, was a cookery book at the age of 16. And that was because, I can't cook, and I've never had the intention of cooking.
Hazel: I appreciate anything that anybody buys me.
Brenda: The Christmas presents they've all been fantastic, because all my family shop at Boots, and they're all fabulous.
!Note - Every year Boots (a chain of shops in the UK) takes on temporary staff for the Christmas rush, and this year (2011) Boots are to create 7,000 Christmas job vacancies for temporary sales assistants.
If you go for an interview at Boots, the very first thing they ask you is, “Tell me about yourself,” and this is followed by, “Why do you want to work for Boots?” and “What do you know about Boots?”. They also ask questions like, “What are your salary expectations”.
What would a sales assistant do?
- Stock the shelves.
- Help the customer to find what they are looking for.
- Make sure everything is tidy and in its space.
- Work as a cashier on the tills.