Friday, May 11, 2012

Fashion Behind the Scenes

First of all, I'M BACK! And I have four whole months to report the latest trends and fashion news to all of you. Over the past few weeks, University robbed me of my fashion sense, and left me in sweatpants, hoodies, and yoga pants. (*Cringe.*) Now that it is summer vacation and I have a job at a cute new clothing store though, my fashion sense is back on track. Promise.
Segue into what I want to blog about today. I'm working at a new store for tween girls, and it opened last week. It was a lot of work setting up the store, but so much fun (especially since one of my best friends is a co-worker). A store doesn't put itself together magically (if only we were all witches and wizards and could wave a wand so that everything would be set up in a day); it takes long hours filled with unpacking, sensoring, folding or hanging, and arranging merchandise to look perfect. The store is filled with everything girly, cute, pink, sparkly, and neon.
I guess it must be the band geek in me, but something about putting together the store was so exciting, just like practicing and setting up for a performance was fun. I felt as though I was part of something big, and by the time the store was ready to open I could not wait to see the girls faces as they try on and squeal over cute clothes (as I had already done); and on my first shift, that's exactly what happened. The store also has a ton of accessories, from headbands to makeup, bags to pillows and other cool things for your room. I won't say the name of the store just to keep private, but it is US based and has only ten other locations in Canada, if I'm not mistaken. I've wanted to work at a clothing store for as long as I can remember, so I was so excited when I got this job!
Now that I know all the work and hours that are put into the set up and maintenance of a store, I'm going to take extra precautions when shopping myself, and here are my tips for you.
First of all, if you don't like something, don't just throw it back on the table. It ruins the display that took longer than you may think to arrange. :P Next, be nice to the salespeople. I know sometimes they are in your face, asking what you need and what you're looking for when all you want to do is browse, but it's their job to help you, so if you do have a question, ask, and if you don't, they will be happy to let you browse until you do need something. And lastly (this ties into the second point) if you do have a question about sizes, sales, or which clothes go together, don't be shy to ask. The salespeople know their stuff about what the store carries (because they stocked it!) and will be happy to help you make an outfit because it's more exciting than just standing around.
Stay stylish! :)