When you are 18 and looking for a job, just about anything that makes money sounds good. When I got my first retail job, I was super excited. Something that combined clothes and money, what better job could there be, right? Wrong! Not only was this job extremely stressful, but the amount of horror stories I gained during my hard time are endless. I could go on and on all day about the nightmares of working in retail, but I will just share this one special gem for right now.
On a cold day in February I got a dreadful call from my manager asking me to come in and work and extra shift. I had just left class and I thought I was coming down with the flu. With this being said I was reluctant to take the extra shift. I thought about how I could use the extra money, because I had discovered that retail wasn’t as lucrative as I once that it would be. I decided against my better judgement and took the shift.
When I got to my job I was immediately assigned to work the fitting room. If you have ever worked in retail you know that the fitting room is the most boring, yet extremely irritating part of the job. I hesitantly went to the area that I was suppose to work, and attempted to mentally prepare myself to get through the shift in one piece. I had gotten through a slow two hours with ease. It was cold outside and a weekday, so there weren’t many customers in the store. A group of ladies came into the fitting room. I hung their items up and helped them to their rooms. Everything was normal … until it wasn’t.
I was standing at the entrance of the fitting room when a foul stench hit my nose. I whispered to myself “that can’t be right.” I repeated it over and over. I knew what the smell was but I didn’t want to admit it. The scent was poop! The smell that clouded the fitting was actually poop! After a minute went by, a heard the voice of one of the young ladies from the fitting room shout “It’s running down my leg!”
This was the stuff nightmares were made of, retail nightmares to be exact. The sad part was it wasn’t just my nightmare, but I also shared it with the girl that pooped herself. I just kept thinking about how embarrassed she was feeling. I also kept thinking about who was going to clean it up, because it wasn’t going to be me. I made a quick vow to myself that if I were told to clean it up, that would be the day I walked out and never came back.
Retail is no joke. Helping people find clothes seems fun and easy in the beginning. But when you are on the brink of being asked to clean someone else’s poo, it all becomes so clear. If retail or clothing is your passion, then stick with it through the good and bad. But be warned that this job can be filled with terrors.
Oh .. and if you are still wondering, I never cleaned the poop.