Good pay and incentives, but high turnover and pressure - Sales Associate Holt Renfrew Employee Review

4.0
May 3, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Good pay and comission, good incentives/freebies - Good chance of getting promoted because managers get a bonus if they promote someone, you just have to be a kiss up and be an over achiever

Cons

- Not even worth getting promoted though because pressure becomes 1000x worse, I've seen a handful of employees demote themselves back down to sales associate because the expectations were too high - Unrealistic sales expectations from corporate and feedback for sales tactics, merchandising, or productivity issues do not get implemented (How do you expect us to sell if the way you tell us to display our product causes damage to the merchandise) - High turnover rate for management, I had 2 different managers and 5 different assistant managers within <2 years of working there - Minimal associates on the salesfloor due to dwindling scheduling budget, causing theft, angry customers, and missed sales, due to not enough associates to help customers, but then it's our fault

Explore other reviews about Holt Renfrew

5.0
Mar 22, 2023
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Fair pay Easy hours Good holiday pay

Cons

Strict rules Poor scheduling Can be toxic environment

5.0
Oct 28, 2022
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

I cannot recommend working here enough. My time here was so much fun. The work environment also added to my great experience working at Holt Renfrew. This company caters well to their clients and employees. I loved being able to have a say in which brands the department would bring in. The sales associates are the ones most connected with the clients so I enjoyed that they listened to our opinions. The management was very good also and I found that everyone had lots of experience and were qualified to be managers (unlike Nordstrom, which lets people be in management who shouldn’t.) The company holds many events which is fun for employees and clients alike. Overall, I would recommend working here to anyone.

Cons

If you are working on full commission it can be difficult to make income when slow seasons come and I think they should change that because it would create a less competitive environment and allow employees to make more genuine connections with the clients. This is only in one department.

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