Career Review: What It’s Like to Work at the Apple Store
Well-lit, glazed Apple stores have become commonplace around the world, and whether you’re looking for tech help or just looking to play with gadgets, the staff are generally friendly and capable. But what is it like to be on their side, working for the tech giant?
I reached out to readers to hear their stories of what it’s like to work in an Apple store, and in fact the response was pretty uniform: most people had a positive experience! (As interesting as it might be to share some horror stories, I didn’t get them.) As with any job in retail, there are ups and downs, and one reader – I’ll call him R.J. – spoke in detail about his experience. … Of course, with so many stores in different cities, his story doesn’t necessarily reflect the same experiences everyone had at work. But in short: this is what you would expect from part-time retail jobs.
RJ started at the Apple Store in Portland back in 2008:
I worked in the mall for about three years before the revamped flagship store climbed 5th Avenue. We were one of the busiest shops on the West Coast and also one of the smallest. Since we are within walking distance of public transport links that connect to PDX Airport, we would be inundated with foreign tourists looking to buy as many iPhones available before our return flight. And while in a city known as a haven (despite the rain) for the homeless and railroad crust-punk riders we fondly called “train guys,” we had to deal with a bunch of shit.
Overall, RJ’s day-to-day work was pleasant:
We were usually treated well and for the most part it was a great place to work. It must have been around the time I started working there, but 90% of my best friends in Portland come from relationships that are directly or very closely related to my time at Apple. In the beginning (2008), the store looked like a big family. Their approach to retail was insane ( wait, SHOULD I NOT force a customer to buy goods? ) And created a stress-free work environment, even on crazy days like the iPhone launch. Our managers were very approachable and friendly and I recall on more than one occasion that we ended up after a late night cooking shop at a local club.
The company went through some changes over time, and during the recession, they started pushing for more AppleCare sales, and it was difficult to get full employment:
However, there were still signs that things had gone wrong. 75% of employees were labeled “part-time,” even if they worked more than 35 hours a week. As time went on, managers began to make more noise about “metrics,” especially the addition of AppleCare to every purchase. If you sold AppleCare for 60% of the devices sold, you’re doing well. Then it was 65%. Then 70%. I didn’t mind because AppleCare saved my ass more than once, and using the retailing skills they taught me, I was able to convey it in a way that made AppleCare seem like a pretty attractive option to me.
In fact, I became one of the best quantity specialists in the store and worked 40+ hours a week consistently. At that point, I was told that I was going to work full time as the recession hit hard and I enjoyed working at Apple. After a year of not receiving benefits due to my part-time status, I brought up my promotion with management. They sat me down and told me that it was unlikely that I could go full-time in the next three months if I did not switch to the more tech genius path, but that basically ensures that I be full-time for 90-120 days.
It was at this point that the iPhone Genius / Family Room Specialist was introduced, as the iPhone was quickly becoming the most popular item sold by Apple. So 80% of the time, I became an iPhone technician and general technician when they needed me. I’ve learned how to diagnose and fix most iPhone problems and it still works well for me in my career.
After designing and implementing a workflow for the defunct iPhone Genius line item and getting over 95% approval rating over the next three months, I went back to the manual and told me when I can expect to move to on an ongoing basis. [They replied something like] “Well, it looks like we won’t be able to hire more full-time employees until next quarter, but as soon as it comes, we can renew the offer! Just wait a little longer! “
It is clear that I was a little angry. I worked 50+ hours and I was tearing my ass and they jerked me a little.
Although R.J. was not offered a full-time job, he had the opportunity to travel to Cupertino to help develop their strategy:
I spent a month in Cupertino helping test and implement new tools and strategies for the nascent Family Room Specialist and POS systems and it was amazing. Being in the center of Cupertino every day really made me respect the fact that I work for one of the coolest companies around. The food in the cafeteria was amazing, the fact that the In-N-Out was nearby was amazing too, and being able to catch the bus to San Francisco to explore a city I’ve never been to before were all perks. which I hadn’t thought of. I have ever [had].
I found that most of my employees in this testing group were managers, or at least assistant managers, in major flagship stores around the world. Getting to Cupertino was not a difficult task, but I still received a part-time salary, doing a full-time job.
Finally, upon returning to the retail store, RJ was still not offered a full-time job, which ultimately led to his departure from the company:
When I returned to Portland, my hours were reduced to 30 hours a week on orders from headquarters to cut costs. We hired more part-time employees and, as one of the most respected professionals, I had to teach these children.
After training over 20 new hires, I turned to management again almost a year after my first request for a full-time job. They sat down and told me that I would not be able to advance full-time for at least another six months, but even then it might not be possible.
I stayed for another three months and saw a rise in the number of “high pressure” sales tactics being used to sell things like AppleCare (which is a pretty good deal), MobileMe (which sucks horribly), One-on-One (which is tiny a store like the basement store in Portland wasn’t particularly profitable) or ProCare (which, unless you’re a creative professional in video, music, or photography, was mostly useless).
I left with a bad taste in my mouth, but I used my experience at Apple to work at NASA and a few startups that I wasn’t hired for, other than the brilliant “Apple” on my resume.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length, and the names have been changed.