MEGATHREAD Hang Me (The Softlines Thread)

Anelmi said:
www.target.com

Women’s Dresses : Target

Shop women’s dresses at Target for every occasion including sweater, midi, maxi, and casual styles in trendy colors and fits. Free shipping on orders $35+.
www.target.com www.target.com

Thoughts?
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Most of the stuff will not sell at all at my store. I think some of the RIXO would be popular as it seems to hit a similar note to a lot of the Wild Fable dresses that sell well. So given past history with these events, that's the one brand we won't get.
 
Anybody want to share what's actually happening in your store, at the fitting rooms?

At my store, a couple of TMs seem to be following the general guidelines (contact-free, service guests, clean, sort, properly hang/fold, defect items) for the fitting rooms and also zoning & putting out reshop/freight for the adjacent areas.
Other TMs are bored to death while simply standing at the desk, pointing guests towards rooms, mostly cleaning the rooms after most of the guests, telling guests to bring everything out of the rooms with them and directly taking items from guests. No zoning, no reshop/freight.
As can be expected, the TMs that are doing "less" are also shoving unfolded clothes onto baskets & shoving hanging onto the racks as handed to them by guests (wrong direction on hangers, wrong hangers, falling off hangers) while having "nothing to do the entire shift".
When I come in for a closing shift at the fitting room, there is always an overflowing basket of reshop at guest services that hasn't been touched at all during the day shift!
I believe that a lack of directive from leadership at my store is the main reason for lack of motivation in some TMs.

What is expected at your store?
How is it going?
Any tips for smoother processes?
Are you introducing yourselves to guests &/or asking guests for their names?
Are you counting items (even though there is no limit)?

Also, are you hearing a lot of animosity from TMs about how fitting room has the easiest job? There seems to be a divide building at my store where some TMs are having crap attitudes about zoning because they aren't allowed to "sit around doing nothing all day- like the fitting room attendants".

My take: I show up and do everything that I can to keep my job. I stay as busy as possible. I don't want to be seen standing idle by staff or corporate (is it true that corporate watches fitting rooms thru our cameras?).
I introduce myself, ask for the guests name (required at my store, but not followed by most TMs), I direct guests to leave unwanted items in the rooms, assist with sizes/colors, attempt to save the sale, clean, clean, clean.
I help my TMs get their reshop out efficiently by folding, hanging, sorting by brand. I do as much reshop & freight as I can in adjacent zones. I do what I would want done for me!
 
I have to say, your last few sentences made me cringe. Leaving items in the fitting room is a great big help to someone intent on stealing. Not even intent, no plans but the opportunity is there people as well.

Corporate was making it tougher the last year I was there but Style shouldn't be helping people to steal even more, they should be minimizing the losses. Having someone bring the clothes out makes it easier to judge if the same number coming out matches what went in and ensure no tag swapping happened.
 
Tessa120 said:
I have to say, your last few sentences made me cringe. Leaving items in the fitting room is a great big help to someone intent on stealing. Not even intent, no plans but the opportunity is there people as well.

Corporate was making it tougher the last year I was there but Style shouldn't be helping people to steal even more, they should be minimizing the losses. Having someone bring the clothes out makes it easier to judge if the same number coming out matches what went in and ensure no tag swapping happened.
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The sheet of instructions we were given, says to have the guests leave the items in the room (contactless). After we thank the guest & they leave is when we swoop in to remove the items & clean.
We are also instructed not to count the items.
I have found a few ripped off tags since we reopened. However, far less than in the past. To my surprise!
 
A lot of times you don't have to COUNT the items to count the items. Anything under six, you can count as they are walking by just by looking at their hands when you greet them.
 
They are trying to find specific people who want to be at the fitting room for most of the time. I think they are trying to hire right now, but they seem to have current style tms at the fitting rooms for a couple hours at a time. Nobody seems to want to be back there, but they are greeting and introducing themselves as far as I can see. The guests can put their stuff on a rack on their way out of the fitting room, which is still contactless, but they don't seem to encourage guests to leave them in the rooms.

I see tms headed to the fr with items from the front end throughout the day. I also hear frsc calling for people to come get their reshop.

Definitely a failure of leadership if work is not being done correctly or people are standing around.
 
We are all expected to get reshop from GS after we clock in and after each break and lunch. TMs that don’t are reminded.
luckily, everyone here is following protocol and keeping the fitting rooms running neatly. If they didn’t there are enough vocal TMs to bitch about it.
It isn’t an easy gig at my store. We are almost always busy and what little downtime we do have we use to sort reshop and zone adjacent areas.
 
Tessa120 said:
A lot of times you don't have to COUNT the items to count the items. Anything under six, you can count as they are walking by just by looking at their hands when you greet them.
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Ah, the infamous "visually count while not physically counting". This was always an issue at my store. Yes, I am eagle eyed while showing guests to their rooms. We had a lot of back and forth over physically counting items before covid. I always try to throw in an up-selling comment about items guests have. It lets guests know that we have hot new items that complete the look (accessories, shoes, separates) while letting thieves know that I see everything!

We also had a time when we were instructed to "assist guests with a better fitting room experience" by not giving them a "limit" on items. Instead, we were supposed to split up the amount of items going into the fitting and tell the guests that we are helping them by keeping the fitting room uncluttered. "I see you have several pairs of jeans to try on. I can keep some at the counter while you try a few on. If those aren't the fit that you like, I can take them away and bring the others to your room for you." Randomly limiting the amount of clothes going into the room while not having a limit. This did not go over well. Most guest want to take everything into their room at once. If there's "no limit", why can't I take everything in?
 
Yetive said:
They are trying to find specific people who want to be at the fitting room for most of the time. I think they are trying to hire right now, but they seem to have current style tms at the fitting rooms for a couple hours at a time. Nobody seems to want to be back there, but they are greeting and introducing themselves as far as I can see. The guests can put their stuff on a rack on their way out of the fitting room, which is still contactless, but they don't seem to encourage guests to leave them in the rooms.

I see tms headed to the fr with items from the front end throughout the day. I also hear frsc calling for people to come get their reshop.

Definitely a failure of leadership if work is not being done correctly or people are standing around.
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We used to have a rack for guests to hang items when leaving. We are no longer allowed to have any racks visible in the fitting room area. I would prefer if guests could just hang their items on the way out. It is a theft deterrent. But, more importantly to me, instructing guests to leave their unwanted items in the room seems to translate to "please leave the clothes inside out, on the floor, shoved under the bench".
 
So first I'm going to admit I did not read the fitting room paper they gave us when the FR reopened, I just stuck it in a binder. Therefore I did not know about the contactless info or about introducing myself and all that. I just went back to doing things the way we used to.

I sort and process reshop the right way. In fact I am a stickler for making sure things are hung, folded and sorted properly..We have one other fr person who is okay but not great - not everything is hung properly, sorting is close but not perfect, plus they are slow.

Everyone else who gets a fr shift frankly sucks. They wander off, sorting is terrible, hanging is worse, they ignore reshop at GS. Its been a problem since I started and it's worse now.
 
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StyleMaven said:
We used to have a rack for guests to hang items when leaving. We are no longer allowed to have any racks visible in the fitting room area. I would prefer if guests could just hang their items on the way out. It is a theft deterrent. But, more importantly to me, instructing guests to leave their unwanted items in the room seems to translate to "please leave the clothes inside out, on the floor, shoved under the bench".
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Yikes! That makes no sense.

Also, I can't believe that tms are getting away with claiming that they are bored and have nothing to do, and I will personally go toe to toe with anyone who tries to claim that the fitting room is easy!
 
OK Then said:
We are all expected to get reshop from GS after we clock in and after each break and lunch. TMs that don’t are reminded.
luckily, everyone here is following protocol and keeping the fitting rooms running neatly. If they didn’t there are enough vocal TMs to bitch about it.
It isn’t an easy gig at my store. We are almost always busy and what little downtime we do have we use to sort reshop and zone adjacent areas.
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Any chance you would like to share what's going on with the process taking place with as far as showing guests to rooms, leaving clothes in rooms or asking guests to bring items out, introducing yourselves and/or asking for guests names, counting, taking items directly from guests, etc?
 
StyleMaven said:
Any chance you would like to share what's going on with the process taking place with as far as showing guests to rooms, leaving clothes in rooms or asking guests to bring items out, introducing yourselves and/or asking for guests names, counting, taking items directly from guests, etc?
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I know you aren't asking me but just to reiterate, none of that is going on at my store. Some guests leave stuff in the rooms, some bring them out. We don't instruct the guests unless they ask, and I just tell them to leave them on the rack.
 
happygoth said:
So first I'm going to admit I did not read the fitting room paper they gave us when the FR reopened, I just stuck it in a binder. Therefore I did not know about the contactless info or about intruducing myself and all that. I just went back to doing things the way we used to.

I sort and process reshop the right way. In fact I am a stickler for making sure things are hung, folded and sorted properly..We have one other fr person who is okay but not great - not everything is hung properly, sorting is close but not perfect, plus they are slow.

Everyone else who gets a fr shift frankly sucks. They wander off, sorting is terrible, hanging is worse, they ignore reshop at GS. Its been a problem since I started and it's worse now.
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Have you been cleaning the rooms after every guest? What about your SD & TLs, haven't they been checking in to make sure the covid cleaning procedures are being followed?
Aren't we all required to ask the guests for their names?
What are you required to write on the fitting room doors mirrors- guest name? Number of items? Both?
We have been instructed to ask the guests how many items they have. But don't take the items or count them ourselves (of course I do a visual assessment of what's in their hands).
 
No one's checking on anything except AP, who comes by several times a day to check the stalls and sign off on the fitting room sheet.

We've never done the mirror thing and we don't ask guests for their names or how many items they have. I do spray the rooms with Lysol, but not after every guest. Our fr is not manned from open to close.
 
happygoth said:
No one's checking on anything except AP, who comes by several times a day to check the stalls and sign off on the fitting room sheet.

We've never done the mirror thing and we don't ask guests for their names or how many items they have. I do spray the rooms with Lysol, but not after every guest. Our fr is not manned from open to close.
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Yikes!
 
happygoth said:
No one's checking on anything except AP, who comes by several times a day to check the stalls and sign off on the fitting room sheet.

We've never done the mirror thing and we don't ask guests for their names or how many items they have. I do spray the rooms with Lysol, but not after every guest. Our fr is not manned from open to close.
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I have got to ask, is making the genuine guests feel pampered really causing them to buy so much more that it is a larger dollar amount than the thefts take?
 
Tessa120 said:
I have got to ask, is making the genuine guests feel pampered really causing them to buy so much more that it is a larger dollar amount than the thefts take?
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I don't know because we aren't doing it, lol. But I would think not. Target guests are not looking for the red carpet treatment.

To me, one of the great benefits of discount or "big box" stores is being able to shop in peace. If, as a customer, someone in Target or Walmart approached me and asked if I wanted them to "start a fitting room" I would be put off. We are not that type of store and our guests do not expect or want that hands-on service, and they certainly do not want a salesperson trying to upsell them.

I am happy to help when a guest asks, but I don't believe they want it foisted upon them.
 
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