Pros
Typical benefits: Discount, 401k (after a year ), fully subsidized Orca card
Small team of people
Consistent weekly schedules and hours, management fairly understanding when it comes to scheduling conflicts/requests for time off
Some variety and agency over how you spend your work day
Customer research/helping people find and connect with books can be fun
Lots of free books (damaged/advance copies)
Cons
Management actively seeks out long term ‘bookselling career focused individuals’ for entry level positions yet provides only meager pay and stagnant growth prospects leading to higher than necessary turnover
Bookselling culture comes across as exclusive and petty. At times coworkers can seem arrogant and/or self-absorbed depending on their level of integration with the company culture. Also difficult to get behind culture due to stagnant pay, horizontally integrated industry, stagnant growth prospects and high cost of living in the Seattle area.
Store level and assistant management can be pretty hit or miss with relationships depending more on personality and less on work ethic/projects completed for the company