Leota Reviews

The owner makes promises she cannot keep. She is M.I.A. All of the time and expects all of her employees to run her company. Then when she does decide to make an appearance she plays Monday morning quarterback. She does not pay well, benefits are mediocre at best, and things that are issues never improve. If you want to intern here to see what not to do- go for it. But I would never suggest working for this company. Nothing you do will ever be acknowledged or good enough. Also, she is not a fan of paying reps or vendors. She will try and find a way to wiggle or talk her way out of paying them or even her employees. And then you get an "This industry is just crazy" as an excuse with an awkward stare that lasts entirely too long.

When I began working at Leota it was a dream opportunity to work for a woman owned company with feminist values that aligned with my own. When I left Leota it was a culture of cattiness, bullying, and never ending stress over cheap dresses. The company is not in a place anyone seeking employment wants to be in. In debt to factories, photographers, models, developers, print designers, etc. Some of which began to come after me on my personal social media accounts when they weren't getting answers from management about payments they likely still have not received. Reckless spending and poorly planned sales strategies have led this company to a place I don't feel confident it can recover. This did not help the unnecessary stress level. A stress level that sent one coworker to the emergency room 3 times as described in a 3 page, single spaced, letter circulated to everyone in the Leota office as well as all factories and vendors months after he suddenly left the company without notice. It also mentions the enormous debt the company is in (not that the vendors needed to be reminded). Management tried to play it off but the office consensus was "tell us something we don't already know." Constant juggling and trying to appease the CEO (which you won't accomplish). You will feel bullied, belittled, and personally insulted if you dare try to say no to the most absurd requests. The manner in which the CEO conducts themselves in the office vs. the outside world is jarring. They market themselves as a feminist leader wanting to mentor and support you but you'll only ever feel put down and dreading the next encounter you'll have with them. My job description changed constantly as others were always leaving or being let go and I would absorb their responsibilities with no compensation or assistance. When I left the company I had taken the responsibilities of 4 other people in addition to my own. When some areas began to suffer due to this my suggestions for help were often ignored and I was met with criticism rather than the assistance and resources needed to execute my job correctly. While at the company we were asked to write positive reviews of the company on this very website due to an influx of negative reviews past employees, I myself had an intern write one. This was often a point made in the daily morning meetings. Something to keep in mind as you scroll. When I finally left Leota it was due to the company's inability to pay me. They attempted to rob me of some of my final compensation I worked way to hard to earn. When confronted via email the matter was ignored for weeks. At one point they forgot to remove me from an email discussing the matter and it was revealed the derogatory manner in which I was being discussed. It wasn't until that ugly misstep was I finally paid. Unless you're a masochist, I'm going to suggest you skip it.