10 things about cosmetic counters (at least from my experience)

So I was talking to a co-worker from the store and she's from a different department. She asked some of the girls some questions about assumptions that I thought were kind of odd but still informative in how people perceive us.

So instead of posting about pretty clothes or reviews on products, I thought, hey, why not let people know what really goes on.


1. Not all of us wear every product. Some girls don't fill their eyebrows, some don't wear blush, some don't wear mascara, some, like me, don't wear foundation or foundation powders.

2. No matter what counter we work at, all of our products do not come from that one counter/line. Most of the girls have favorite products from other lines and will buy from MAC or Sephora or other counters.

3. We don't usually put our makeup on at work. There seriously is just no time for it... I've tried... Some people can manage it, but it's really awkward when a customer comes up and you only have one eye done.

4. Just because we work for a product line, doesn't mean we know every little ingredient or aspect about every product. Have you seen how many products each counter has? Everyone is taught about the products, but sometimes, we forget about the ingredients or we forget small details about the product. I'm an on-call/floater, so that means I have to know ALL the products from every counter. I mean, yeah, I can name what most of them do, but ask me the ingredients and I will say "can you give me just one second, let me get the product manual."

5. Sometimes we don't see you/we are super busy/there's only one of us. As a customer, it was always frustrating to have to wait more than 10 minutes to get my services done and buy my product. After working at the counters for six months (holy crap has it really been that long?!) I've come to be much more understanding in terms of waiting. I know it's not fun and I know sometimes we are in a hurry and need to just get our stuff and go, but things happen. People get sick and call out which leaves one of us at the counter to service however many people come in. Sometimes there's just a lot of people at that time of day, please be understanding.

6. We won't push products you don't need. A good amount of customers that I have met and seen have this idea that I will try and sell them a product they don't need. They ask me things like "can I do the other things without that?" or "will it still work if I don't do this?" The truth, yes, it will work, but not as effectively. (This answer varies on the concerns/products). We don't want you to return our product, so we won't sell you something we don't think you need.

7. It takes me (and on-calls) time to find products in cases/drawers. The on-calls/floaters like me, we go from counter to counter. Within a week, we could work at every counter at least once. This means that we forget occasionally where a certain product is. We can go weeks without working at a counter and then suddenly be back. Cases change a lot, so do drawers, so we sometimes need a minute to remember where something is.

8. If you don't know how to use a product, don't know how to do a look, don't know if you're using a product correctly, we will be more than happy to help you. I say this because I usually ask customers what their daily routine is like and some of them are using a product in the wrong order or not in the best way to get the best results. It might be embarrassing to ask, but we are more than happy to explain how things work and in what order they go in or which is the most effective way to use a product. Also, I'm more than happy to teach you how to do a smokey eye. ;)

9. Makeovers take a time and we also have to work the counter. If you're thinking about getting a makeover done for what ever the occasion is, please, PLEASE, make an appointment or plan at least two hours ahead. If you make an appointment, we can give you an estimated time, but like previously stated, some times we're the only ones at the counter and we need to step away to make sure other customers are assisted. We will try our best to make sure we get your needs met and that we get you out of the chair in a timely matter, but we do need to step away once in awhile, especially if you're a walk-up.

10. We try to make every experience the best it can be. Some days our not our best, this goes without saying for everyone, but we all really try to make every experience the best it can be. We greet customers with a smile and end it with a smile and hope we can get our customers to smile and enjoy their experience. Whether it be a short pick-up or an hour consultation.



So yeah. :D