Unrealistic expectations - Customer Experience Manager Five Below Employee Review

1.0
27 May 2019
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Nice discount, relaxed dress code, and fundraisers for great causes.

Cons

Payroll is tight and keeps getting tighter. The work load expected to be finished by one person couldn’t even be finished rushed by two people. The work load is outrageous. On average only two people to sort through and put out 450-600 boxes of merchandise in a 7 hour span. Only two people to close and clean a store after a very busy day. We all run around like chickens without heads trying to get through the workload. The pay is very low. Cashiers at other companies make more than our management does. It’s sickening. We work a lot off the clock because payroll is so tight and we can’t get the work done. So not only are we not getting paid enough but we are working for free as well. There is no work life balance as we are taking on these extra hours. Sadly there are store managers with many children who can’t afford a home after spending 50+ hours busting their butts. From what I’ve seen district managers do not help in any way. They never get their hands dirty and help with the work load. All the stress causes a lot of tension within management who end up turning on each other which wouldn’t be happening if we were given the payroll to get the job done. Every week there are new stores opening up and within 8 months of opening they have paid for themselves so why are they cutting our payroll and not paying us a fair wage? They are obviously doing well.

Explore other reviews about Five Below

5.0
24 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great people, staff, and people to work with

Cons

None I loved it all

3.0
16 Jun 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

-20% discount -med, dental, vision benefits -20-ish minimum hours per week -genuinely can be a fun store to work in when run well

Cons

-store managers have little to no oversight and cross professional boundaries often - hr is ineffective, document everything yourself, report to the EEOC -growth opportunities in the store are very limited and they will lowball you no matter what you do or sacrifice -crazy turnover because the expectations are unrealistic store managers lie about pay budget to everyone -more likely to hire teens and students because they are easier to take advantage of for little pay, only needs adult for when teens and students cannot work (night shifts, school days) - nearby stores, especially if in a strip mall or shopping center, like tj maxx have higher base pay, better benefits, better security, and more hour availability

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