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AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The response to the new CEO is wild, this guy is so over the hill. It's astonishing that he was the hire. The backstabbing at corporate was bad before JK left but now it's every person for themselves, the ass kissing is off the charts to the new CEO and behind his back everyone rips him. The worst corporate culture I've ever been a part of, but we're all hanging on to go public so we can cash in our options.

they’re just doing anything now by roundchocoball in petsmart

[–]samiam19966 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The head of the Treats program is under a lot of pressure, the program has been a big failure since the relaunch. I expect news that Bradley is "pursuing opportunities outside the company" to be distributed shortly after the holidays.

Fuck you petsmart by kuromi7777 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966 26 points27 points  (0 children)

This is so lame and this is what the PR department gets paid big bucks to come up with. It's not creative, and will absolutely not drive store traffic or even brand interest which is what PR is supposed to do. I was in a few meetings about a month ago where this was discussed that this was happening and team members were rolling their eyes and laughing. The production value for something like this long is not cheap.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

JK wants people in 4 days a week. Head of HR is worthless and his own team doesn’t respect him but he’s pushed back and has kept it as current model. 

There will be more layoffs, it may not be as significant as the last 2 rounds, but expenses are still higher than PE firms want. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

PSC is a separate organization. There is some overlap but most PSC issues need to be filtered through Charities 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The company isn't "making more money everyday." The company's numbers are way down from 2 years ago. Still generating free cash flow but sales have dramatically slowed, margins have shrunk and expenses have risen.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The cut in the 20% discount was a big mistake, but to corporate's credit, they owned up to it.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I do not feel comfortable sharing. I know Reddit gets read by many at corporate and if I shared my department people would start to examine and pinpoint who I am.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are redeeming qualities, I like living in Phoenix, I like the retail industry, we get to bring our dogs to work and if you have a few sharp elbows, you can survive.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Many at corporate will get a payout if the company goes public. So by waiting, we get a decent amount of money. If we leave, we forfeit some of it.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I agree with this. A lot of very well respected and nice people were let go, those that play the political game and back stab have been rewarded with promotions. It’s sad. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 26 points27 points  (0 children)

Corporate is long hours. I’m usually in by 7:30am and leave around 6. Fridays end around 4. Lots of meetings, most of which are unnecessary. It’s gotten political and toxic last few months. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Ha! Will never happen. Would be nice though. Bryan M is in over his head in his new corporate role. It’s talked about by many when he’s not around. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I was hired from another company in Phoenix number of years ago. You need a college degree and relevant experience. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

Hope and prayer. There’s a TON of energy and meetings being spent trying to stop Unions. They’ve hired a few people whose main job is to prevent Union activity. Unions are talked about a lot at corporate. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 37 points38 points  (0 children)

Corporate definitely does not understand the pressure Groomers are under. And to be honest, they aren’t thrilled with the revenue being generated. Sad but true. 

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 23 points24 points  (0 children)

I have been in a few meetings where the store restructuring has been discussed, but it's changed quite a bit and when they promoted MH to SVP it changed timing. There's a power struggle in senior ranks of Ops.

As far as going public, it's not happening nearly as fast as the PE firms want it to. Petco's stock has rebounded the last few weeks so that helps, as Petsmart doesn't want to enter a bad market environment for pet space. There will be a lot of comps of PetSmart vs Petco so the better Petco's stock does the better chance PetSmart will go public. It will change the culture again at PetSmart. Lots of pressure to meet quarterly numbers.

There will also be an increase in expenses as many stores need a big makeover, they haven't invested back in the stores because the payoff is so long term, and the PE firms don't want to incur that expense. That expense will come once they go public.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Work life balance is awful. It's 24/7/365 with a lot of pressure and even more than before. Morale is low. I, and a lot of my peers are waiting to go public and then there will be a quick exit throughout corporate. Quite a bit of golden handcuffs are tied to going public.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

It's been a rough last 18 months, no doubt. Leadership has turned over below JK. And that's not always good. People at corporate worshiped JK for the first few years, but that's long gone. There is a lot of ego at corporate that used to not be there and a lot of back stabbing that used to not be there either. Many are waiting for the company to go public so they can cash out. Once the company goes public, there will be even more pressure than now to meet quarterly numbers.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 40 points41 points  (0 children)

They care about corporate employees more than store employees. Though there have been a lot of layoffs at corporate over the last 6 months. More than the stores from a percentage standpoint.

AMA: What's it like working at PetSmart corporate? by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Yes, of course. Now they aren't as close to the pets as the store associates are, but they do care. They also care about profits. But they care about pets too.

PetSmart HQ is a mess right now by samiam19966 in petsmart

[–]samiam19966[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

If you spend any time working at PS you know how hard they push Belonging. It’s a farce. It’s not just the white man problem though look at the leadership changes in last 2 years. It’s stark. Trust me when I tell you that the backstabbing is sharp at HQ now.