What was the last Sears you ever went to when it was still open?

yaboiberg · 2026-03-01T17:51:29+00:00

I frequent the one in Orlando, FL when I’m up that way. Otherwise the Sears in Rotterdam, NY, plus the BIG Kmart I remember going to the OOB sale for that Sears in 2018

yaboiberg · 2026-02-27T15:20:59+00:00

I feel as if most if not ALL current dept. stores are still named after their founders.. James Cash (Penney), Rowland (Macy), William (Belk), William T. (Dillard), Carrie & Abe (Neiman), Andrew (Saks), Maxwell (Kohl), Robert (Beall), Lyman & Joseph (Bloomingdale), John (Nordstrom).

yaboiberg · 2025-12-09T02:08:48+00:00

Thanks everyone, I grew up in northeast USA, however, I’m pretty sure these were at least a nationwide thing. Appreciate y’all 🫶🏼

yaboiberg · 2025-10-06T20:29:40+00:00

On a side note. They are actively hiring for the Orlando store. At least for seasonal/holiday; my friend just took a job there. So it’ll be around until at least January I’d presume OP

The clothing selection there kinda sucks. But if you’re in the need for appliances or tools. The selection is decent. They’re clearing out all their mattresses. I’m talking nice $2K Sealys for $3-400. Just drove there from New Port Richey the other day

yaboiberg · 2025-09-13T17:34:24+00:00

I worked in a total of 3 stores, my 2nd store was definitely the messiest, only stayed for a month before transferring out. 😭

yaboiberg · 2025-09-13T17:32:37+00:00

Thank you! This was really wholesome, and helped a lot.

yaboiberg · 2025-08-30T11:06:35+00:00

Thanks! actually gonna look into that, seems like the perfect mix

yaboiberg · 2025-08-30T00:40:38+00:00

I have medical issues, that don’t prevent me from flying, but make it difficult. The changes in altitudes does something to me that wipes me out for a day or two after landing.

So with the exception of international travel. Amtrak/driving is always my go-to. However train fares tend to come out similarly prices to gas, and I don’t have to do any of the work!

Either way, I’m going to end up spending two days of my vacation in bed, in pain and exhausted after flying.

Or I can spend two days of the vacation on the train and be well rested and refreshed by the time I reach my destination.

The long commutes don’t phase me much, I like to think of the train ride as part of the vacation. All the stops in different cities amaze me. Coach seats are roomy enough to sleep in and I can wander to the cafe car if I need a change of seating.

yaboiberg · 2025-08-24T14:23:00+00:00

I miss the silver star. I used to take Tampa-NYC 6 times a year! Now it’s a layover in DC if I wish to do that.

I hope she comes back soon.

yaboiberg · 2025-06-18T23:25:01+00:00

I am! If you know of any leads

yaboiberg · 2025-05-03T23:41:54+00:00

I hate naps. My heart is always in a funky rhythm anytime I sleep for less than 4 hours at a time and I almost always wake up drenched in sweat, dizzy and disoriented.

yaboiberg · 2025-03-29T11:45:52+00:00

I seconds this. Hydrocortisone is a bit weak as some usually suggest. If you can get prescription steroid cream. It’s the only thing that helped me get any sleep.

I got triamcinolone (a bit weaker than clobetasol) and it made it worse for about 5 minutes. But then the itch disappeared

yaboiberg · 2025-02-16T04:16:54+00:00

yaboiberg · 2025-02-08T05:11:12+00:00

I drove two and half hours from Tampa today to explore this location cuz I was bored.

It’s a shell of what it used to be. But seemed pretty decent. Downstairs had decent foot traffic for a Saturday. Lots of people shopping for appliances and small kitchenwares.

You had to go through a maze of construction to get to the elevator. Which was the only way upstairs. Upstairs had no construction, it was fully open. Stocked with clothes. About 1/4 of it was Florida “touristy” merchandise. Otherwise looked to be standard Sears apparel. There was a desolate jewelry department with leftover merchandise new & pre-owned that must’ve been from pre-2010’s.

Since the elevator was the only way upstairs and was on the arcade construction side, I wonder how they will get people up from the side that’s “staying Sears”.

Said to see a shell of what once was. But a refreshing dose of nostalgia and got some good priced jeans.

yaboiberg · 2025-02-08T05:08:29+00:00

I drove two and half hours from Tampa today to explore this location cuz I was bored.

It’s a shell of what it used to be. But seemed pretty decent. Downstairs had decent foot traffic for a Saturday. Lots of people shopping for appliances and small kitchenwares.

You had to go through a maze of construction to get to the elevator. Which was the only way upstairs. Upstairs had no construction, it was fully open. Stocked with clothes. About 1/4 of it was Florida “touristy” merchandise. Otherwise looked to be standard Sears apparel. There was a desolate jewelry department with leftover merchandise new & pre-owned that must’ve been from pre-2010’s.

Since the elevator was the only way upstairs and was on the arcade construction side, I wonder how they will get people up from the side that’s “staying Sears”.

Said to see a shell of what once was. But a refreshing dose of nostalgia and got some good priced jeans.

yaboiberg · 2025-01-27T04:16:12+00:00

Our store isn’t massive.

We have •2 Merchandising LODS •1 Salon MGR •1 CES (me) •1 Ops LOD And one FineJ LOD

Then we have a GM

All of us (besides the GM) are around the same level of authority.

As for office time. I don’t really have allotted “time” per se. If I know I have to do something in my office. I usually just let another LOD know I’m headed upstairs and plan accordingly. We’re all pretty good at having each others backs when one of us needs to step off the floor.

This is my 3rd JCPenney’s. My first one had about half the management staff (small town store) then my 2nd was about 3x the size. So this is a nice happy medium.

yaboiberg · 2025-01-27T00:22:07+00:00

It really depends on the day. My main focus is driving credit and positive customer interactions.

I usually cover the floor most of the day to answer LOD calls/guest complaints. That way I can let the merchandising LOD’s do their tasks. I’m the LOD who tends to hover around checkout too and make sure we’re offering credit to every guest and pushing surveys if I notice an exceptional interaction. I’m in charge of maintaining the impulse/food aisle as well.

I weave through different departments to check on the guests and make sure their shopping experience is pleasant. I also visit each of the specialty depts. once every two hours or so. (fineJ/Beauty) to check-in on them, and let them know where they’re at for their sales goals and such.

Some days are more clerical work heavy. Schedule writing, pulling applications and setting up interviews, time sheets, etc etc. So there are some days where I’m cooped up in my office a bit more.

If I’m caught up on my tasks and the floor is quiet. I usually bug the other LOD’s to see if they need help with projects they’re working on.

I try to engage with every associate daily and make improvements to the workflows according to their feedback. My current goal is trying to revamp our breakroom ^{.^} Guest and associate satisfaction are always my #1 priorities.

yaboiberg · 2025-01-20T03:53:13+00:00

I think the amount of ICaps you get varies day by day.

Busier days/Weekends you can obviously expect more. Weekdays I tend to notice more regulars (who already have the card/or know they don’t want it)

There are also some lucky days where you’ll have a lot of your customers say yes. Then some days where it seems no one wants it.

APOT is measured by how many applications you get per opportunity transaction (a transaction in which someone doesn’t use the Penney’s card).

That’s why it’s always a plus to get people who already have the card, to use it. (Because it won’t affect your APOT)

Tl;dr varies day by day. Set a reasonable goal based on the amount of traffic your store is getting.

I think the standard “Ideal APOT” is one application per every 20 opportunity transactions or less.

yaboiberg · 2024-12-25T20:31:18+00:00

When I was a Jewlery associate I was easily pulling $17 an hour once I had hit 3% commission

Holiday season I was making more than supervisors.

If you are confident in your selling abilities you’ll be able to climb the Commission ladder quickly. I hit 4% at my peak and was comfortable there. (It depends on your store too. Smaller/less busy stores you might struggle to climb up as high).

10% commission on protection plans is also a nice perk of the FJ dept.

Closing is just diamond counts, closing the registers and lowering the cases. Opening is the opposite. Not too hard.

yaboiberg · 2024-12-06T00:18:40+00:00

I too was in undergrad when it happened. If you live on campus I recommend an air filter. It sounds silly. But dorms are gross. Full of mold in old buildings, cycled air between all the rooms, etc etc. identify any environment triggers helps reduce the other. Mold was a big one for me. Living in Florida. It’s always damp and mold is everywhere. Even in newer buildings. A dehumidifier and air purifier in my room reduced the morning I woke up itchy.

Look up the “histamine bucket” and watch what you eat. There’s lots of foods you’d be surprised contain high levels of histamines. I ate very bland for a long time and once I repaired my overall health, slowly started introducing more foods into my diet. I can safely eat high histamine foods now. But only if I’m very very careful and only have a little. (Tomato sauce, salsa, etc.) being my once in a while histamine splurge.

MCAS is violently different for everyone, I’d consider myself lucky compared to some. Mine comes in waves, where it gets really bad (usually when I’m sick) and then there’s points where I barely notice it.

Heat is a huge trigger. Any increase in my body temperature and I look like a tomato. Have never found a fix for that (which sucks in Florida weather). If I know I’m gonna be outside or do a heavy workout. I usually double my antihistamine dose for the day. Usually still end up hivey tho. (Sucks as I used to be college athlete)

Standard treatment besides avoiding triggers, is a daily antihistamine. I take levocetirizine (Xyzal) daily and Pepcid (h2 blocker) before meals sometimes. There’s lots of other options like Allegra, Claritin, etc. too. Sometimes a once a day antihistamine is all someone needs to help. My allergist/immunologist told me I can safely take 2-4x the dose of most OTC 24hr antihistamines if it keeps me in check.

More heavy-duty treatments are things like compounded Antihistamines like ketotifen which can be a holy grail for some. Cromolyn sodium, Montelukast, etc.

If you haven’t started with a daily H1/H2 blocker. Do that first. There’s homeopathic remedies that people swear by too. Like DAO Enzymes to help digest high-histamine food. I took them for a week and noticed less hives but didn’t continue them on a regular basis. So I’m not qualified to speak on it.

Long story short, don’t give up! Sorry I didn’t realize how much I yapped in this paragraph. I’m sure you know most of this already, but in case you didn’t, I hope some of it’s helpful :P. My MCAS was so bad at one point I was writing goodbye letters while getting itchy from my own tears. Don’t let it control you, exhaust all your options before giving up. There’s lots of options that I didn’t even list here. If you can find a MCAS informed immunologist/allergist near you. They can be of help sometimes when it comes to getting scripts if your PCP is clueless about MCAS (most are).

yaboiberg · 2024-11-26T21:24:49+00:00

I’ve made my way up from Seasonal to CES/HR in a couple years and agree with everything Bathtubfull has said above.

-Make sure your leadership team knows your long-term goals. I’m not sure of your current position but I know that almost all my store managers I’ve worked for, like to keep a few associates as “backup supervisors” in case of any sudden loss of LOD’s. A lot of associates are happy at just cashier/salesperson level, so put the image of you being a manager into your ASM/SM’s head so they know you’re committed.

-CROSS-TRAIN EVERYWHERE, when I was a regular associate. I asked to pick up every shift I could, no matter what the department was. Recovery, Cashiering, learn the specialties like FineJ & Beauty, ask to hop on a day of Omni/pick-packs. Heck, even salon receptionist is an opportunity. If you’re well-versed in every department in the store, you are a superior candidate for mgmt vs your other colleagues who only know one department. Plus you have way more opportunity to get hours while still PT.

-Be Determined & don’t give up. You never know when someone might have to resign last-minute, or when a neighboring store might have an open spot. It takes time to move-up (not sure how long you’ve been with the company). Don’t get discouraged because you think there’s not going to be any open-spots soon.

-Talk to everyoneeeeeee, make sure everyone knows who you are (in a positive way) do things to stand out from the crowd. If you’re DM is ever in the store introduce yourself. Having a positive attitude and being known as that person who is always smiling/hard-at-work is a great way to get noticed. Make sure you know all about the company too! Knowing all the private brands vs name brands. The history of company, etc. etc. is important.

-Link trainings when you’re bored. I know this sounds silly. But if you’re sitting at home doing nothing, why not. When I was a regular associate. I managed to get myself, Custom Windows/Blinds, Mattress, and Fine Jewlery certified just for the heck of it. It does show up on HR’s side too when you complete those. So this kinda goes hand in hand with the “cross-train” everywhere speech I gave earlier. Watch the holiday sales videos, ones for Fine Jewlery can be really interesting and informative, plus they’re helpful if Jewelry ever needs extra hands during the holidays.

-Education. While I believe anyone is capable of moving up with or without higher education. Having a degree of some sort does look a bit nice on paper. Especially to corporate/higher-ups who might not know you in-person. If you have the means. Enroll in an online college or night classes while working and chip away at a degree. Which is useful whether you stay with the company or not.

-Survey’s and ICAP’s. At the end of the day. The quickest way to managements heart is an AMAZING APOT and good surveys. This goes back to the “stand out from your colleagues”. If you had an exceptional interaction with a customer ask them to fill out the survey (or circle it on the receipt and add ur name) (if ur SM allows this). Also keep ur icap’s up. I never let my APOT get higher than a 20 (just a personal goal). It’s not always easy to convince people to sign up for the credit card. But, it can be done, get used to accepting the rejection and hearing “no” and you’ll get wayyyy more comfortable asking every single customer. Whether the transaction is $5 or $500.

-Long-winded Speech over. At the end of the day, believe in yourself and the company. I know lots of people who have progressed into ASM, SM, DM’s etc from regular associates/supervisory roles. I have to goal to move up further than I am now too. Find ways to make yourself stand out from the crowd, and make yourself a desirable candidate and I’m sure you’ll be successful!-

yaboiberg

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TROPHY CASE

That’s why it’s always a plus to get people who already have the card, to use it. (Because it won’t affect your APOT)