Boots - Good on both sides of the coin! (Boots Stores)

Member Name: sugar_snap123

Product:	Boots Stores
Date:	10/06/09 (75 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great place to work and to buy!

Disadvantages: nothing that I can think of!

Boots has a load of products to offer. So it is great for customers. Also, as I work for a company within a boots store - I get the inside info too!

...History...
Boots was first established by a man called John Boot in 1849. Thats where it all started. First it was a chemist if my memory serves me well, then it started to gather more and more products. The boots company also used to own Halfords (as in the car/bike shop!). They started making their own medicines like paracetamol etc in the year 1994, so this offered a cheaper version etc. They have been going for many years, and they have gradually increased in the products they stock and sell and also improving the customer service they provide.

...Stores...
There are loads of stores all over the country, and in recent years they have been fixing any problem within each store - be it with staff or the building itself. For example, in the store I work in the tiles kept coming up in the floor - and obviously this is a hazard. When the new manager came into store, she went round with a private health and safety officer to pick up on any, little faults which could be fixed to make the store as safe and customer friendly as possible. Each store is set up differently, but they all have "sections" : Dental, personal care (skin care), Body and shower, Pharmacy and Medicines, Fragrances, Cosmetics, Opticians, Baby and Photography are the main sections. Boots have now introduced a "DIY photo printing", where you simply go and stick your memory card from a phone or camera etc into a machine, and choose the photo's you want to print and they print instantly, and you then take the receipt up to the counter to pay.

...Own Brands...
They have a few, from their boots brand, No7, soltan and Ruby and Millie.

~No7~
No7 is probably the most popular - when they launch new products - usually from Protect and Perfect there are queues for the product. But recently they have launched the Protect and Perfect Beauty Intense Serum and it didn't have the launch they were expecting - probably because i is £19.50 per bottle and we are in the middle of a recession! But nevertheless, it has still done really well. No7 is quite pricey, at around £20 for the facial moisturisers and £10 for toners and cleansers and the makeup is also slightly pricey - many people simply can't afford it - however they are frequently on 3 for 2!

~Ruby and Millie~
Ruby and Millie is also a great brand, and very popular - but not the cheapest of brands. Foundations at £20 a pop and nail varnishes at £9.50 each it isn't always affordable. But like no7 the quality is good. There are always a Ruby and Millie assistant on each counter to assit you in the colour matching of foundations etc. These people are also able to tell you when the next offers should be on (that is if we have been briefed on it!)

~Boots essentials~
Like the value range in Tesco, the Boots essential range is extremely cheap. They are relatively good quality too. The most popular boots branded product that I know of are the cucumber facial wipes. Again often on offers like 2 for £2 etc, these are a bargain they smell lovely and work really well!

...Personal care/ Skin care...
This is the section I work on. I work for a company called Procter and Gamble who have loads of products such as makeup with Maxfactor, Skincare with Olay, Aussie in haircare, Gilette in mens personal care etc etc. What I like about working on Skincare is that we are all trained. Boots staff have to pass modules etc so you can be assured that you are being told the truth. My company give us many projects to read through, and tests etc to make sure we are up to scratch. In bigger boots stores, on Skincare there is often a machine which is able to "read" your skin - as in its hydration, skin age, skin damage from sun etc, and then recommend products which will be suited to your skin type. This is great, however we find it hard sometimes to tell the person their skin age when it is 10 years older than they are!

...Makeup...
This is also split into sections. You have "self-selection" which are the lower end brands such as Maybelline, Bourjois, Number 17 etc etc, and then you have stands/seperate areas for bigger brands like Maxfactor, Channel, Doir, Elizabeth Arden, Clinique etc etc. But be warned, people on these counters DO NOT work for boots - so they will really only to try and sell you THEIR brand of products. So if you do want honest advice, sometimes it may be worth checking it up on Dooyoo or asking a Boots member first.

...Pharmacy...
Boots is widely famous for the pharmacy. The pharmacists are obviously qualified, and are really there to help you in every way they can. They give some really good alternative advice too - so if medicines are not your thing, just pop in and ask! Boots have began to ipen up individual pharmacies now, so instead of having a huge store - it could be a simple small pharmacy in a rural area that is needed, so thats what they provide!

...Staff...
How do we get treated? Well its a great job, Although I don't work directly for Boots, I have to liase very closely with the boots managers etc. They like you being busy - like any retail shop really - and they do give you credit when you do well. There is a thing called WOW reports, which is when you go to the tioll sometimes you will get a receipt that enables you to go online and tell us how you think the cashier in particular did. This are great as it shows our managers how we are doing, what can be improved etc. Boots moto is "delivering LEGENDARY customer care", having to be above the rest of the retail stores in customer service, we are constantly reminded that we are there to serve customers and that giving good customer service reflects on the business - which is all totally true. When you go into a boots store next, look at how you think the customer care is, and how is it different to other stiores? If you have time speak to a manager or write a quite letter in - its really great to know how we are perceived!

...Advantage Card...
4p back for every £1 you spend. It's the most generous points card in retail at the moment. It is simply fantastic. What loads of people do is save the points up for buying christmas presents and/or a treat for themselves! I personally spend mine as soon as they are avaliable as I am impatient! What is also great about the advantage is card is that if you just pop it into the advantage card points machine before your shp you may be able to get even more offers - for example if you buy this nail polish today you get 300 extra points or triple points etc - which is effectively money back! Also, I get little slips sent through the post to me with triple points and double points and free this when you buy that. etc. It's so rewarding!


...Overall...
I love working in a boots store, you get a huge range of customers who really apprechiate some honest advice etc. Boots offers loads of products and gives LEGENDARY customer care. We really are customer focused which I feel is very important in retail these days! Boots is a fantastic company both to buy from and to work for. They take every complaint and apprechiation letter very seriously and try to fix any problems that may arise straight away. Fab place!


Edit : Had forgotten the advantage card system! Silly me!

Summary: A fab place all over!