Thread regarding Charlotte Russe Holding Inc. layoffs

First and for most this company is completely screwed up and lacks the know how on what running a strong and successful company is. I understand that companies all across the board see their fair share of ups and downs but come on Jenny and team enough is enough already. Get your business ironed out or move over so someone else with the proper credentials can come in and streamline this whole mess you have made. Am I complaining, of course I am. I have been with this company for a long time, and yes for the most part I love my job, but only because of my amazing staff and fun customers; other then that this company makes my life hell. We have window changes once a week, with no hours. My store is cluttered with just about every rounder we have in our store because this product is out of season. It hits the sell rounders within a few weeks. All these budget cuts, hour cuts, lack of raises make it very difficult to maintain a positive attitude while in the business. Knowing that all the RMs and DMs were flown to California a few weeks ago to receive new Iphones and Ipads really irritates me because all I ever hear about is budget cuts, and we are not making enough money for this or for that. No, we are meeting comp goals, there just isn't enough money for us lower lever, in store working employees. I understand though, with the constant window clings, promotional banners, text to win coupons with dates printed on them, new phones and laptops for RMs and Dms. These reasons are partly to blame why we don't get raises and why our company lacks the funds it needs to properly maintain itself, like offering a very beneficial holiday store meeting. Now to this spring inspired winter wear, the biggest reason why most of us are finding it hard to compete with the hemorrhaging sales we had through the disastrous 2010 fiscal year . Our marketing and merchant buyers need to get on board with what increases and drives sells for us. I understand that different regions progress in different styles and trends but I don't think the company is aware of that. I am not saying that we need to all have different product, but I am saying that what sells on the west coast is not the proper attire for the southern or east coast girl. This company needs to make its product more uniform and better fit for a broader customer base. These tanks, and cropped sweaters add no warmth for the fall and winter season, and yes I know we are suppose to layer, but tanks don't add the warmth and comfort she is looking for and we have no long sleeves in store what so ever. I am holding out on quitting because I want to see what this company can be with the proper guidance and support. If this company was maintained well then there would be no need for this kind of negative and shrewd virtual atmosphere. We have strong leadership as far as SM goes but in order to function with 100% we need strong DMs and RMs, not people who sit behind their desk at home and bark orders and complained because they are not making their bonuses due to the fact that none of the stores are bonusing. Now to all the people out there who are telling us to stop whining and just deal with it. Just because you are showing positive lifts from last years numbers doesn’t mean you are doing better then anyone else so get over yourself! You are in an outlet mall or a lifestyle center, so do not begin to fathom for one second that you are doing something so spectacular that the rest of us aren't because your not. Locations that show high lifts in comp performance are well populated cities, and outlet/lifestyle centers. Those are just the facts and honestly you are expected to operate at a higher level of performance anyways just because of your location. So now step down off of your high and mighty horse you are riding. Majority of the business that is done at your locations is not through excellent customer service but instead through high volume in traffic. Finally on to the customer service, remember our ICON customer service tool? Every Charlotte Russe I have been in across the country provides the same customer service "Hey welcome to Charlotte Russe… How are you doing today” with that big grin on their faces. That is fine and all but what happened to the days when we would actually work one on one with a customer and get to know their story so we can help them shop. Oh yea that’s right we spend more time on the floor working on visuals that at the end of our shift the customer is completely forgotten. This focus on SELF CONVERTING through window presentation has to stop corporate we are forgetting the about the fundamentals. When I first started and we had the STAR program and great customer service was through the roof. Now we have ICON and that showed to help us provide “her” with the best possible customer service out there. Our sells were high and our ADS was never below a 30. Then, all the fuss about selling to 1 in 5 customers in order to reach the company standard of 20% conversion, which has now been raised to a 23% conversion. Do they not realize that conversion and sells/ADS do not go hand in hand. If you want high a conversion rate then the ADS suffers and vise versa. The reason is we are more focused on just making a sell rather then the quality in our selling like it once was, yet they still want to complain about the ADS being low. That’s because I am only able to spend a certain amount of time with each customer when we are working on 2 part coverage with 10-15 customers in the store verses spending and hour with 2 customer and selling each over $100 worth of merchandise. That way offers both high volume and great ADS, but who cares when all that seems to be important is the conversion, right? I am sick of having a reason to complain, so to whomever it may concern please make the changes necessary to sky rocket this company into the sky instead of plumeting it into the ground.