What a bargain!

Last weekend I bought some bad a** boots for 4 cents!

Now, how did she do this you might ask........

So I am a member of the DSW Rewards club. I got a certificate for $70 because of some prior purchases I made. I went into the store looking for something to spend it on. I found these boots..... I can't remember how much they were but they were more than $70 --- probably more like $85. But there was a spot on them. So I got the manager to knock 20% off of them!

So then, I was under $70 so, I bought a bunch of these gel inserts I like and the total came up to...... like $69.96. But, the terms of the certificate says that it can't be applied unless there is a cash transaction. So, and the complete logic of this escapes me, I was charged 4 cents..... I didn't really question it though. 4 cents!!!! And I love them!!

I bought a belt!

So something somewhat unusual about me is that I don't really wear belts. I don't know when it happened but I phased belts out of my wardrobe somewhere around college. It was not really a conscious thing but they just seemed like an encumbrance that I didn't need.

Well, last week, I bought my first belt in years. What precipitated this purchase? Low-rise jeans. In order to get jeans that fit me most other places, I have to buy a certain size but after the first wearing, the waist gets too loose. So, I when I was out doing some pre-job shopping I got the whim to buy a belt, something simple and I got a bonus as well....... it's reversible!! Just a twist and it goes from brown to black. Two for the price of one! I love it!

Why I love The Container Store.....

Back in November, at one of my "job search support" breakfast meetings, one of the regulars mentioned that they had a part-time job at The Container Store and that she really enjoyed it. Well I LOVE The Container Store and thought that since I had some extra time on my hands, I might as well apply to work there and maybe pick up some seasonal work over the holidays. So, I applied online and waited....

So, what is The Container Store, you ask? Some of you may not be familiar with the store since there are only 43 brick and mortar stores in the US (soon to be 44, as of this weekend! But more about that later) but the company also does a strong catalog business. I think that I first became familiar with The Container Store through their catalogs because I didn't live in an area where they had a store until college. Simply put, The Container Store sells stuff to put your stuff in! They like to say that they help people save space and valuable time. They specialize in storage and organization exclusively (plus gift wrap and boxes -- which technically is "gift storage") and sell a broad range of solutions to solve your organizational conundrums. And it is a perfect place for a sometimes anal/organization person like me. Don't know what to do with the lids of your pots? They have a number of pot lid organizers. Do you spend hours searching for matching shoes or socks. They have solutions for that too! Is your mail piling up on every free surface you have? Not a problem, The Container Store has many different solutions for you. And while some of the things they sell are not the cheapest that you might find, you can be sure that they are high quality and that the store has the broadest selection of options you will find anywhere.

At any rate, I got a call back from The Container Store in late January to come interview for a part time position. Although, at this point, any work I did there would just reduce the amount I would get in unemployment, (what a dilemma --- do no work and make $x or work part-time and still make $x) I decided to still interview because 1)I knew they offered health insurance and other benefits to part-time employees, 2) there is a GREAT employee discount and 3) I actually suspected that having something to do during the week outside of the house might actually make me more productive when I was back in the house.

Now, I have never worked in retail before but this was not seen as a drawback at The Container Store. They just viewed me as a person that they didn't have to untrain from the "typical retail mindset." I knew that I liked their products but I didn't realize how different they really were as a company until I started interviewing and learning about the company

A little history
The Container Store was started in 1978 by it's two founders, in Dallas. At that time, they were focused on providing commercial storage and organization products, such as dairy milk crates and Metro commercial shelving, things that normal consumers couldn't readily get, to those consumers. Everyone thought that they were crazy, that they couldn't possibly build a successful business model for a store that sold boxes. But they remained dedicated to the idea and have since built a $ million private company that is run based on the personal principles that have meant something to the founders since high school.

Their principles
The Container Store runs it's business based on certain core principles that address everything from relationships to manufacturers, to how they communicate with and treat employees to customer service. They work directly with many of their manufacturers as partners, even placing orders during a manufacturers low season to help them maintain their business. They believe in fully training each employee so that they fully know how to do each aspect of their job before they are allowed to do it on their own. They also believe in training all employees on all aspects of running the store -- from truck to sales. They are very selective about the people they hire, believing that a great employee equals 3 good employees, and, as a result, they believe at compensating them on a higher scale than typical retail jobs. They also believe in communicating store level and company level goals, metrics etc to all levels of employee, whether full or part time as well as fully training each employee so that they know how to do each part of their job before they do it. Also, they believe in being contributing parties to the communities that they are in and donate 10% of the opening weekend proceeds from a new store to a local charity. And most importantly, they believe in providing excellent, proactive service to their customers. Yes, they do have sales goals but the viewpoint is that if they do all these other things well, then the sales goals will come naturally as each employee feels empowered and has a sense of ownership. All these things have given them a place in the top 20 of Fortune's Top 100 Companies to Work For list every year since they became eligible to compete in 2001, ranking #1 in 2001, #2 in 2002 and 2003 and #3 in 2004. You can learn more about the company here.

They were interested in hiring new people to help support a new stocking and merchandising process they are trying out and I decided to join the team. So I have spent the past 2 weeks, coming in at 5am 2 days a week to learn the truck and merchandising process. This includes unloading the truck, sorting merchandise, unpacking the merchandise and putting it on the shelves. If you have ever been to a store, you know how amazingly clean, organized and fully-stocked the shelves always are. I now know how they get that way. There is definitely no lull in activity, which is actually good since, if you have to be up at 5am, you want to be busy so you will stay awake! And, I know I can skip my workout on these days. It's fun though and the people are all really cool. I want to keep working there after I start my new full-time job and with the process change and the slower schedule through April, I think it will be pretty managable. After all, I have a bunch of things I want to buy with my employee discount!

And oh yes, the 44th store opened in Little Rock, Arkansas this weekend. So, if you are in the Little Rock area, stop by and check it out! Other new stores are planned for Plano, TX, Scottsdale, AZ, Edina, MN & Cincinnati, OH. Find info about current store locations here.

That's one sweet Smokin Rasta Cat!

So I recall a few months ago reading a post by Afrobella on her blog about her love for flats. It was quite an empassioned and complete recommendation of a number of fashionable flat shoes. I myself am very comfortable in heels unless I am wearing flip flops on the beach or around the house.
But I did remember one particular pair of flats that she mentioned that I thought were really cute! So, I looked around for them online and couldn't find a pair anywhere in my size. It fact, it seemed as though they were discontinued/ So, I put it out of my mind.

Fast forward to my trip to LA in September. P and I were doing a little browsing at the Loehman's in Burbank and we were looking at the shoe section and there they were...... Sugar Shoes Smokin Rasta Cats, in exactly my size! So, of course, I had to buy them! And here they are....

I haven't actually worn them out but I think that they are so cute! I also found a pair of lavender Pumas in a style that I love (and have 3 other pairs in) in my size as well. It was like shoe nirvana!

My new purchase....

I decided that I am sick of having black luggage that it is hard for me to pick out from all the other black suitcases at baggage claim. So I went in search of a more colorful option! Others are on to this and there seem to be some popular colors that have become prevalent on the carousels these days, namely red or royal blue. I was looking for something more distinctive. I saw a light blue set but knew that they would become filthy after the first trip or two... So I continued my search, on and off, until I found them! There they were... sitting there in the front of the store at TJ Maxx. They were calling my name and I had to have them! A set of wonderful looking ballistic nylon PURPLE luggage.

Now anyone who knows me knows that I have a weakness for purple. And I admit, things just loom better to me in purple, which I understand is not entirely rational. And it is not all shades of purple. I prefer plum toned purples as opposed to grape toned ones, or in other words, purples with more red than blue. And I am a relatively recent liker of lavender since I am just getting over my general dislike for pastel colors. Okay, enough of the purple talk. Here is my new luggage!

Now why, you ask, am I buying new luggage????