Malled: My Unintentional Career in Retail

Caitlin Kelly has no idea what it is to work in retail.

Working one day a week, for just over two years, in a high-end store, in one of New York's most upscale malls is not "experiencing what it's like on the other side of the cash wrap". At best, what Kelly experienced was an extended research project to benefit her successful journalism career. Yet, she continously writes about the difficulty of being on your feet for such long hours (again, for one shift per week) and how dreadful her pay is for the work she puts in ($11/hour - more than I've ever made at any retail job with 12 years of experience).

However the most disturbing aspect of this memoir is her constant mention of her co-worker's ethnicites. Kelly often makes mention of her show more African-American and Latino co-workers as getting the best job they could. In one disturbing section of chapter 3, she finds it necessary to talk of the store manager's assistant's personal life, letting us all know she had a baby out of wedlock. After discovering that some co-workers may have criminal records, Kelly states "I was shocked, although maybe I shouldn't have been.". No further explaination for this statement is given and one must assume the undertone is "because they were all blacks from the Bronx".

Kelly may have done well for herself in her chosen career of journalism (this book makes it clear she loves dropping the fact that she's interviewed Presidents and the Queen of England), but writing this book was a false step. The pages reek of her racial and social privledge and prove that she is still blind to it. While she wants us to believe she is now a much more enlightened consumer, the only thing we know for sure after reading this is that she'll do anything for a scoop. show less

When her journalism career hits a rocky spot, reporter Caitlin Kelly signs on to work part-time at The North Face in a tony suburb of New York City. She soon discovers that although her background listening to people's stories, speaking multiple languages, and extensive traveling makes her a high-producing salesperson, there is an underbelly to the world of retail. From uber-wealthy but rude customers to the urban background of her co-workers, both experiences different from her own, she quickly learns that retail employement is built on the assumption that workers quit and that poor working conditions are just par for the course. Blending her personal story with research about the highly-profitable practices of retailers, Kelly creates show more an easy-to-read, compelling narrative about the hidden costs of the mall economy. Highly recommended. (48) show less

This is one of those books that is just plain needed and should be read by everyone because it applies to all of us. Clearly, because Kelly is not a full-time retail worker, she completely appreciates what those around her are trying to do but she always has in her mind that she CAN escape and she well knows that the vast majority of the workers around her really cannot.

In some sense there is a lot of repetition in the book but maybe that's exactly the point---that this point of view needs to be stated and then repeated over, and over and over. The fact that Kelly is Canadian gave her an additional view of retail when she compared Canadians and the shopping experience up there to the American version---and the ol' U.S. doesn't come out show more very well in the comparison.

The subject matter of this book is also critical right now at the time that I write this review---when labor unions are being so attacked---when labor unions are exactly what the entire retail work force needs---a unified approach that actually has some power to improve the work place and the behavior of companies towards their employees. Things have been moving in the wrong direction for far too long and far too fast. Hopefully Kelly's book will find a very large audience followed by some action. show less

In this memoir, a fifty-something journalist recounts her experiences in part-time retail work. Caitlin Kelly, having recently lost a steady job writing, turns to hourly work in a new North Face store. After landing the job and going through training, Kelly begins her “career” as a retail associate, although her time in the job really only lasts a couple of years (hardly a career). She describes the feeling of being a part of a cog in the machine of corporate owned and run business, of being a faceless employee and having to adhere to rules handed down from headquarters. Although she points to her financial struggle as a reason for seeking such menial work, Kelly has the luxury of only needing to work one shift a week, with her show more freelance journalism work and her employed fiance’s support. Throughout the book, Kelly seems to be attempting to relate to her co-workers, including those who are single parents, uneducated, or in much worse financial straits, but almost always comes off with a superior attitude, and this mars any sympathy or empathy I might have for her situation and her encounters with fellow coworkers or customers.

Overall, I enjoyed this book much less than I had anticipated. Ehrenreich’s “Nickel and Dimed” is a much more interesting and genuine recounting of a journalist in retail and hourly work. show less

Do you work retail? You should read this book. Do you shop? you should read this book. I would have rated it higher, but i did find Kelly's incredulity about the state of American retail a bit naive (read: annoying). Really? Never worked with anyone without a degree? Shocked that part time associates don't get benefits? Horrified that retail workers generally make little more than minimum wage? Where has Kelly been, an ivory tower? Regardless, Kelly's words ring true. Retail workers are cannon fodder, punching bags, assumed to be stupid, etc. For sure, some of them are. But what other business model would find 50% turnover at 90 days and almost 100% at a year acceptable? Read it.

Kelly is a journalist with several decades of experience working at papers like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. But when the recession hit she was suddenly fired and couldn't find enough stable writing assignments, so began applying for work outside her field. She took a part-time job, spending two years at North Face selling outdoor equipment and clothing, while still doing freelance journalism.
This is an interesting story, one that is as much about the recession that hit America beginning in 2007, as about Kelly's personal experience with having to look outside a field she was well established in. While it eventually gets tiring hearing her list her many talents (how often can she mention the languages she's fluent in show more and the extensive travels she's experienced), she does an excellent job in describing the financial fall of much of middle America, and the failures of so many corporate chains in providing adequate pay for their employees. show less

I had actually abandoned BJs (a local warehouse store) in favor of Costco because of the way the employees were treated. A cashier helping me at BJs was quite distressed because she was unable to leave and take a bathroom break. I'll never forget it. Costco the employees always seem happy and this books tells me why.
A thought provoking book not only about retail but serving the public in general. I would have to disagree with some of Caitlin's generalizations. While some of her nastiest customers were women, it also looks like some her nicest one were as well.