What it’s actually like to work at Lush

Going into Lush can often be described as an 'overwhelming' experience. Neon colours, strong smells, and copious amounts of glitter and sparkle pissing from all four walls. It's no secret that the staff can be over excited too; they seem permanently in the state that you usually get in after two blue pints at Corp. They've been described as over bearing, and had memes made about them, but I used to be one of them and I know exactly what it's like on the other side of the meme.

In general, people are excited to hear about my time working at Lush. I worked there for almost two years, and had a lot of fun, and made some amazing friends. The question I get asked most is 'what was it like to work there?' my answer is always 'great, I loved it' and there are many factors that went into it.

You always smell AMAZING

Who needs this much perfume? Me, apparently!

For real, the scent stays in your skin, and is boosted by the insane amounts of perfume you acquire when working there. Lush employees get a 50 per cent discount on all products, so it's pretty easy to go mad on spending in there.

Free products galore

We price our soap by 100g, which by trading standards means that we can't sell a piece underneath 100g. So, if a piece is undercut, it's either given to charity, or kept by a staff member to make use of it. It all went in what was called 'the staff box' which is where old testers, undercut soap, and ugly bath products went to be re-homed. I rarely left a shift without a new product.

We also gave loads of these products to charities for women, the homeless, and a whole heap of charities within the Lush network. However, it was viewed that a charity deserved full beautiful products, not the dregs of a shower gel, or body lotion. So, we kept that.

We don't work on commission

Lush staff talk to you because they genuinely want you to leave with something you'll enjoy. Plus, because of the way the team of staff is made up, there's rarely anything to do other than stir testers and keep water bowls hot. Sometimes, I didn't care if someone bought anything from me, I was just bored and wanted to have a chat to someone.

You never really 'go home'

You find yourself thinking about Lush all the time, and I mean all the time. You're surrounded by the products at home, you constantly smell it, and sometimes Lush will haunt you so much you'll even think about it when you're drunk. I did. I even sent myself a cute re-assuring message.

Christmas is hell

I started Lush, like most permanent staff, as a Christmas temp. Christmas is undoubtedly the busiest time of the year for Lush. My store was so busy that you could barely move or even stand without being in someone's way. Shifts dragged, patience was tested, and tears were shed. We all came out the other side on January 1st when the shop returned to some sense of normality again.

You learn just how fragile masculinity can be

Let me paint out a common situation for you.

Lush employee: *sees man come in* Hello! Man: I'M IN HERE FOR MY GIRLFRIEND, WHAT? MY GIRLFRIEND. I DON'T USE LUSH, IT'S FOR MY GIRLFRIEND. MY GIRLFRIEND. GIRLFRIEND.

The power to give away things for free is, frankly, overwhelming

Lush employees can give away samples or free full sized products, pretty much at will. This is a reward to customers who are extra nice, and deserve a treat. We called this a 'Random act of kindness' with the view that, if we gave someone a random act of kindness, they would pass it on to someone else and so on. This is a wonderful thing to be able to do, but it sometimes went to my head when I was bored or tired. Think Oprah Winfrey.

All the bad stuff has a silver lining

All the bad stuff is worth it. All the tears, stress and mardy customers are all worth it because in your store, you get to be a part of a big wonderful family, and you'll make friends for life. Sure, there's many flaws, and head office make some pretty stupid decisions, but that's not your problem. You're there to sell soap, and look good, honey.

I would work at Lush again, and would recommend it to anybody looking for some exciting part time work that's 'out of the ordinary' retail. My advice would be; be yourself, but set boundaries. I found myself skipping Uni a lot to go work. I'd work there again, but stick to my hours, and go home.