To work for the Organge or Blue box?

[Charles McKinley]

Hi All,

I need to pick up a part time job. Does any one have any info on which borg is a nicer place to work? Unfortnately there are no real WW stores in a decent driving distance.

Thanks,

[Joe Scarfo]

I was on the orange team for appx 18 months. I was laid off from a great telecom gig and couldn't resist the testerone pull to give it a try.

The first week was fun but I'll do everything I can to keep from going back.

I had aspirations of being more than floor help. With an MBA, having run budgets exceeding 50MM, and run teams exceeding 50 people I was qualified.

My rub was their view was "you don't know the home depot way" and it'll take at least 6 years to learn. Maybe in 18 months you can make department manager.

From that point the place become nothing more than a check.

Good Luck....

Joe

[Betsy Yocum]

Chuck - I shop mostly at the Orange box - but I'd prefer the Blue if it were closer. I know quite a few of the folks at the Orange and they are always complaining about not having enough people to do the job or about management in general. I have to admit the Orange does not have enough people - whenever I need help I have to go searching for it and that's aggravating. Most of the time, I have to enlist the help of another shopper to load a lumber cart and then get someone in the parking lot to help unload it. I recently shopped for a dryer (yes I know, lumber and dryers don't go together - but I was desperate.) - it took three hours to get it loaded on a truck to go home. In large part that delay was finding an employee who could use the lift truck to get the dryer off a high shelf.

However, my experience with Blue is that their stores are well lit, well organized, you can always find a lumber cart and someone to help you load and unload. That said, the Orange has a great stock plan for part timers - you don't get an employee discount - you get stock after a probationary period. I know several long term employees who have well over $1,000,000 in stock. I don't know about Blue's benefits. I believe the hourly rates are pretty comparable.

I also think the lumber at Blue is a better quality - but Orange is working on that. I also drive the extra distance if I need instruction of how to do a home repair, especially plumbing and electrical. Seems Blue has done a better job of hiring people who have done the work and can tell you about it.

Just my opinion - but hope it helps.

[Jim Becker]

In my area, Orange is a much better place to shop and if I really, really had to work retail again (I hope it never comes to pass...) I suspect I'd pick the one that I prefer to shop at. Blue is nice, but just doesn't carry as good an assortment of "real building" things as Orange does, at least around here. Further, there are about a dozen Orange stores within 40 minutes of my house as compared to three Blue stores...

[Ken Garlock]

I have a friend who was also caught up in the Telecom collapse about 1 1/2 years ago. He looked all over the Dallas area for any kind of job which took advantage of his experience, but could not find one.

Last summer a new HD was being built one the west side of McKinney, and he hired in there. He is happier than a pig in mud. He very much likes the job. Working the the kitchen cabinet department, he gets to design kitchens for customers. Being a fellow in the over 55 age group, he was impressed with the health care package.

I have to travel 14 miles to the nearest Lowes store in Allen. The store is very nice and there always seems to be people around to assist you. I have never had a problem getting a sheet of plywood ripped. I like the "Customer needs assistance in xxxxx" paging system. I am sorry to say I can't give you a recomendation from a person who works there....

[Harish C. Mathur]

I havn't worked at either place -- If they have employee discounts, let me know where I need to go to sign up for a part-time job!!!. I do have a lot of respect for Orange. In my experience they always "walk the talk" with respect to customer service. Hopefully, they treat their employees as well.

[Rich Konopka]

Hi All,

I need to pick up a part time job. Does any one have any info on which borg is a nicer place to work? Unfortnately there are no real WW stores in a decent driving distance.

Thanks,

My nephew works for HD and at 28 he is moving up quickly. He recently was promoted to ASST Manager and his enthusiasm and degree has helped him. He gets decent pay and benefits and he realizes that it is not the end all. As for a part time position focus on meney and the people you will be working with. And realize it is only a P/T positition and try to have fun.I'm sure there will be some customers who will appreciate your assistance.

[Don Selke]

Here in Chandler AZ, there are three Orange stores within five miles of my house. I have never worked at a orange or blue store but when ever I go to one I always see new employees. This has to tell you something about management.
The thing I do not like about Orange is the automatic stations that they installed for check out. More then half the time you go there the machine will not register the item cost or they have to have a cashier enter the amount manually. This seems like a waste of time to me.
The Blue store is more organized but it does not feel right to me. They have a very poor lumber department but I have to admit that there tool department has a very large variety of tools. Do not buy low cost tools any more so I do not shop for tools there. I am going the Festool route now. I see new faces here also whenever I decide to visit the store.
I know that this does not help with your decision on where to work but just wanted to let you know my feelings towards both.

[James Carmichael]

Just my "thumb-in-the-wind" analysis, I do prefer the orange for the most part for product and selection, but the blue seems to have a better culture when it comes to their employees, the just seem friendlier, happier, and more helpful.

I think this comparision sums it up: awhile back, I was using tons of 3/4" birch ply as I went through a steep learning curve and butchered some sheets :rolleyes:

I went to Orange more than once and sorted through their stacks of 4x8. Often, 2 or 3 orange-clad people at a time would stand and watch me. I almost think they are trained to not offer help unless asked.

Contrast to Blue: Multiple employees asked if I needed help, and assisted loading on my truck without my having to ask or wait for someone to show. They also had better attitudes and did not act annoyed at having to help as with orange. Downside: once I started cutting their 3/4" birch ply, it was junk, badly undersided and full of voids.

With Orange and Blue: Good luck getting any information over the phone :rolleyes:

[Carl Eyman]

The daughter of a friend graduated with a degree in "Interior Design". It is a 5 year degree very similiar to architecture. She couldn't find a job with an architectural firm and finally went to work for Lowe's just to earn rent money. After she was there a short while somebody took a look at her resume and now she is their kitchen design specialist. Her commissions are providing her a very attaractive income and she likes what she is doing.

May not happen for everyone, but nice to know it can happen to someone.

[Greg Mann]

Sounds like blue or orange depends on the store and its management. Either one could be good or bad. Maybe you need to ask employees at the stores you have in mind and get a feel for what they like, don't like, what mangement is like, etc. That might help you decide. In the end it sound alot like experiences we have all had. It is what you make it of it.

I say this just a little more cautiously than I used to because I have learned that really good people can get dumped on through no fault of their own. Good luck with you decision and let us know how it works out.
Greg

[Charles McKinley]

Thank you all for your replys. The store are accrossed the street from each other about 30 miles from my house. I quess I'll have to ask some of the employees there how much they like it there, perks etc.

I definately like Orange better for materials. The pople at Lowes didn't even know what MDF was and no they didn't have it. Neither have MDO.

Thanks again,

[Rich Konopka]

The pople at Lowes didn't even know what MDF was and no they didn't have it. Neither have MDO.
That is a reason why you go to Lowes and let them know that when you hand your application to the manager. I bet you would be hired on the spot !!

[Jack Young]

A couple of years ago, I worked for the largest Orange shop in the SW Beltway area, part-time and for about nine months. Made quite a few friends there and did a good job in the area of small tractors, lawn mowers, and outdoor equipment. Many of the folks there at the time were hired when the emphasis was on customer assistance and help...and knowing something. During the nine months, a new manager came in and began a real drive to the bottom line concerns and the character of the whole place began to change. That shop today harbors maybe five of the really good former people, and the rest are now basically new people who know little and/or are seemingly not motivated in the least.

On the other hand, a new Orange opened in Manassas, which is an entirely different experience. The top guy in tools and hardware from the first mentioned store is there now, and says it's an entirely different kind of place in every respect. He's quite happy. My shopping experience there suggests it is really emphasizing customer service.

I do think it is a matter of individual stores and management philosophy. I know that I would not even consider the one where I worked before. It's but a shadow of what it once was and that is felt by everyone I know there.

Jack Young

[Perry Schmidt]

I got to know quite a few of the Orange workers quite well during remodelling. Quite a few of them left for the Blue box when it opened across the street. Talked w/ one of them some time after he started and his comments follow - take it w/ grain of salt since he was currently working for Blue.

What he said was that the Orange was trying to reduce it's full time people so they didn't have to pay as many benefits. And the particular store was 'very agressive' in reducing hours of many people so they had less full time people. The blue box, on the other hand treated it's employees much better and had better benefits than Orange. He worked at both and was much happier with Blue than Orange.

I've seen the turn-over that this particular orange box quite high. It USE to be a great store - LOTS of good people and knowledge at that store. Then it went down hill - about the same time many of the folks I knew defected to Blue. And (go figure) the Blue store got a lot better, and the orange worse. What I don't know if this was a tactic taken by the individual store or 'the company line'.

Again, take this w/ a grain of salt, given Orange had obviously POed the guy I talked to. But I saw nothing that the stores were doing from the customer perspective that disagreed with anything he said. Turn-over at Orange is still a lot higher than Blue. That in itself says something.

Hope that helps.

Perry

[Randy Moore]

I work P/T at the blue box in Olathe. I like it there but the money is not the best. As a P/Ter I can get health insurance, 401k, stock options and everyone gets 10% off on all purchases. Every store is different, go talk to the people who work there. The store manager might be a real PAIN IN THE A??

Randy

[Charles McKinley]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I need to go and talk with some of the people at each store.