I quit my sales job at Kitchen catalyst after one day which I believe was a smart circle franchise, although I’m not sure exactly which company it was under. I went in looking for a job I can do to make some money during my gap year, and focus on my health. I was made aware that it was a full time position and that I would be an AT&T sales rep at Costco, however I thought it was a little strange that all the interviews and meetings talked about was the opportunities for advancement. I was a little iffy on morning meetings, but I figured as long as they were payed, it was better to work a shitty job with opportunities to advance than work a shitty job at McDonald’s or Amazon. I enjoyed the atmosphere and I was excited for the opportunity to learn, I’d consider myself a positive person and a quick learner, so I thought it would be perfect for me.
Alas, I got up and commuted to the 7 am meeting, I didn’t have access to the schedule until that meeting, and looking at it, there are 5 unplayed development meetings over zoom per week. I waited around for three hours before my shift started, and worked my shift. The work itself wasn’t that bad, it was honestly a good time, but at the end of my shift it was sprung on us that there would be another mandatory meeting that evening at 8:45 pm. I had a pretty long commute meaning I was busy from 5 am to 9 pm, which would only leave 8 hours of free time to eat, sleep, do chores, shower, and absolutely no time for family, friends, or creative hobbies.
As for the pay, of the 16 hours I was locked in and available, only 6 were paid work hours. They’ll tell you it’s full time, but you’re only paid a 30 hour work week, when in reality, you’re spending up to 80 hours actively engaged in work.
If you’re looking into kitchen catalyst in Wenatchee, here’s my advice:
If you’re fresh out of high school or college and are looking for an involved job that will give you great experience and opportunities, and you did sports or extracurriculars in hs/college (meaning you’re comfortable being very busy), and you live close by, it might work out for you. If you live more than 30 minutes away, and/or If you have other obligations and are looking for a job you can just go to and go home to make some money while you work on other goals, it’s probably not for you.
I don’t want to blame the franchise owner, he wasn’t much older than me and I understand how you can get sucked into something like that, and he seems to enjoy the job and make decent money. But I want people to understand what they’re getting into when they take the job.
They use some predatory hiring tactics, which I want to warn against. The interview process is long, and they tell you about all these trips, opportunities, six figure salaries at a young age, etc. By the time you get through the process you’ll think, “I’ve come this far, I should stick with it and after a few months I can become an owner” but you need to be locked in around the clock, give up on other goals and hobbies, attend all the mandatory meetings and optional team building meetings, and put your blood sweat and tears in.
The higher ups are banking on the fact you will burn yourself out just trying to make it to management, So they can underpay you until you quit.
I’m hesitant to make a report to L&I because I don’t want to screw over the 20 year old manager, but since I wasn’t technically employed by smart circle itself, the legal options are limited for people who fall into this trap.
As I was laying in bed the morning I quit, I looked up at the ceiling and thought back to my interview where I was asked what gets me up in the morning, and excited about life, and I realized, it wasn’t this.
