retail sales associate

delivery driver

retail store manager

warehouse worker

assistant store manager

Dreams Ltd

Worked as a driver's assistant down there. In one ear I had a bunch of guys whining about favouritism in regards to shifts and drops and in the other I had a bunch of guys whining like women about temps which they were barely any better than, guys whining about not getting hours, guys whining about getting too many hours, guys whining about the management, putting rumours around about management and drug usage and other nonsense, Some comments were fair, office staff at the time had "reserved" parking spaces, didn't like distro staff coming into THEIR area, abysmal old hat attitude really from office staff which are special in their own little minds. Warehouse staff that sit about and literally do nothing all day.

Saw alot of people come and go, alot of sackings for driving misdemeanors. Again favouritism plays its part down there. Seen guys let go for the slightest incident and others sitting on 9 points all gained through driving for Dreams backing their vans up into bollards and management going out of their way to have the van patched up and on the road without the gaffer getting a sniff of it.

In regards to the guys, some are as good as it gets. Others, speaking subjectively if I were to put myself in the place of a customer are atrocious. Routinely witnessed guys dropping off and assembling what are thousands of pounds worth of bedding only to paw them with dirty prints, assemble incorrectly, ignore obvious manufacturing faults. On items of that value this is unacceptable but the status quo of many of the guys was don't draw attention to it leave the customers with dirty, poorly manufactured products where as they should be getting new, clean and perfectly assembled. Even seen guys leaving bedding in awful condition at customer's houses and to add insult taking a tip.

Bad smoking culture in there too, nothing worse as a non smoker than having to sit in a van with a driver thats lighting up throughout the course of the drops whilst on the road in an enclosed van. Had this with 3 of their drivers during my time there, as well as being disrespectful its illegal to smoke in a work's van. Has been for some time.

As a company they have guys that go the extra mile and quite obviously have worked in harder, more involved jobs but for the most part its whiners, talkers, management which excel at them and us and even divided the shifts of driving squads into them and us through aforementioned favouritism. Also if you're good at your job in there and not one of the boys, guaranteed, you will be talked about behind your back and labelled in a negative manner.

Saw this the other day "Dreams came bottom of the pile in the 2014 Which? Magazine "Mattress Brands League Table", with a satisfaction score of just 57% - 9 points below Bensons, the next poorest. (Dunlopillo, Marks and Spencer, John Lewis and Vi-Spring scored over 80% in the same survey).".

Ties in with my experience of the products, my experience of returned mattresses/bulk of returns and my experience of building Dreams products. Designer beds, made in Taiwan. Even the TV beds look cheap.

I worked at dreams for over a year, started ok then went down hill, my nana passed and I wanted to go the funeral got told of I didn’t turn in I would be disciplined by Julian and other management, if you are in Julian bad books you definitely aren’t going to enjoy your time at dreams, the runs are ridiculous and you get told to get on with it or you will be disciplined I also got accused by a customer saying I did something when I didn’t and I got grilled and took off the road and made to feel like I was loosing my job and my mental health was shattered and got treated like a dog didn’t have a full time partner for over 6 months and if I did have a full timer I was with them for a minimum of a week! Giving you different temps who they don’t even know and just employed for the sake of needing men and it wasn’t very good especially in the pandemic you can’t talk to management over it cause they tell you basically stop moaning and get on with it! Certain people get the easy runs and the rest get left with rubbish and you sometimes don’t finish till 8/9 at night then your back in at 7 recently you have to pick your own runs when you get in and you are out of time window by the time you get to your customers, you can get good pillow talk scores but you get shafted  over by management with that also as they don’t like you making more money than they do! You have to wait over 6 weeks for a weekend off and they sometimes ask you to work it cause they give other people there holidays and haven’t got the staff! Also when you are a temp they demand you are fully flexible and if you have a day off you may as well look for a new job cause they just get rid of you, they promise you the world but in reality you get Blackpool! When having meetings you get told you won’t find a better paid job or security than dreams when you are over worked and unpaid for the amount of rubbish  you have to put up with! The contractors get treated better than the actual staff and the end of the day you have to wait for over 20 mins to get spotted off and the yard is an absolute mess! Customer details are all over the yard old beds and mattresses untidy and dangerous! If you are out on the road good luck cause you are so behind you can’t take dinner cause you are so behind you could get to your last customer over 2/3 hours out of window and you could be over an hour and half away from the depot! You get told off for your opinion on the dreams hub if you don’t agree with something on there so you have to take all the rubbish you get thrown at without saying anything otherwise you will get a telling off and given the rubbish runs and when you have a problem after 4 o’clock you may as well be on your own cause the hotline doesn’t get answered cause the management just walk out at 4, if you do get a job at Warrington dsc everything I have put the staff will tell you it’s the absolute truth! There isn’t anything training you just have to go on the road and watch the staff and if you can’t lift the stuff you get sacked pretty much

Dreams is a very enjoyable place to work, most customer interactions are very fun and engaging, it can be really quite rewarding finding someone their perfect mattress, and when people leave reviews where in some cases they mention their lives have been changed, it's a great feeling. Pay is generous and in my role I feel I am paid fairly. If you have the right attitude and commitment to self improvement, then progression opportunities are available. I went from P/T sales, to full time, to assistant manager, to store manager. Dreams also paid for me to do a part time apprenticeship alongside my role that allowed me to progress and gain qualifications.

A typical day at work is varied, some days you can be so busy and it just doesn't stop till the doors close, others can be slow.

Management is fair, for a 'sales' environment, I personally do not feel like there is intense pressure. If you commit yourself to your role and genuinely try your best and care about the customer, you are rewarded.

Dreams has a great culture, it's why I work here, previous jobs I have worked, if upper management where in the room, you didn't make a sound. Not here at Dreams! 
Dreams has a brilliant work culture, and year on year it keeps improving, they are committed to putting their people and their customers first. This is the first company I have worked for where I am known by members of the board on a first name basis, they are very approachable and don't hide behind their desks, this mentality trickles down through all levels of management. It's a very common occurrence at our conferences to see all of Dreams 'hierarchy' walking around in casual wear striking up conversations with everyone.

There really isn't cons that are specific to Dreams, more this type of role that would be the case in any of their competitors and/ or retail.

For example, It's a target driven environment, If you are not comfortable running stores with multimillion £ targets and turnover, with multiple deliverables and KPI's, the role is not for you.

If you work in a store with lower turnover, you will naturally earn less than the managers of the bigger stores around you.

Working hours are unsociable, you work weekends and bank holidays, some stores you have a late shift where you will work till 8pm, but that's retail for you! Staying after closing time to clinch last minute orders is not all that uncommon.

Career progression is good, but the only con is you have to be willing to travel away from your 'home' store.

Extremely successful company made out of talented hard working and caring people! Everyone I know is honestly, takes massive ownership and pride to make this business as it is. Pay structure for (Store)management could/should be higher, on the other hand job satisfaction and recognition is in heart of this business so I may moan about higher pay but I have never felt more appreciated and supported in retail by colleagues and bed quarter colleagues. What is different about this company: our Management truly takes in consideration, big time all feedback and concerns, like no where else: in terms of working environment, customers journey, products and future proof ideas. Management knows its people, as people in this company is key to everything so you will need to bring honesty and love not only towards your future but whole company as we all One Dream for better (future and sleep). Hardest job is take honest feedback to better yourself as self development is never easy? But boy, this is more than ordinary job can offer as feedback is always towards expanding our attitude and utilising our full capacity of our mind. In store, where I am based we lift mattresses so pump the muscle, we assemble beds ourselves and disassemble and hover and clean at the same time we take massive pride in job well done. Our daily routine is to serve every customer with Journey: Greet, Offer drink and pillow as this is massively important in case you didn't know for good night sleep and much more! We have targets and we are closely monitored to achieve them at the same time we are given so much support and development! We receive regular updates on business progress and any changes. We take pride in our communication from face to face with colleagues and customers by being clear and truthful  to having fun on our own internal app. Every customer we approach and serve we aim to give best ever experience. So you genuinely should have passion for retail and love for humans :) Come on you apply and explore to sleep better and help other Dream sweet!

worked in new Cumbernauld branch, got dismissed for reversing 4-5 feet in a cul d sac and into customers driveway, not a sole about for miles, but guy from down south snooping around at your drops and taking photographs of the street, and not folding your mirrors in when your in customers driveway, also accused of smoking in vehicle when I had witness to state that I was out side vehicle but still got dismissed, still have all paperwork from meetings and appeal letters which still tell you nothing.The guy takes photographs that a 5 year old can take blurry, out of focus, taken through his own car windscreen with the rain beating down, but still no photo of me supposedly smoking in vehicle, worked 6 days a week, long hours starting at 6am and not finishing to 8.30 pm all for single time rates, no lunch unless you eat as your driving, not shown how to build t.v beds, or other beds for that matter,oh the bonus you should get you don't unless all drivers have had no incidents and there has been no problems that month, you will never see your £150 a month bonus. if your looking for a safe and secure job then this is not the job for you, it's all take,take,take and nothing in return you get treated like a stupid 10 year old child, the management if you can call them that need a wake up call, hopefully a visit from down south without warning for a couple of days, if your face fits then your one of the boys if not your out, after being there I would not recommend this company to anyone that is looking for a full time secure permanent job as this will not be the case, also there furniture is not that good always going to customer houses to replace or take away items of poor quality. Really to sum up working for dreams would be disrespectful staff that don't have a clue and rude swearing at daily briefs to all drivers,  sorry I am not bitter but I have worked for bigger company and all their staff are treated with dignity and respect. I am now working full time and the new company is great and they cannot believe what went on at dreams.. 
IF YOU WANT A JOB DONT WORK FOR DREAMS AS IT WILL BE SHORT LIVED THIS IS NOT YOUR DREAM JOB?????

Open up-count the cash-open the computer-read emails-floor walk-look through diary.Staff briefing I.e. go through communications and memos,update on week's performance,set targets,to do list,allocate tasks.During course of day-sales floor management-monitoring performance,ensuring customer sale journey followed ,getting involved in the customer advisor's sales,hitting my own personal target,debrief at the end of the day.Other daily activities will include customer service issues,routine administration and usually in the week days, training ,coaching ,reviewing performance and action planning.
What I have learned- I am highly experienced-when I took over my last Dreams store I was given a set of keys.an alarm code,drove to the store,opened up and off I went-in retailing the products may change but the principles remain the same-the skills I have acquired mean I could go into any retailing operation and hit the ground running.
Management-set what goals you need to achieve and implement SMART actions to reach them I.e. Specific,Measurable.Agreed,Relevant and Time scale.Monitor and review performance , train and coach accordingly.I do everything I can to make a member of staff succeed in their job however if they cannot obtain the required standard you have to let them go.
Co-workers-I have worked with lots of people-I have found if you are friendly,helpful and take a genuine interest in that person you will have a good working relationship.
Hardest part of job-I would not say anything is particularly hard but there are challenges.Ultimately you want everybody working together to achieve the common goal- if you can build a good team you will be successful.
The most enjoyable part of the job-retailing generally-The buzz -when you can celebrate together hitting the targets-when as an individual you get that sale-when someone you have trained up reaches the standard required-there are lots of wins.

I applied for a part-time position shortly after starting uni to provide for myself while studying at the same time. I started with barely any sales experience whatsoever, and everything I would need to know for my job was covered in the 12-week induction period. In my experience the job was fairly flexible and the store manager would cater to my uni timetable when possible. 

For 11 months of the year the job is not particularly demanding, and the atmosphere on the store-level is very relaxed and team-oriented(coming from a newer, smaller, quieter store than most). You earn commission on sales on top of the national living wage, which can add up to a very good salary, if you're a quick learner. Even though the company has a preferred sales template ('The Journey'), you're free to do it your own way as long as you get the results. The retail roadshows hosted to introduce new product ranges can be fun (if you like loud noises, air horns and cheering), and all travel/accommodation expenses are covered, as long as you follow due process. You also get a good staff discount. 

There is a distinct disconnect between Head Office and the store level. Although head office are open about company-wide sales, delivery and factory figures, I don't really get the impression that management clearly know (or sometimes care) what actually happens in practice. Legitimate issues can be seen as a poor excuse or not even be noted at all. The quiet times in store can be very mind-numbing - there are only so many times you can straighten the bedding and plump up a pillow to keep the shop tidy. The computer systems are a bit dated and can be frustratingly slow on occasion, but allegedly there is a new tablet-based system in the pipeline.

When i first started with Dreams the company was an excellent place to work. The development of employees was actively encouraged; the commission structure was good, and management was competent and approachable. 

Upon my leaving the company had returned to the same cliquey toxic workplace that it had been many years ago and then overcame. Management are largely simply trying to advance up the career ladder so can often make decisions which do not make sense at all and may also end up result in staff being blamed for management's poor management skills. Bullying and toxic workplace behaviour was rampant in every store i worked in during my career and is largely ignored by management - particularly when it comes to shop favourites. There are no longer any valid options for personal development or progression as management don't promote staff to management in the same store they had been working in already - meaning the already limited chance of acquiring an internal promotion may mean having to move half way across the country. The commission structure has repeatedly been changed to the point that there is now very limited opportunity to make good commission compared to the same earned in competitors. The company is also focused on simplifying the role to the point that staff now recieve very little technical training as to the knowledge of and technique of selling beds and mattresses. The company now expects that staff use machines which do all the recommendations for customers without explaining why - meaning staff who have not received skilled training are left guessing. Avoid and go to a competitor for a sales job.

I have been with Dreams for about a year now and although had some initial challenges around the induction process, which I found disjoined compared to other companies I have worked for.
 Now I am settled in to my role I find working here a pleasure. I don't ever have that dread going to work feeling after a day off and I find that the Directorship have a clear vision of what they want for the business, this feeds down in the most part to the sales floor, which gives Dreams a one team one goal feel. 
I would recommend Dreams as an employer as I feel that the business cares about it's employees and treats them fairly. 
Pay is fair but could be a touch better for Store Managers as they seem to have less opportunity to increase there income than the rest of the sales team and always seem to be knee deep in admin.
Obviously this is a sales environment and this can add a certain amount of pressure to the job however I personally feel that this is handled in a fair way and my manager challenges me to do my best and improve my performance, whilst making me find my own solutions this doesn't make it feel condescending.
Working hours are good my shift is my shift there is no extra unpaid hours, if you do work extra you get paid or time lieu, Awesome!!  Work/life balance is also spot on we had a few days off before Christmas as the store was closed, back in on boxing day for sale but you didn't mind because you had time with your family pre Christmas, You can have a drink whenever you like the kettle never seems to be off in our store, just one of those little details but they count toward getting the balance right. 
All in all a positive environment to be in.
Enjoying my time with Dreams

Extremely poor management right from the very top down. Employees just have given up with offering their suggestions as management are completely not interested. Very hard labour for low pay. Month by month job gets more difficult as management demand more and more. Every driver I worked with are seeking new employment. Dreams are hemorrhaging staff at an unbelievable level, 13 full time staff in six months have left for other employment as a result. As the old saying goes, "people don't leave bad jobs, they leave bad management"! I was there for 7/8 weeks something like that as drivers assistant I was liked by all employees and had fantastic feedback from customers. One day whilst out on the road my manager called me and asked would I like to work my day off which I accepted, only to realise an hour later I couldn't as i remembered I had an appointment that day and had to visit my GP to receive my medical history as I needed it urgently, so when I told my manager I couldn't work the next day his answer was, well, you have committed to it so if you don't turn in then you're no longer required!!  So, basically when I told him at 5pm, between him and the agency, who's job it is to find a replacement, don't think 14 hours notice is sufficient!? Well, I said my goodbyes and best of luck as you're gonna need it. Now I completely understand how they go through staff, and very good staff like a hot blade through butter. Stay clear folks as your time is precious so don't waste it on this lot, I can guarantee your 'Dreams' will not come true.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Retail sales associate 112 salaries reported	£23,071 per year
Delivery driver 51 salaries reported	£14.12 per hour
Retail store manager 48 salaries reported	£35,433 per year
Warehouse worker 7 salaries reported	£12.81 per hour
Assistant store manager 18 salaries reported	£32,667 per year

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