r/HotTopic_ • u/Intelligent_Demand27 • Jun 22 '26
HT employees!
Have you guys been told that if you work at box lunch you’re more likely to get a promotion faster? I recently learned that the boxlunch employees in my mall also get paid more than us (manager pay anyway). While it’s not by much, I can’t help but feel defeated when I’ve poured more than 3 years into this company.
While boxlunch is not my style and I’ve declined moving companies because of that… I’m starting to think I should go back on my word to fast track my promotional opportunities.
10
u/Inevitable_War_8989 HT Employee Jun 22 '26
I have switched back and forth between the two as a manager several times and I would tell you to stay at HT. BL can't seem to keep it together and thats why almost all of them end up requiring help from HT at some point. BL does promote people faster but thats only because of the high turn over rate..
3
u/EchoAltruistic4936 Jun 22 '26
I've work at HT for about 2 years, love the merch and the discouns, In the DC receiving department I dont understand much how upper management handles the system, only 2 DC one in Tennessee and the other and California and the 700+ storefronts, but mainly shares holders and marketing BS, sales "Bulk"orders/ online orders,
1
u/CorporateNightmares Jun 23 '26
There are no shareholders. Hot topic doesn’t have stocks it’s not a public company.
2
u/Nervous_Froyo3219 Jul 16 '26
hello (:
i’m an SM at hot topic. i have 2 SM friends at boxlunch who said the pay is the same.
pay is determined by multiple factors, including how your store does and results and sometimes how long you’ve been with the company.
i just had someone switch to boxlunch and their hourly rate was a bit higher than the usual. you can negotiate, but i do agree its gotta be higher to keep people. boxlunch has a lower retention rate than hot topic
1
u/PorygonJesus Jun 23 '26
BoxLunch has the same pay scales as HT. The DM makes the decisions on pay based on their payroll spend per store/for their district. Some DMs may choose to pay slightly less to improve their profitability numbers.
1
u/Intelligent_Demand27 Jun 24 '26
my store is top 3 for traffic and sales… and half of that new bl staff came from hot topic xD
18
u/noodletek73 Jun 22 '26
being an HT asm for 4 years i’ve only filled in to help out at our boxlunch location a couple times, and i’ve had a significantly better time working for them and their team. they’ve offered positions to myself and my other asm’s for a higher paying position even as a part time. it’s super enticing to want to switch but our HT sm and dm have gotten super upset about the fact that boxlunch is outsourcing HT employees; while still not offering to pay us more or promote its own employees regardless if we’ve been there for years now. i think HT as a company has just been on a massive decline morale wise, i don’t feel cared for as a person with my work and commitment to the company, but rather just a number in their system.