In 2013 I am continuing my series of blogs that feature gap’s retail data collectors and for my first one of of the year, I move from our husband and wife duo in Seattle, to Minda, our collector in Tampa, FL. Minda has been fun to work with, and from what I can tell, and as you can probably tell from her picture, she seems like she has a very fun personality.
Location: Beautiful, sunny Tampa, FL
Q: How long have you been working with gap?
A: 1 ½ years
Q: How did you get involved with gap?
A: My background is in print advertising sales. With the change in advertising formats and of course the economy, good advertising sales positions are rarely available. To find employment, I decided to look for other ways to make money and wanted a part time position to supplement my income. I found the ad for this job on Craigslist and started shortly after.
Q: What is your favorite part of the job?
A: I love the flexibility of the position and that when I see a really good deal on a product I can tell my friends about it. Also, this job does make a big difference in my lifestyle and fills time. I hope to have it a long time.
Q: What is your favorite product category to collect and why?
A: Cameras because my daughter is a photographer.
Q: What is your favorite store to visit and why?
A: Sears; the prices seem to be fair and they don’t do the price hiking/sale thing. I also like that it is in the mall.
Q: What is something that you’ve learned about retail and consumer electronics through working with gap?
A: The pricing practices. A product may be priced to look as if it is on sale, but often times the price is increased and discounted, and with that discount it is the price it originally was the week before.
Q: What is the strangest incident to happen to you while collecting?
A: All the stores and their employees know what I am doing so they pretty much say hi and leave me alone. A lady did ask me what the application for price comparison was. I told her I didn’t work for the store and she said she saw me entering info and just assumed that’s what I was doing.
Q: Share something interesting about yourself: Hobbies? Family? Other Job? Kids? Pets? Anything!
A: I have been in Tampa for 5 years and love it here. I moved here after my beloved husband passed away. I enjoy going to the beaches often, the sunsets here are beautiful. Having been laid off from my full time position in June, I am presently working another part time job while looking for a full time position. I am also considering taking classes in social media this fall. I enjoy going to listen to the local bands play around town. I have a wonderful daughter who graduated from the Academy of Arts University in San Francisco. She still lives in San Francisco and is a photographer.
We have really enjoyed having Minda on our team of collectors and as always, I really enjoyed putting this blog together because I got to know more about her. I’m sure she is enjoying the warm weather in Tampa while we here in San Diego have been freezing (all relative of course!)
