Employee profile
What was the name of your video store?
Blockbuster Video
Where was the store located?
Erie, Pennsylvania (United States)
When did you start working at this store?
1996
In your own words, how did you get started working in video retail? What
led you to choose the video industry, and this store in particular?
Wanted to work in a job where I actually felt like I knew what I was talking about and thought working at a video store would be incredibly easy (it is!). I didn't really have a choice in both the video industry or the store. I was looking for the first job to pay a decent wage (I was hired as an assistant manager) and they assigned me to the particular store I am in.
Describe your store - what did it look like? What were its distinguishing
features?
Wide, but not very deep. Almost all blue/grey on the walls with white particle wood shelving. Always in a constant state of disarray, especially the kids section. Not that the employees are trying to clean up, but the customers are extremely lazy and/or messy. Most distiguishing features are the huge boulbous main desk that juts out like a trapezoid and the horribly neglected red carpet. Should have been torn up and replaced years ago. Filled with snags, rips, and holes.
What were your customers like? What particularly memorable customers or events do you remember?
The regular customers are always pleasant. They know how to read you and you know how to read them. Even the rudest customers lightened up significantly once they recognized your face and what level of service you were going to get them. But, as a whole, all the customers were extremely lazy and messy. I frequently joke that I would love to go to where they work and mess everything up, hide supplies, important papers, etc. and say, "See?! How do you like it when someone screws around with your job!" Most memorable event by far was a woman who came in reeking of alcohol and showing all the sign of someone high on prescription drugs. She came in a mumbled something to me, took an advertisement from a stack we had available for the customers, and starting writing jibberish on it with her eyeliner brush. After wandering around the store, she tried to rent, didn't have a membership, claimed she was under her boyfriend's (or that's what we thought she said) but he didn't exsist in the computer, and preceded to lean against the ledge of the counter in a drugged-out/drunk stupor. Everytime myself and my co-worker tried to speak to her, she was unintelligible and mumbling. I had had enough so I called the police to take her away. After being completely non-responsive initially, she started swearing at my co-worker thinking she called the police on her (The woman kept repeating, "You whore, you slut, I hate the way that you look."). The police kept threatening to take her to jail (Police officer:"Ma'am, you can watch the Super Bowl this weekend from jail, I really don't care.") and finally dragged her away.
What was your boss like? How did he or she divide the work in the store?
My boss is fantastic to me. We get along great and have very similar mindsets. Very easy-going but still demanded a certain level of work and responsibility. Work was divided pretty much my the person running the shift. Due to the corporate nature of the store, things are pretty much hammered out in writing well before you get there.
What video formats did your store offer (i.e. VHS, Beta, Laserdisc)? Where were
different formats kept in the store?
VHS and DVD. Both were mixed together on the new release wall while half the store was VHS and the other DVD.
In addition to mainstream Hollywood movies, what other kinds of videotapes
(children's videos or X-rated tapes, for example) did you rent/sell? Where were these
videos found in your store, and how important were they to the business?
Children's videos besides regular movies. Very important, especially rental not so much sales.
What other services/products did you offer besides the rental or sale of
programs? Did this change over time?
Games (Playstation, Playstation 2, Xbox, Gamecube). Constant game selection just fluxuating with the current game systems.
Did you ever rent VCRs or other hardware to your customers? If so,
how important were hardware rentals to the business?
Rented Playstation 2s. Ended because it just wasn't profitable.
During the period that you worked at the store, what changes did you see take place?
HUGE system on how to do sales with the customers and daily paperwork/financials. Less work and and tasks were assigned to very specific times during the day. Made things much easier.
Is this store still open? If not, when did it close?
Yes.