Picture Me Portrait Studio (CPI) |
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Consumer reviews about Picture Me Portrait Studio (CPI) |
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Past Associate
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Dec 13, 2011
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Unprofessional, shady practices
I was SPS but from what I read here all the CPI Corp. stores/studios are Awful to the employees ~ Horrible company to work for and just as bad for the customers. I was hired on as a PART TIME associate last spring. I had just had a baby and was breast feeding when I started my job there. (This is relevant b/c of what happened next) I was "trained" maybe 2 days after starting with the company before being left alone in the studio. My manager Jamie was one of the ones that doesn't answer the phone when you call with a question. I hadn't been trained properly on the SAS (register) and had a lot of questions which went un-answered. She was also rude with customers, on occasion yelling at them and just putting out a very angry rude persona. Now, two weeks after I started working my manager started having me stay late. This wouldn't have been a problem if she hadn't MADE ME CLOCK OUT FIRST!!! The first time it happened I was there 15 minutes after I clocked out. Then it became an hour and once even 2 hours OFF THE CLOCK! When I called corp. they said I had to be able to prove that I was in the store working or there was nothing they could do. After working there for roughly 3 weeks my manager was called to another store. (At this time it was just the 2 of us working, one other girl who was available only one day a week) I was thrown into the role of "acting-store manager" with the same MINIMUM wage pay. And had to work open to close 4-5 days a week. I asked for help with equipment, training and begged for her to hire some help but it never happened. I worked 45-55 hour weeks, worked through lunch and well after closing time b/c even though I was alone in the store we still had to schedule closing appts.( I had to stop breast feeding b/c there just wasnt enough time to pump or feed. ) It was work, sleep, work. My husband became frustrated with my absence so I continued to ask for hire help but this went unacknowledged. I asked the regional and district managers for help but all I got from them was the District manager (LeDawn) saying that if I ever went over her head to Regional again that she would fire me herself. I finally left the company when my manager called me on a weds night after closing to tell me she had changed the schedule and that I was to work on Thursday morning (open to close)... less than 12 hours away. I told her I couldn't do it b/c I had an appt in the morning and she said ok. When I got there the next afternoon for my originally scheduled shift she was typing a "Write-Up" into the system for me. She said I hadn't shown up for my scheduled shift. Even though she knew that I wasn't coming in for it she called it a "no-call no-show". I quit the next day. Since then I have tried to schedule appointments with the company for my children's picture and our family portrait but my calls have went unanswered and my messages are never returned. ~Harrisonburg Va.
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Kylene
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Dec 14, 2011
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Unprofessional, shady practices
I too have been employed with CPI & I have given all of myself, even while going through chemotherapy. I never missed 1 day that I was scheduled to work & I on my days off...we get the picture! I found out that as of January of this year (2011), there is a class action suite against CPI.
Go to ripoff reports.com & enter in CPI. I think it is time that we all take a stand & put CPI in their place!
Fedup
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summernivens
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Jan 29, 2012
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Employee Treatment
I began working seasonally for CPI in october. I am a college student. When I was hired, I was told my school schedule would be honored and that I was only PART TIME. I live in a city with 2 studios, and I bounce between the studios as the only non-manager employed. For two studios, its the managers and myself. That's it. They get in trouble for overtime, but there isn't another option or employee available.
The expectations of CPI are way too demanding. Clock in, but not early. No, you have to count your register, be on a conference call, and maybe even have an appointment all at the same moment. Book no less than 7 sits a day. Call every customer who has pictures not delivered- even if you've called them 6 times and are one call away from restraining order material. Call all appointments, but God help you if they don't all answer. In between sits, of course. Stay out on the carpet line for any time not spent in session. Generate a minimum of 25 "leads" per day. By leads, they mean offer people free portraits. Take the free sessions, enhance every portrait, take 7 poses, go over ONLY THE MOST EXPENSIVE package, even if the sale sign and free offers are what the customer came strictly to purchase. After giving at least 25 people a voucher for free sessions, add your sales. Have you made an obscene amount of money? No? Well, you will be reprimanded. Slow day? Nobody wants to take pictures? Scheduled appointments don't show or answer/return calls? Your fault. You will be written up. Oh, and the studio managers can make up policies and prices to suit themselves, so if you deal with a customer who was given some bull made up by the manager, good luck! Turn away a customer after you've clocked out? Write up! Don't write out 'pencil talk' to upsell every session, even with PSC loyalty members there for a free 8x10? Write up! Ignore a customer? Write up. Take time away from a session to greet another customer waiting impatiently? Write up. Answer the phone when studio is too busy? Write up. Not answer the phone when you're the only one working and you have 6 appointments, all present? Write up. Have an appointment show up the minute you close, stay, sell, and leave 30 minutes late? WRITE UP.
F*** this place, seriously. When they hire someone else to relieve my SM's, I will leave. But as my studio managers are decent and only a notch above me on the totem pole, I would not leave them hanging like that until someone can replace me.
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CPIs_A_JOKE
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Feb 20, 2012
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Unprofessional, shady practices
I worked for CPI 3 yrs and I currently had an incident where I got a mystery call and its against company policy to ever refuse a customer. During the middle of a session and one in waiting (with 2 screaming kids) we are required to answer the phone even while busy. Well this "customer" wants to come in a get pictures taken. I tell her it may be a wait but we can try and get her in at adecent time. She ask what time I say 3:30 available and shes get ruder! "well that doesnt work what about 7?" I say we close at 7 so if your not here by then we will be closed but if its more convient our other location is town may not be booked would like me to call and find out ... she says "are you saying no me and refusing to schedule me" I said no ! I was suggesting more convience to you so you wouldnt have to wait while I take my other appts. ... so after about 15 minutes of this she spends another 10 minutes tryin to convince me to say no I cant get you in then she finally tells me she is a DM she then proceeds to raise her voice at me and tell me Im the reason the company is in a 30% deficit...(even though my studio is number one in the district) I said no its in a deficit because I have people playing games on the phone while I have two other real paying customers here! She tell me that because it wasnt a direct yes then I was basically saying no... even though I NEVER said noand that by not saying yes I refused the customer!! HOW IS THAT LEGIT!! This company is a joke and Im OVER IT so go ahead fire me ... make my day!!
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sm pmp
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Nov 15, 2012
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District Managers
I am a employee with this company and I can tell you all how much of a joke it is to work with this company. First off I have had three different district managers. The last two were horrific and should not be in charge of anyone let alone an entire district. I was treated like crap if I could not sell a 200 package to each and every customer I would even get a verbal warning and threatened with a corrective action. I am a people person and the only reason I stay with this company is because I love taking pictures and creating lasting memories for my customers. I do not push my customers into spending large sums of money and I listen to what they want. This company wants us to have a customer for every single hour we are open, god forbide that we can not get everyone out in a hour. The people who run this company need to be fired and replaced with people who actually care. I was pregnant and spotting and when I called my district manager Terri Alleman telling her the situation she told me I could not leave because I was needed to stay since I was the studio manager. F*** that shit i left because my child is more important than a job. I got written up for it as well. And this dumb ass bitch gets promoted to Region Director. I can not believe they would promote someone who treats their employees in such a disgraceful way and gets away with it. I get a new District Manager and she is just as bad I am having car trouble and since I live over an hour away from my job I can not come in. I call her the required 2 hours before scheduled shift and explained that something is going on with my car and it is not turning on. She has the nerve to tell me well you need to call a cab because you have to be there. A cab are you f-ing serious I live over an hour away and you want to pay a cab I can not afford that. She knows that I am having one of my employees go in for me and she writes me up I call the rd which at the time I did not know was my previous dm to discuss the situation the rd tells me that I was the one who was wrong and the write up would stay. This company is a joke and I will make sure everyone knows how much of a f*** up it is and how badly the bosses treat their employees. Terri Alleman and Lezlie Jones you are both cunts and do not need to be running any part of this company. Go to hell!
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