This Job's a Shopping Spree
Sandra Bachmann knows what's in stores-she's paid to pose as a customer
By Betty Cortina
Oprah Magazine, September 2000
NAME Sandra Bachmann
AGE 39
CITY Chicago
JOB Mystery shopper
WHAT SHE DOES Goes “undercover” as a customer at stores like Victoria's
Secret, Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn, armed with a list of questions from
the retail companies that contract her: Were the salespeople at the store helpful
or pushy? Were the medium-size blouses stacked in neat piles, or were they strewn
about? Was the merchandise under the sale sign really on sale? She e-mails her
responses in a two-page report within 24 hours of each store visit.
BIGGEST CHALLENGE “I have to be very discreet,” says Bachmann, who
slips into dressing rooms or finds other quiet spots in which to take notes.
HOURS Part-time. Bachmann visits five to seven stores per month, staying 20 to
30 minutes at each.
SALARY Up to $100 per store visit.
PERKS Sometimes Bachmann gets to keep the merchandise she buys while she's posing
as a customer. She's taken home everything from fine china to a new car muffler.
QUALIFICATIONS Must be a finicky shopper. “ I had always been the kind
of person who goes shopping in a store and says, “If I was in charge, this
and that would be different.'”
BONUS “I've been back to some of the stores and seen how, within a few
weeks. They've made im and treat consumers better.”
TO FIND A JOB LIKE THIS Visit the Website of Feedback Plus,
Inc. (www.feedbackplus.com),
the Texas-based company that contracts Bachmann and hundreds of other
mystery shoppers for retailers nationwide. Or log on to www.mysteryshop.org to
find links to other companies that offer similar employment.
