Sales Tigers
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Inge
03 Augustus 2015 | Australië, Melbourne
So it's been a while… and as usual, time flies. I can hardly believe we've been in Melbourne for six months now!
No, it's definitely not what I expected, or let's say, hoped for, but it became our life and it's a very happy life :)
I'll just try to explain briefly what I did hope for…. I guess a more tropical environment, a real beach, a vibrant, cultural city.
Oh for sure it's tropical, from November till March, and I've probably chosen the wrong city, cause people keep telling me that Sydney, Cairns, Byron Bay (almost any other Australian city) has a much better climate.
Yes, you'll find 'beach' in St. Kilda, but it's mostly a sandy stroke, a few meters wide, and not a coconut or ice cream guy in sweaty clothes to be found.
I guess you can call the city vibrant. There's lots of things happening in the center of Melbourne; it's full of students from all over the world, hasty people going to their work, homeless begging for money, and even yellow cabs – but real culture…. Hmm… I'm not sure if huge, modern shopping malls and one amazing Victorian Library make up for much culture.
It reminds me in many ways of the United States – Macca's (as they call Mc Donalds), KFC and Hungry Jacks (Aussie Burger King) to be found on every corner; a very large fastfood environment, and on the other side so many gyms (open 24/7), personal trainers and Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian and all calories to be found on the menu – and I guess also in many ways of the English people, even though I've only met a few and I've never been to England.
In the evenings you'll find lots of young Australian girls with heavy make-up, in way tooo short mini dresses – yes, even in winter – on their super high heels, moving around the center from bar to bar. They're so 'exposed' (read: nude) and I'm sure my father would've never let me leave the house like that!
I like the following quote from John Lennon and I guess it's a penny for my thoughts:
"Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans"
There's so much to say about Australians, but are they really Aussies?
Aboriginals had the continent to themselves for 50.000 years. Today they make up less than 3 percent of the population (source: National Geographic).
When I'm at work in Melbourne Central shopping center the variety of people that pass me is indescribable. Do Aussies live in a fairy tale? Are they really spending $1200 on skin care? Really…..?
Before we moved to Melbourne I thought I would just work for six months to a year in a nice coffee place/bar by the beach, no worries, just making some money to live and travel in Australia, and that's what I started doing.
I had fun, met a lot of new people and learned that Aussies don't think the same way about food & wine as I do, don't tip and foremost that their coffee culture is amazing and horrible at the same time. In Australia there's no such thing as a coffee, a cappuccino or a tea….. Nooooo, every cup of "3/4 soy cap with skim milk and extra HWOS (hot water on side)" looks like a work of art, and baristas stand in line to create them. Imagine that I was taking these orders all day long!
A few months later a few things just kind of came together. As we've been living in a company house since our arrival to Melbourne, I always heard stories about sales, funny customers and them spending thousands of dollars on cosmetics and I guess I got a bit curious. Was that something that I could do…? Would I be good at it…?
Now, three months later I can honestly say WAUW…. Thinking back of Amsterdam, when Rotem just arrived and started working in sales immediately – selling toys back then. Only now I understand what he meant when he was having 'a hard day'.
I had easy talking, I was doing my job and I got paid nonetheless, but in this type of sales there is no base payment, you work for yourself, and the only thing you earn is a percentage of what you're able to sell! And I'm not saying there's no money to make, but imagine how energetic you must be, day in, day out.
We all know 'these people' approaching you on the street or in a mall, trying to sell you something. Do you even look at them? Smile to them…? Wish them a good day…
To be honest, I think most of the times, I didn’t even give them a 'no thanks', and now I'm one of them!
The first month I found myself in a rollercoaster of emotions; high in the sky from the adrenaline of selling and just a moment later almost crying on a bench, frustrated, angry, upset, and definitely not able to sell a single thing. It's hard work, it takes loads of energy, but it's fun and it's definitely the most rewarding job I've ever had.
I guess the hardest part for me are the real 'money sharks', hungry for more... more money. For sure I need money, we all do in this world, but for me it's not the main reason that I'm doing it. I like to work and be in contact with people, as did I in hospitality all over the world. And so it's hard for me to work with/next to (after all, we're all competitors) dominant people, that seem only to care about the money.
I've been thinking a few times; that's it, now I'm done, I quit. But on the other hand I'm grateful for this opportunity, something new to learn. How many of us wouldn't like to learn or do something new, but we don't get the opportunity, because others are more experienced and we don't have the recommended papers/studies etc. Well, back to why I like the Israeli's, it seems they’re always creating new opportunities, and they welcome you with open arms to join them.
Yesterday for example, we were three people, working in Chadstone. It is the biggest shopping centre of Australia and only a 10-minute drive from our house (so very convenient). All three we were having a hard day, until one of my colleagues found this Australian lady and sat her down in our stand for about 30 minutes. I saw he kept showing her more and more products - don't forget we have exfoliators, day and night creams, eye gels, deep wrinkle removers, serum, masks and I'm only talking about the face right now! She left with two bags, full of organic products, after paying $1200!!!
This proves that no matter how hard our day is, we just need to find that one customer, paying our bills….
So yes, there's heaps of money to make in this business, but I've got a lot to learn still!
Rotem and I have decided to rent a campervan at the end of this month, to travel from here up the east coast in the direction of Cairns. We haven't really seen anything of Australia yet, so it's time, after six months of hard work haha…
Of course, we've been to Fiji, let's not forget! Wauw, we've spent 10 days at Fiji, island hopping, and it was amazing!! So beautiful, so much nature, and most of all, a lot of luxury for us… from resort to resort… great food, cocktails… and a lot of snorkeling! It wasn't nearly long enough those 10 days, but as Fiji is quite expensive, it was perfect! A once in a lifetime thing!
So back to our trip, from here up the coast to see all the places everybody is always talking about; Sydney, Byron Bay, Gold Coast, Brisbane, Whitsundays. I look very much forward to it, as it is a new experience for both of us; camping with a campervan. We'll probably travel for three weeks and then stay for another three weeks in Brisbane. From there we'll fly back to Melbourne to work during the Christmas season, which everybody is saying, must be crazy times!
We've got no plans for Christmas and the New Year yet, but we are talking about moving to/working at the Philippines for a few months…. And one thing is for sure, with Pesach/Pasen/Easter we'll be in Israel!
Keep you posted! X
No, it's definitely not what I expected, or let's say, hoped for, but it became our life and it's a very happy life :)
I'll just try to explain briefly what I did hope for…. I guess a more tropical environment, a real beach, a vibrant, cultural city.
Oh for sure it's tropical, from November till March, and I've probably chosen the wrong city, cause people keep telling me that Sydney, Cairns, Byron Bay (almost any other Australian city) has a much better climate.
Yes, you'll find 'beach' in St. Kilda, but it's mostly a sandy stroke, a few meters wide, and not a coconut or ice cream guy in sweaty clothes to be found.
I guess you can call the city vibrant. There's lots of things happening in the center of Melbourne; it's full of students from all over the world, hasty people going to their work, homeless begging for money, and even yellow cabs – but real culture…. Hmm… I'm not sure if huge, modern shopping malls and one amazing Victorian Library make up for much culture.
It reminds me in many ways of the United States – Macca's (as they call Mc Donalds), KFC and Hungry Jacks (Aussie Burger King) to be found on every corner; a very large fastfood environment, and on the other side so many gyms (open 24/7), personal trainers and Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian and all calories to be found on the menu – and I guess also in many ways of the English people, even though I've only met a few and I've never been to England.
In the evenings you'll find lots of young Australian girls with heavy make-up, in way tooo short mini dresses – yes, even in winter – on their super high heels, moving around the center from bar to bar. They're so 'exposed' (read: nude) and I'm sure my father would've never let me leave the house like that!
I like the following quote from John Lennon and I guess it's a penny for my thoughts:
"Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans"
There's so much to say about Australians, but are they really Aussies?
Aboriginals had the continent to themselves for 50.000 years. Today they make up less than 3 percent of the population (source: National Geographic).
When I'm at work in Melbourne Central shopping center the variety of people that pass me is indescribable. Do Aussies live in a fairy tale? Are they really spending $1200 on skin care? Really…..?
Before we moved to Melbourne I thought I would just work for six months to a year in a nice coffee place/bar by the beach, no worries, just making some money to live and travel in Australia, and that's what I started doing.
I had fun, met a lot of new people and learned that Aussies don't think the same way about food & wine as I do, don't tip and foremost that their coffee culture is amazing and horrible at the same time. In Australia there's no such thing as a coffee, a cappuccino or a tea….. Nooooo, every cup of "3/4 soy cap with skim milk and extra HWOS (hot water on side)" looks like a work of art, and baristas stand in line to create them. Imagine that I was taking these orders all day long!
A few months later a few things just kind of came together. As we've been living in a company house since our arrival to Melbourne, I always heard stories about sales, funny customers and them spending thousands of dollars on cosmetics and I guess I got a bit curious. Was that something that I could do…? Would I be good at it…?
Now, three months later I can honestly say WAUW…. Thinking back of Amsterdam, when Rotem just arrived and started working in sales immediately – selling toys back then. Only now I understand what he meant when he was having 'a hard day'.
I had easy talking, I was doing my job and I got paid nonetheless, but in this type of sales there is no base payment, you work for yourself, and the only thing you earn is a percentage of what you're able to sell! And I'm not saying there's no money to make, but imagine how energetic you must be, day in, day out.
We all know 'these people' approaching you on the street or in a mall, trying to sell you something. Do you even look at them? Smile to them…? Wish them a good day…
To be honest, I think most of the times, I didn’t even give them a 'no thanks', and now I'm one of them!
The first month I found myself in a rollercoaster of emotions; high in the sky from the adrenaline of selling and just a moment later almost crying on a bench, frustrated, angry, upset, and definitely not able to sell a single thing. It's hard work, it takes loads of energy, but it's fun and it's definitely the most rewarding job I've ever had.
I guess the hardest part for me are the real 'money sharks', hungry for more... more money. For sure I need money, we all do in this world, but for me it's not the main reason that I'm doing it. I like to work and be in contact with people, as did I in hospitality all over the world. And so it's hard for me to work with/next to (after all, we're all competitors) dominant people, that seem only to care about the money.
I've been thinking a few times; that's it, now I'm done, I quit. But on the other hand I'm grateful for this opportunity, something new to learn. How many of us wouldn't like to learn or do something new, but we don't get the opportunity, because others are more experienced and we don't have the recommended papers/studies etc. Well, back to why I like the Israeli's, it seems they’re always creating new opportunities, and they welcome you with open arms to join them.
Yesterday for example, we were three people, working in Chadstone. It is the biggest shopping centre of Australia and only a 10-minute drive from our house (so very convenient). All three we were having a hard day, until one of my colleagues found this Australian lady and sat her down in our stand for about 30 minutes. I saw he kept showing her more and more products - don't forget we have exfoliators, day and night creams, eye gels, deep wrinkle removers, serum, masks and I'm only talking about the face right now! She left with two bags, full of organic products, after paying $1200!!!
This proves that no matter how hard our day is, we just need to find that one customer, paying our bills….
So yes, there's heaps of money to make in this business, but I've got a lot to learn still!
Rotem and I have decided to rent a campervan at the end of this month, to travel from here up the east coast in the direction of Cairns. We haven't really seen anything of Australia yet, so it's time, after six months of hard work haha…
Of course, we've been to Fiji, let's not forget! Wauw, we've spent 10 days at Fiji, island hopping, and it was amazing!! So beautiful, so much nature, and most of all, a lot of luxury for us… from resort to resort… great food, cocktails… and a lot of snorkeling! It wasn't nearly long enough those 10 days, but as Fiji is quite expensive, it was perfect! A once in a lifetime thing!
So back to our trip, from here up the coast to see all the places everybody is always talking about; Sydney, Byron Bay, Gold Coast, Brisbane, Whitsundays. I look very much forward to it, as it is a new experience for both of us; camping with a campervan. We'll probably travel for three weeks and then stay for another three weeks in Brisbane. From there we'll fly back to Melbourne to work during the Christmas season, which everybody is saying, must be crazy times!
We've got no plans for Christmas and the New Year yet, but we are talking about moving to/working at the Philippines for a few months…. And one thing is for sure, with Pesach/Pasen/Easter we'll be in Israel!
Keep you posted! X
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