PETCO Interview Questions & Tips

How to Get a Job at PETCO

PETCO is a major pet store chain in the United States. The first step toward finding a job is to prepare for the interview. First, applicants should study the company and learn about the products and services offered as well as company history. Candidates also need to prepare resumes to submit to begin the hiring process. In the final step of preparation, applicants should dress in business-casual attire.

What to Expect During Your Interview

For most sales floor jobs, such as sales associate, cashier, and grooming assistant positions, applicants need to come in-store and participate in one-to-one interviews. As a company with a fun and caring culture, the interview process proves relatively relaxed and conversational. In fact, many interviews start out with applicants and managers talking about their pet animals. Applicants may also expect to provide examples of past customer service success.

Sales Position Interview Questions

Traditional questions asked in the interview include:

• "Why do you want to work for PETCO?"
• "What makes you the right candidate for the job?"

Interviewing for a Position in Management

Management hopefuls also participate in informal interviews with PETCO. In most cases, managerial applicants need to participate in two interviews. Interviewers generally want to learn about a management candidate's ability to meet sales goals and train employees.

Potential Managerial Interview Questions

Interview questions managerial applicants may need to answer include:

• "What was one thing you did at a past job that you would never do again?"
• "What would you do if a customer was angry that PECTO no longer carried a particular brand of pet food?"

Tips for Success

For the duration of the interview process, interviewees should display positive, professional, and motivated attitudes. Most importantly, applicants should provide honest and accurate information when responding to interview questions. As a store for animal lovers, PETCO looks for team members that show passion to work with animals.

PETCO Interview Video

Video Transcript

Interviewer: Please describe your job title and primary duties.
PETCO Employee: So, I was a cashier and then basically depending if I was opening or closing… If I opened, I was placed in one of the animal departments and feed the animals there if there were animals in that department, and that’s like an hour before opening. And just kind of clean up. and just organize the store. and make sure everything’s fine. Or, be a cashier, or I’d be in the back and just like doing stock stuff or helping customers on the floor. At night, if I was closing, we face the store, so we make sure everything’s brought to the front of the shelves, like the labels are facing us. Stuff like that.

Interviewer: What was the work environment like?
PETCO Employee: It was pretty chill, like I worked with mostly people in high school or college-aged people. It’s pretty relaxed, but we still had a uniform and everything. It’s like chill. It wasn’t like super strict, but we weren’t allowed to mess around.

Interviewer: How would you describe the application and interview process?
PETCO Employee: The application, it was one online, your basic application, like with your information, and then the interview… I had a friend that worked, like four friends that worked there, so I was able to get an interview with the manager. He was asking me questions, like: “Why do you want to work here? Do you like animals?” He asked me some question, like how I would take care of… and kind of situational questions, like what do I do if this animal… or like something dealing with a bad customer, stuff like that.

Interviewer: What questions did the interviewer ask during the job interview?
PETCO Employee: I’d worked at a job, but I didn’t really have any experience with animal places. “Oh, I really like animals, and I’m a responsible person.” And at the time, I was a straight-A student, so I can totally do this also, and I need a job, and it’s fun to work with animals, and I have my friends working there, too. I don’t know. I think it’s mostly luck for this job, because I had friends just kind of vouched for me, like she’s a good worker and she’s going to be good for the job here.

Interviewer: What other advice would you give to a job seeker looking to gain employment?
PETCO Employee: You definitely have to like animals, because you’re going to be dealing with them a lot. People come in with their pets all the time. There’s constantly dogs and cats, and you’ll have to feed hamsters and deal with reptiles. Also, working customer service, you have to very patient, and I’ve noticed that animal people are kind of crazy about their pets, so you have to deal with some interesting people sometimes. Patience is the key, also liking animals.

Related Links:
PETCO Application
PETCO Cashier