Return to the Big Fancy: A Riotous Descent Into the Depths of Customer, Corporate, and Coworker Hell

by Freeman Hall

Bigger, Fancier, and more cutthorat than ever!

When Freeman Hall left The Big Fancy to pursue his screenwriting dreams, he thought the horrors of working in a handbag department were finally over. But instead of fame and fortune, he found himself stuck behind a wall of script-killing rewrites, unable to make a living.

In Return to the Big Fancy , Freeman shares his wildly entertaining journey back through the fiery gates of Retail Hell. He thought he had seen it all in his day, but with the bar set higher than ever before, employees are now graciously bowing before Corporate as they climb over fellow salespeople, and even friends, to earn enough transactions and commissions to actually survive. As he learns more of the wretchedness that has befallen the sales floor, he realizes that The Big Fancy has its customers and its employees on a short leash. But leave it to Freeman and the threat of disappearing commissions to rally the retail slaves and show Corporate who's really in charge!

Genres: Memoir

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Lives in Los Angeles, California"

Reviews

[Bamboozlepig · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as funny as his first book "Retail Hell", but still not bad. The screenplay inserts don't do anything for either book. I worked retail when I was younger and it was hell. Freeman captures all the pissy customers and nasty coworkers that a retail drone can encounter in their job.

[Obsidian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend provided me with Mr. Freeman Hall's first memoir, "Retail Hell" and thought it was outstanding and really funny. In that memoir Mr. Hall describes working in retail as a handbag salesman at the so-called 'Big Fancy' department store. He never divulges what the store's real name is but I loved trying to figure it out based on descriptions that he provided. In his follow-up to that memoir we have Mr. Hall returning to work at 'The Big Fancy' after his attempts to find success as a screenwriter falls through. Returning to the devil he knows is easier for him but definitely not more palatable.

First off Mr. Hall writes in a crisp hilarious manner that really reminds of Ms. Jennifer Lancaster in her accounts of her life dealing with being jobless for two years in her memoir. Mr. Hall has stories to tell and proceeds to let readers know what really goes on in retail. Frankly I was shocked to find out that when I return something it directly impacts the staff who checked me out that day commission. Stupidly I assumed that when I returned something it was no harm no foul. Mr. Freeman manages to let us know about how little those in retail make and how you are just a slave to sell, sell, sell and be nice to extremely nasty customers who are crazy and or thieves (sometimes both).

The only reason why I didn't rate this memoir 5 stars was because I really didn't care for the sections of the memoir where Mr. Freeman writes faux screenplays with customers or co-workers taking part. I know it was supposed to be funny but I found myself getting bored and thought it slowed down the momentum of the memoir as a whole. Other than that I really did find this funny and look forward to subsequent memoirs by Mr. Hall about his life as a handbag salesman at 'The Big Fancy.'

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having spent more than 20 years in retail, most of that with one company, it's easy to understand why people stay at jobs like this. You make friends, it's comfortable and routine, it sucks while you're at work sometimes but when you go home you leave work at work. Hall's stories are so relatable and many of us could write similar ones. I, for instance, have had people swear at me, throw credit cards at me, call me names, and I've had customers thank me, write notes about how well a gift I sold them was received, and so on. It was another fun read, though I could have done without the screenplay dreams.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freeman is a hilarious writer and has a way of describing situations so that you feel as if you’re there watching. It’s also cathartic to read his books and know he Gets It.

[Kyle Wendy Skultety (gimmethatbook.com) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strident and larger than life bitch-fest about the author's life as a handbag (not purse!) salesman for an unnamed dept store in Burbank. Some of the customer descriptions were funny as hell, but there was way too much about the other sales people and this book seemed to go on forever. Also, I didn't get why he was still working there if he hated it SO much and the salary was lousy. I just wanted to grab him and yell, "Hey! QUIT already!"

I was hoping to read more about how he went off on nasty customers, but he was forced to be nice to them and took out his anger in writing. Not as entertaining to me.

[Carianne Carleo-Evangelist · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't sure about this book. I loved Freeman and Big Fancy when I read his first book but in the case of memoirs/blog books, all too often a second book = one book too many. Luckily, that wasn't at all the case with his return to Big Fancy.
I think what made it funny was, Cammie and Satan aside, a fresh set of antics with a fresh set of colleagues. I keep reading custys as crustys, and that's a name that I think applies well to some that they dealt with. Beware of Sharks, NATs and Discount Rats.
Down side of this? Had Reba's "Fancy" in my head the whole time I was reading. A fun, light read.

[Amy Raffensperger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Freeman Hall's sequel to his "Retail Hell", after which visiting Nordstrom has never been the same (clerks in the KOP store confirmed that this is indeed the store that inspired his "Big Fancy). Hall gives a funny but also infuriating portrait of life in so called high end retail sales. As a screenwriter, he also includes screenplay fantasy sequences, that don't quite work. However, this is an all around fun book.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed this from the Amazon Kindle store and have made my way through half of it. I read his first book, about working for The Big Fancy, and really liked it. This book was more of the same, with a huge focus on his obnoxious co workers. I'm not sure I'll finish it, but I do like it. It's just a bit duplicative of his first book.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfectly captures the trials & tribulations of working retail. The screenwriting dream sequences are a bit jarring, but highlight that most retail workers have other, more interesting pursuits than just their current job.

[E.J. Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light, funny, great for summer reading.

[Tori · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick and easy read plus it's hilarious.

A must read for everyone who has "done time" in retail.

[Georgette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't like it as much as Retail Hell, but it's still pretty stellar.

[Leah Haugen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Retail Hell much better but it was still funny. Dragged on in some parts.

[Jen Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not as awesome as the first book but still pretty cool!

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you work retail, you need this book in your life