Retail Sales Associate applicants have rated the interview process at Staples with 2 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 61% positive. To compare, the company-average is 63.3% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Retail Sales Associate roles take an average of 19 days to get hired, when considering 66 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Staples overall takes an average of 14 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Staples as a Retail Sales Associate according to 66 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 36%
Drug test: 12%
Skills test: 12%
Background check: 11%
Presentation: 8%
Personality test: 6%
Phone interview: 6%
IQ intelligence test: 5%
Group panel interview: 2%
Other: 2%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -
I applied online. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Staples (Burbank, CA) in Jul 2024
Interview
Very Easy, met with the hiring manager and was interviewed, was then hired and had a chance to meet some of my fellow coworkers and employees. Was then given my first scheduled date to work
I applied online. I interviewed at Staples in Oct 2025
Interview
I went through an initial interview (1 out of 2), which focused on basic questions like availability, work hours, prior experience with retail or customer service, and physical requirements (such as lifting a certain amount of weight). The store manager wasn’t available that day, so the initial interview was handled by the sales manager. The store manager selected the best candidates from the first round of interviews to continue to the second round, which I didn't make it to. The second interview seems it’d be more in-depth and challenging than the first, which was quite easy.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
The thing they focused on the most was my availability. Second was my prior experience dealing with customers and doing conflict resolution.
I applied online. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Staples (Fremont, CA) in Jul 2025
Interview
Really simple asked about customer service experience, situational question about upselling and availability. Didn’t bring in a resume just had a one on one interview with the store manager. Waited for about twenty minutes for someone to come see me though.
Interview questions [2]
Question 1
Tell me about your experience in customer service?
Weird, asked too much personal questions that made me uncomfortable, such as what car do I drive? It made me not apply for a while and wonder how managers get hired or promoted