Random Hot Topic Employees Confess What Really Goes Down Behind The Scenes (13 items)

• (#7) The Dress Code Is Pretty Lax, Except On Halloween

  From Redditor /u/exhtemployee: 

  I wore a T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers to work everyday. Once in awhile, we'd have a big visit from regional management or someone else high up, so I'd wear a skirt and some flats or something. 

  And as for the goth-y part, I never considered myself goth. I think the feel of the store was gothic, but it wasn't really my thing. And truth be told, I only worked with a handful of people over the years who would have considered it their thing.

  The only time when they were really super concerned with what we were wearing was during Halloween. There were theme days and we were supposed to participate. But the only thing they could do if we didn't was lecture us about team moral.
• (#3) You Need A Sense Of Humor To Cope With Odd Customer Demands

  From Redditor /u/drewisawesome14:

  You start to lose your mind working at HT if you don't try and have some fun.

  I once had a big buff dude come into the store, asking me if I had "guyliner." I had to have him explain to me what he meant.

  I had a girl dressed in a witch costume try and put a spell on me to make me fall in love with her. It sadly did not work.

  And I had a parent order a Jack Skellington bedcover in-store and she continued to call in every day until it came in, even though we told her it would take between 7 to 14 days.
• (#6) Employees Are Not As Judgmental As You Might Think

  From Redditor /u/deStone:

  I am a thirty-year-old dad that wears polo shirts and occasionally goes to Hot Topic to listen to random alternative-metal CDs from artists I've not heard of... Do the employees mock me after I leave?

  From Redditor /u/HotTopicThrowaway666:

  No! If anything, we think it's pretty cool that you're willing to give the music a listen. The only people we really 'mock' or make fun of are just bad customers, shoplifters, and annoying people. It's rad that you come in! Don't feel out of place.
• (#4) A Customer, Who Believed He Was A Dragon, Demanded A Cashier's Soul

  From Redditor /u/azuyin:

  Customer: "They were able to resurrect my flesh, it's healed. And it's time for me to go home."

  Cashier: "Oh, my god!"

  Customer: "And I... They even told me my scales are turning gold as my father's were. My father was a piece of creation itself. He was the protector of god himself."

  Cashier: "Well, that's good then."

  Customer: "That's the thing. People damn power. It's not evil, it's how you choose to use it."

  Cashier: "Oh, yeah, most definitely. That's pretty much like how everything is."

  Customer: "But the dictation of true power is lost to this world. I'm returning home, but I'm going to come back. But I'm going to make it so that no human is permitted to use power without sanction."

  Cashier: "Good!"

  Customer: "You must give your soul to me."

  Cashier: "Oh, my god!"

  Customer: "I am the Sovereign of Power and I'm going to become what my father was before my birth: 'Eternal Guardian Dragon of Time.'"

  Cashier: "Oh, wow!"

  Customer: "My father gave up much of his power when I was born. Because she... H-he... His mate was Hecate, mother of angels. I was the only true born... My brethren. Even Lucifer, down in the pit... , he was my brother."

  Cashier: "Oh, my goodness!"

  Customer: "I am not a fallen. I am a lost. I fell to Earth from my own folly - not following that b*stard."

  Cashier: "Wow."

  Customer: "Honestly, look into my eyes. Do I seem mad to you?"

  Cashier: "Not really."

  Customer: "Most humans denounce anything that is outside their realm of..." 

  Cashier: "Understanding?"

  Customer: "But that is my dictation. I do not demand your soul as payment. It is moreso protection that if you abuse your power... Then your soul is going to be bound. You keep your soul within your flesh, but your soul will be bound never to touch power again. That is the dictation of the blood contract. I give you my blood, you give me... A piece of your soul. You do not lose your soul. I am not the father, I have no rights to your soul. But I do have rights to claim how you use my power. And that is the only reason I bind your soul like that."

  Cashier: "Oh, yeah, for real... Like... That makes sense."
• (#1) Hot Topic Is A Refuge For Bronies, Which Can Get Awkward

  From a former Redditor:

  It's just so awkward sometimes to talk to these kids. I get the appeal of the show, I've seen many episodes, but please stop telling me who your favorite pony is and why she's the best and how people just don't understand that being a brony is cool. I will be honest. I think that culture is a self-sustaining culture of the glorification of introversion.

  I have had so many women that come in, not realizing the guy they are dating is a Brony, and standing there awkwardly while he picks out what new pony shirt he wants or better yet, the older father (40 to 50 years) who mentions he's looking for MLP for his daughter and his wife comes in and blows his cover by mentioning their son is a brony. The look on the father's face is always delightful.
• (#11) Shoplifters Are A Common Occurrence

  From Redditor /u/tonysbeard:

  I worked at Hot Topic for years. We get a lot of shoplifters at the store and people just kind of f*cking around because a lot of kids's parents just drop them off at the mall so they think, "Hey, let's go f*ck around in Hot Topic." I have a lot of stories about the stupid things prepubescents thought they could get away with in our store that they would never try anywhere else. So, we get kinda wary of any kids coming in by themselves and especially wary when they start just picking things up without any apparent intention to buy them.

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