CafePress Reviews

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than a year

Pros – There are very passionate people who work here that care about the product and try their best to give customers a great experience. When a company has a culture of putting the customer first, they tend to hire very nice people. You’d be hard pressed to find a nicer group of people. The quality of the photo-to-canvas product is incredible. All aspects of production are designed to make a product that really blows people away when they hang it on their walls. I think it’s easy for job seekers to take for granted or overlook the fact when a company is a leader at what it does. It’s fantastic knowing that you work for a company that strives for excellence and is great at what it does. To me, other than hiring good people, that is one of the best thing a company can do.

Cons – During holiday season, it can be hard to find and/or keep a good parking spot given the influx of seasonal staff. Because the location is in an industrial park, there are no coffee shops or restaurants within walking distance. Unfortunately, the free coffee at the office is terrible.

Advice to Senior Management – Photo-to-canvas has become a very competitive space, so continue to evolve and adjust to remain a leader without losing sight of your core commitment to quality and the customer.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at CafePress full-time for more than a year

Pros – Friendly people, flexible about time off, personal conflicts, and family (most of the time). Overtime is expected (which can be good or bad), casual office dress, discount on products. CS is allowed freedom to respond to customers in slightly more individual manner, not from a strict script. Questions encouraged by supervisors.

Cons – Lack of communication overall, particularly between depts. No real upward mobility. Mgmt seems to want to project image of listening to employees, but follow ups are v. rare. Consistency between stated plans/goals and actual implementation is rare. Problems have to reach critical levels before they are addressed. The senior management seems to have a completely disconnected with lower levels (lower mgmnt/web dev/customer service/etc) and seems only interested in shiny new hijinks to improve revenue or talking at us about how great the company is.

Advice to Senior Management – Be straightforward about what people should expect instead of insisting the culture is something it isn't (ie "cool" and egalitarian). Train, listen to, and think about promoting your good people instead of losing them completely.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – I work at the CafePress East location and my favorite part about working here is the people . My coworkers are amazing, dedicated and hard working people. Our management is top notch, and very involved in making sure that this place runs smoothly and with as little drama as possible. We work hard, but do not lose site of the fact that we are making a fun product that people love. The culture here is very supportive and positive.

Cons – nothing major - just the normal corporate slow downs when it comes to getting things changed or fixed.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – I'll echo the others and list the subsidized vending machines as the pro.

Cons – Lack of communication, even within departments. Smart, talented people are leaving because there is no appreciation for hard work - promotions seem to be based on who you know, not what you know.

Advice to Senior Management – I think every review, including the positive ones, hit this on the head - communication is what is bringing this company down. Too many locations, too many managers who don't know/care what their employees are doing - spend some time to focus on improving employee morale.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at CafePress full-time for more than a year

Pros – If you read through the recent reviews, you'll notice that only people from the Raleigh/Louisville locations have anything remotely positive to say. In the CA office, the only positives are the cheap vending machines and the fact that there's a lot more room now that everyone has quit or been laid off.

Cons – The executive level management is HORRIBLE. Honestly, horrible. When I started there in 2010, it seemed like there was a good flow and more positive communication throughout the company. After several key acquisitions over the next couple years, new "leaders" came to the forefront an immediately demonstrated a culture of favoritism, bullying, and poor communication. Everything went downhill after that, and all of the "good" (i.e. seasoned, experienced, rational, competent) employees started leaving in droves. It was seriously SO AWFUL being there during my last few months. Even director-level employees would OPENLY complain about the horrible work environment, tanking stock, and lack of faith in the leadership of the company. It became one of the worst places I have ever worked, to the point where I felt bad for clients and customers because it was so understaffed and such a joke. Thrilled to have left, depressed that the stock I own is worth nothing.

Advice to Senior Management – ...I don't even know. Stop being condescending and secretive, open your eyes to what's going on in the California office (where frankly, all of the e-commerce talent can be found), and treat people fairly.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than a year

Pros – Compensation is decent and people are friendly.
$0.25 vending machines.

Cons – I must be missing something from the other reviews, but there is no culture here. It's a cut and dry work your hours and go home. They do nothing to keep the employees engaged in the company yet always tell us it's a fun place to work but I don't see it. No communication across the company divisions, it's always a who is better than who in terms of the separate business entities. The company is very political and the IPO really hurt CafePress in my opinion.

Advice to Senior Management – Try to grow the company intelligently instead of running 65% sales all the time devaluing the products we sell.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – Great place to work! I have gotten to know a lot of good people over the last 6 years including production employees and management. The upper management is doing a great job at growing the company. I have seen it go from a few people to hundreds of people. It has great benefits and does a lot for the employes including give aways and nice lunches on a regular basis. They also try to help out the community as much as possible.

Cons – The changes getting ready for peak season is a little stressfull but i know its what we need to do to keep growing and getting better as a company.

Advice to Senior Management – Keep working together as a team.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – The best part of Cafepress is the people I work with. They are some of the most talented and passionate people you will ever have a chance to work with. Most everyone treats each other like family. Good benefits and compensation. Pleasant work environment/culture. And last but not least, $.25 pops/chips.

Cons – It is a retail-like environment, which requires more hours around the holidays. Rate of change is very high, but that translates into more opportunity.

Advice to Senior Management – We could use some clarity on the business direction. I think the hardest challenge for management from a personnel standpoint is getting everyone to understand each other.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than 7 years

Pros – The company is still small enough that whatever you do and which ever projects you work on you will feel like a key team player.
Cafepress is still expanding into established markets with it's new business model which brings opportunities for growth and experience.
Cross team barriers are lower with the expansion of the Kentucky facility and tighter team integration making the company feel more like one big family.

Cons – Small size means Everyone is important in what they're doing so most jobs are challenging on a daily basis.
Nothing stays the same but change.
The seasonal nature of gift buying makes the holidays stressful and it's hard to make time for your family when you're working long hours in the month leading up to Christmas.

Advice to Senior Management – This is not an appropriate forum for any candid advice.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at CafePress full-time for more than 8 years

Pros – I work in the Raleigh office. We have a fantastic culture with managers that truly care about their employees. It is a growing company with a lot of change. There are opportunities for growth. I love that the managers stress that it is a drama free environment and work to keep it that way.

Cons – I don't always completely understand the org chart across different locations. Sometimes it is hard to know who to go to if there is an issue with something.

Advice to Senior Management – Improve communication regarding organizational changes.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company