When I walked in and spoke to customer service about wanting to show interest, I was directed to a specific customer service person who took my name and number. She asked me a few questions like what areas of the store I was interested in working with and when I mentioned the deli as one she said they were hiring. She told me to fill out an application and put deli so that I’d be contacted by the right people. Then the deli manager reached out and I had an interview about a week later. The manager was kind but intense. She talked a lot about herself and her experience at Publix and outside of it. She asked me questions about myself and why I wanted to work there and availability. It was fairly short and I didn’t think I had to really convince her much about myself because I just tried to be respectful, and she said she could tell I was a good kid basically. Then she said I had the job and told me about next steps. It was all pretty casual and quick. I do have my degree, and I think that helped me because she knew I could handle myself because of that. I basically just said yes to everything as I needed a job, too. I wasn’t lying, but I gave her answers she wanted to hear I think. She said at one point, “I see you’ve got a degree and you’ve worked at a full-time fancy company before. What are you doing here? Do you want to be in management or just need a job or…?” I responded with something like, “I might be interested in management at some point, but I truthfully just need a job.” She wasn’t turned off by that, which I appreciated. I think she said something like, “Well, we’ll be glad to have you as long as you’re here.” It was a nice experience and probably the easiest interview I’ve had which I really appreciated after jumping through hoops at other places. Basically, once you have their attention (I recommend walking in and saying something with there and with any retail tbh because they’ll often ignore you based on the algorithm if you just put in an application and hope for a call), be smart and respectful and open/engaged and you’ll probably do well. Good luck!

Easy interview, was asked numerous questions about how I would approach customer situations, what my personal approach to customer service is, and my experience and how it relates to the job (and any areas of interest within the store). Very laid back process, had a great conversation with the manager. Despite my great conversation with the manager (one of the best interviews I've EVER had) I NEVER heard back from Publix, even when I was told I would hear back within a week. I called the store to check on the status each week for almost a month, and they told me to stop calling. I have to this day not yet received even an email confirming that I was not chosen for the job. Really disappointed in Publix in how this was handled because I would have loved to have worked there. This is coming from a person who is native to Lakeland (Publix's HQ office location). I really didn't think Publix would completely ghost me, a simple email would have been nice. Again, severely disappointed in how they handled this and it really isn't the "Publix way" from how they present themselves to customers as well as to interviewees.