Worked shortly as a bike delivery guy for a small independent German bookstore. They did deliveries in the small town and you could order books by phone or email. The atmosphere in the shop was chill. The owner was an old really well-read hippie, who was really friendly.The pay was rather shit but I’d say it was overall a good job.

Here’s some general rules I’ve learned.

Corporate often has more resources to pay better and offer more benefits, but often have very strict standards that they follow. Every store must run the same. And their nationally known name will bring in enough people to keep you busy.

Indy stores are much more flexible with how they run things, and the front line employees have the opportunity to participate in the owner’s decisions. Small businesses run a tight budget, and can’t afford the compensation that corporate offers. You won’t see as much traffic, so you will probably pick up additional responsibilities in your downtime.

Franchises are somewhere in the middle, they can’t afford to pay you, and they won’t listen to you.

Of course, these are general rules, and there are exceptions. A stubborn small business owner, or a stingy corporation can eliminate any of the positives that I’ve listed above, or a really great business could defy the negatives normally associated with each.

Corporate is always going to treat you better than franchise, but will usually be a lot more strict about how you represent the company. Independent shops are a toss up