Pros
Supply Chain Associate aka Sales Support aka Outside Sales Rep. Most people who get hired are coming straight out of college, but there's definitely a diverse mix of people. Great people! Fastenal is a huge company but each location is a small team where everyone is able to bond. It felt like everyone genuinely cared about each other. There were many times that we all hung out together outside of work. The GM was the best boss I've ever had! He set a great example of what a leader looks like. Very hardworking and truly wanted each of us to succeed and was always happy to help. An appropriate mix of a friend who cares about you and a boss who you respect. Low stress, no micro-managing. Great work/life balance. You work exactly 40 hours every week and you can either work 7-3, 8-4, or 9-5. Fun job if you're a people person. You drive around in a company vehicle and visit your customers- the day goes by so fast! I formed great relationships with my accounts and there's a few that I'm still in touch with after leaving Fastenal. Average health and dental benefits, life insurance. All your common holidays off. I had a great experience working at Fastenal
Cons
No vision insurance. Only 10 days vacation and 5 sick. You don't get more vacation days until you've been with the company 5 years, which doesn't give much incentive to stay with the company for more than a year or two. And corporate policy is strict about not being able to take off once you've run out of your PTO days (no option to take off unpaid). Almost every new hire has to start off part-time for awhile before they can become full-time which sucks because you're getting a low hourly and no benefits so it's more like a side hustle than a job. I think that's why Fastenal has a hard time attracting people because nobody wants to just be part-time. Not much room for growth- very rare to get raises or promotions. Somebody has to leave for a position to become open. And if a spot does become open, everyone who is interested has to apply and interview for it. Not a con for me personally but the job is VERY physical. You make your own deliveries to your accounts so you're lifting boxes and getting sweaty/dirty. And finally, the main con of all- COMPENSATION. Everyone in the industry knows that Fastenal has a reputation of not paying their people. I've run into other sales reps who have told me that Fastenal is known as a 24-24-24 company (average age, average salary, average months) While working at Fastenal I had several competitors try to poach me- all offering better pay! Store cashiers were making more than me! And it's crazy because almost everyone at Fastenal has a college degree. You would think the company would pay people with degrees a livable wage. Almost everyone who works there either lives at home with their parents, has a wealthy partner, or has a 2nd job (I had a 2nd job). If you don't have any of those options and you have a lot of financial responsibilities, then working at Fastenal probably wouldn't make sense for you. But if money isn't an issue and you're looking to gain experience in a good environment, then awesome!