Working in the service industry can be brutal, particularly for staff on the floor of big-box retail chains. For six seasons, Superstore managed to deftly cut to the heart of that life, pulling no punches on what it was like to deal with co-workers, corporate stooges and customers. For viewers who have never had a working experience like that, the series was a crash course in how a large portion of North America lives.
Superstore was set in one location of a fictional chain called Cloud 9, specifically Store 1217 in St. Louis, Missouri. It was a not-so-subtle homage to Walmart, which viewers could definitely see in the look of the store itself. Cloud 9's visual branding includes a striking shade of blue and, not surprisingly, clouds. Walmart, on the other hand, uses a similar shade of blue and the sun.
While this gets said a lot in relation to other shows, Cloud 9 Store 1217 was more than a location. It was essentially another character in the series. It was certainly about the people working there and their interpersonal relationships. However, the story flowed from their experiences in this specific location as well as their ongoing battles with the Cloud's corporate structure.
The face of Superstore's corporate body was the various district managers. Some were more personable than others, but they all ultimately put the interests of Cloud 9 ahead of that of the staff. In Season 3, Episode 22, Amy and Jonah discovered that their former district manager Jeff had been instructed to create a reason to fire Myrtle due to her age and how much she cost the company. Jeff hated the idea, yet he complied with it.
Dealing with the company's constant cost-cutting measures was a running theme through all six seasons. Cloud 9 corporate was constantly pushing Glenn and Amy to cut back hours. Employees were kept just under full time so the company wouldn't have to pay for their benefits. During a labor dispute, Cloud 9 even called ICE in to take away any illegal immigrants at the store to put fear into the staff.
These are tactics that corporate America has been accused of using. Low pay, no benefits and non-existent respect from corporate can be hallmarks of these kinds of jobs. But that's not the only aspect of working retail that Superstore utterly nailed. There's an old saying that says the customer is always right. In Superstore, the customer is more accurately depicted as a raving lunatic who thinks the store is their living room.
Some of Superstore's best moments are the cutaway gags that show random goings-on around the store. Frequently, customers are spotted doing selfish, careless and even outright stupid things. And they are accurately depicted as not being aware of their own surroundings. In Season 1, Episode 11, Cheyenne delivers her baby in the middle of the store. Customers are still bothering her for help while in labor.
What made Superstore work was the incredibly accurate depiction of the working conditions. Corporate thinking of its staff as only a number; entitled customers causing havoc; not everyone on the staff getting along. The service industry can definitely be like this. As a complete package, Superstore gave a surprisingly honest view of working retail in North America while managing to find ways to still infuse comedy into it.
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