This is a great question to jump into the interview with after you’ve exchanged pleasantries. As a hint, you’re not looking to hear in reply that they needed money. That’s the answer to why they started looking for a job. You want to know why they applied to your store in particular.

A future stellar employee’s response should tell you how they are personally invested in the brand. Keep in mind, the answer doesn’t have to be that they LOVE your products and they purchase everything from the store. (In fact – you may want to avoid these responders for a couple of reasons, the first, and most cynical being: you don’t want to lose a good customer.)

A great response can often be something like: “My mother shops here all the time, and I’ve always enjoyed being at this store. The sales people are kind and very helpful; the products are beautiful and high quality; overall, it’s just the type of environment and values that I think are important and would like to be a part of.”

That kind of answer demonstrates personal investment in the brand, an understanding of the brand, and an interest in growing as an employee. It’s probably a more developed response than you will likely get, but shoot for the stars and you’ll at least hit the moon, right?