Firstly, unless you live in literal Dougal County, $17.00 is hardly the best job in the city. What about your manager at the time? Your job was better than theirs?
Entry level sales jobs in general often have very little posted requirements, whether they be experience or education. That's how I got into insurance sales. They literally didn't even give a shit that I had a college degree. The fact that I went door to door collecting money for my paper route was more attractive to them.