Overview
Retail Workers Needed!
Qualifications, Education & Training
Entry Level Jobs
Helpful Services
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Overview
Employment of retail salespersons has traditionally grown with the overall economy, and this trend is expected to continue. Population growth will increase retail sales and demand for these workers.
Although consumers are increasing their online retail shopping, they will continue to do most of their retail shopping in stores. Retail salespersons will be needed in stores to help customers and complete sales.
Among the various retail industries, other general merchandise stores, which include warehouse clubs and supercenters, are expected to see strong job growth. These large stores sell a wide range of goods from a single location. Thus, employment in the warehouse clubs and supercenters industry is expected to grow 51 percent during the next decade.
Employment of parts salespersons is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations. People are keeping their cars longer and are buying new cars less often. Older cars need to be serviced more frequently, creating demand for car parts and parts salespersons.
Many workers leave this occupation, which means there will be a large number of job openings. This large number of job openings combined with the large size of the occupation should result in many employment opportunities.
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Retail Workers Needed!
Retail sales workers include both those who sell retail merchandise, such as clothing, furniture, and automobiles, (called retail salespersons) and those who sell spare and replacement parts and equipment, especially car parts, (called parts salespersons). Both help customers find the products they want and process customers’ payments.
Cashiers handle payments from customers purchasing goods and services. Grocery stores are the largest employers of cashiers.
Customer service representatives interact with customers on behalf of an organization. They provide information about products and services and respond to customer complaints. Some also take orders and process returns. Many customer service representatives work in customer contact centers. Others work in insurance agencies, banks, stores, or other places that have contact with customers. Most work full time, although part-time and variable schedules are also common.
Retail inventory control workers take inventory in a retail environment (convenience stores). The worker travels daily to stores to conduct physical inventories of the stores’ merchandise utilizing a hand held calculator and/or scanner.
These are just a few of the many jobs and careers available in this industry.
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Qualifications, Education and Training
Typically, retail sales workers do not need a college degree but more and more people with degrees are filling positions in the retail field. At a minimum, most employers prefer applicants who have a high school diploma or equivalent.
Cashiers go through a brief training period when they are hired. There are usually no formal education requirements.
Customer service representatives typically have at least a high school diploma and are usually trained on the job. They must be good at communicating and dealing with people. They also need basic computer and phone skills.
Retail inventory control workers should have a high school diploma or equivalent. Typically they should also have a valid driver license, current liability car insurance and reliable transportation to perform audits throughout their assigned area.
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Entry Level Jobs
There are several jobs in this field that don’t seem to require a High School Diploma/GED though they may require you to be an adult teen 18 or older.
It’s not uncommon for minor teens to be hired in a retail establishment.
Here are some entry level job titles:
- Retail Associate
- Cashier
- Grocery Clerk
- Customer Service Representative
- Retail Inventory Control
- Account Representative
- Inside Sales
- Retail Clerk
If you are interested in pursuing a job in this field, search for these types of job titles in the database and from our supporters on the right.
Look for positions that are entry level.
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Helpful Services
For more information on jobs and careers in this field visit:
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Retail Sales Workers, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/sales/retail-sales-workers.htm