How to Hire Candidates For your Retail Business?

Learn everything you need to know to hire the best candidates for your open retail positions! From creating great retail job descriptions to interviewing your retail candidates, we’ve got the best tips and proven tricks for retail hiring!

Need to fill open job positions in the retail industry?

A sign that your retail business is growing is when you realize you need skilled people to take care of tasks in your business.

But, it is not possible for a small business to hire for all the required retail roles at the same time.

You will have to prioritize on the staffing requirements and see what are the roles that can fill major gaps in your workflow.

In this blog post we will cover some of the most important tricks and tips for retail recruiting and hiring retail professionals.

How to hire the best employees for your retail business?

Before hiring for your retail business make sure you are clear about the following:

Step 1: Write a clear job description

Be clear about the role you are hiring for. Define the responsibilities of each role in your business.

This will clear up the overlap or confusion that might occur in the future.

➡️ Check out ready to use retail job description templates!

Step 2: Create your candidate persona

Know the best type of candidates for your business and know where to find them.

For example, If you are looking for young, passionate people, then college career fairs are your go-to place.

➡️Learn how to create your candidate persona!

Step #3: Define your employee value proposition

Make a note of all the key benefits that your retail business will provide to the employees.

This will come in handy to sell your organization to them.

➡️ Learn how to create a great employee value proposition!

Hiring suggestions for different roles in the retail industry

The following are some specific hiring suggestions for the retail industry that will give you a basic staffing framework:

Store Manager

If you have a brick and mortar store, you know the importance of a store manager. As a retail business owner, you should not be taking care of the day to day activities but instead, work on innovative ideas to grow your business.

Hire a store manager who can routinely take care of your store, inventory, company policies and customer assistance.

The skills you would want in a store manager are:

• To lead a team in a retail setup
• Good interpersonal and problem-solving skills
• Capability to set business and financial objectives and to achieve it
• Outstanding customer servicing skills
• Understanding of sales, branding, and promotion.

➡️ Grab your ready to use store manager job description template!

Sales Associate

Customer satisfaction should be your main priority when you run a business and this makes sales associate as one of the most important roles for you to fill.

A sales associate is the host for your store and is responsible for its cleanliness, restocking of items and checking on customer requirements.

Skills required for a sales associate are:

• Friendly and effective communication with customers
• A dynamic team player
• Impeccable organizational skills
• Eye to detail
• Enthusiasm to learn quickly and explore other segments of the business
• Basic knowledge of finance and inventory management.

➡️ Grab your ready to use sales associate job description template!

Cashier

A store manager can double for a cashier when your business is small, but as it starts growing you need a dedicated cashier. Customers might get really agitated if the billing process is delayed and this is where the cashier can help. He/she can facilitate the purchasing process and make billing quick and seamless.

Cashiers are responsible for all the purchasing activities and transactions that happen in your store and they should also take care of the phone calls and other customer queries (example: sale, promotions).

Skills required for a cashier are:

• Being able to provide impeccable customer service
• Organizational Skills
• Basic Financial knowledge and mathematical skills
• Quick and efficient.

➡️ Grab your ready to use cashier job description template!

Accountant

An accountant is a basic hire for any small business. Even if you are excellent with your books and taxes, it is essential to have a specialist handle the finance part of your business. As a retail business owner you might have a number of tasks lined up in any given day, and taking responsibility for the accounts will only add to the chaos.

The accountant should be involved from the start of your business plan and is also responsible for tax deductions, inventory costs, and payroll processing.

The skills to look for in an Accountant are:

• Specialization in accounting and finance management
• Equipped to work on accounting and POS software
• Obsessed with perfection and accuracy
• Enthusiasm to understand your business and its goals.

➡️ Grab your ready to use accountant job description template!

Inventory Control Specialist

Your business will be chaotic if your inventory is not well-managed. It is not an easy task to maintain optimum inventory levels, especially when you have a variety of goods coming in from different vendors.

An inventory control specialist will be accountable for the goods that enter and leave the inventory and will also come up with ways to reduce loss. The quantity and quality of the products received will also be assessed by them.

Preferred skills for an inventory control specialist are:

• Experience in inventory management
• Coming up with innovative inventory procedures
• Excellent report creating and analyzing skills
• Well-versed in any inventory control software
• Proven skills in a management role.

Merchandiser

This is a very important role in the retail business. The role of a buyer includes research, analysis, finding the best prices and placing orders for the products.

For example, if you are owning a retail business that sells clothes, the buyer should be aware of the latest fashion trends and research on where these styles can be purchased or created at optimal prices. They are even responsible for visual merchandising so that a customer will be intrigued to shop more.

The skill-set required for a merchandiser is:

• Love your line of retail business
• Strong in making negotiations
• Good at working hand in hand with vendors and suppliers
• Experience in tracking and maintaining inventory levels and purchase orders.

➡️ Grab your ready to use merchandiser job description template!

3 final tips for hiring candidates in retail business

Here are 3 final tips that will help you find and hire the best candidates for your retail jobs:

Tip #1: Stick to your requirements

If you have a set of requirements for your hire, then you should stick to it even if the hiring process delays. Your employees are the most important assets for your organization and compromising on them will not do good for your business.

Tip #2: Test your candidates’ motivation

Make it clear in the interview phase itself how involved you want the employees to be in the growth of your business. It is vital for a small business to have employees who are totally dedicated and work towards the same goal.

Tip #3: Take your candidates for a test drive

Lastly, be ready to take your candidates on a test drive. Don’t rush into hiring anyone. Test their skills, attitude, and passion by giving them assignments and by having a probation period.

The next step: Training your retail hires

If you have figured out the hiring requirements for your retail business, then you must know how to train them for your requirements. Even highly skilled resources need some fine-tuning to suit your business.

As a small business owner, you should have the time and patience to hand-hold your employees and make them understand your business goals.

About the author

Joseph Brady is Vice President of Digital Marketing for Reliant Funding, a provider of short-term working capital to small and mid-sized businesses nationwide. He has more than 14 years of experience in B2B digital marketing, optimization, and operations, with a focus in the financial services market.