Retail Manager

Typical Salary

£20,000 To £70,000

Typical Hours

40 to 42 a week

evenings / weekends / bank holidays managing your own hours

How To Become a Retail Manager

You can get into this job through:

a university course
a college course
an apprenticeship
working towards this role
a company training scheme

College / University

You could do a degree before applying to join an organisation's management training scheme. Most subjects are accepted but you may have an advantage if you study:

business retail management
retail marketing

2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree

You could do a college course, which would teach you some of the skills and knowledge you need in this job. Relevant subjects include:

Level 3 Diploma in Retail Skills Management
Level 4 Diploma in Retail Management

4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course

1 or 2 A levels, a level 3 diploma or relevant experience for a level 4 or level 5 course

Apprenticeship

You could do a retail manager higher apprenticeship or retail leadership degree apprenticeship.

4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a higher or degree apprenticeship

Routes into this Career

You may be able to start as a retail sales assistant and work your way up through promotion to supervisor or department manager.

You could also get into this job by switching from a managerial post in a related industry like customer service. You would be given training in retail to build on your existing management experience.

Other Routes

Many national retailers run graduate trainee management schemes for people with a suitable degree.

These combine training and mentoring with work placements in different parts of the business to develop your retail knowledge, skills and leadership qualities.

Skills And Knowledge

You'll need:

customer service skills
patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
the ability to accept criticism and work well under pressure
the ability to work well with others
leadership skills
to enjoy working with other people
sensitivity and understanding
the ability to sell products and services
to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Day To Day Tasks

Your day-to-day tasks may include:

managing and motivating teams to increase sales
overseeing recruitment and training of staff
keeping track of stock and ordering
organising sales promotions and in-store events
dealing with queries, complaints and feedback from customers
analysing sales figures and forecasting future sales
maintaining awareness of market trends and monitoring competitors
controlling budgets and costs
providing reports to senior company executives

Working Environment

You could work at a store or in an office.

Career Path & Progression

With experience you could progress into area or regional management.

You could also move into more specialist areas, like customer service, training and operations management.

Volunteering Opportunities

Volunteering Opportunities are not listed for this job.

Tips & Information

Restrictions & Requirements are not listed for this job.

Restrictions & Requirements