Limited Brands ACES ETM Employee

The world of retail can be daunting at times, what with difficult customers, long hours, and night-marish holiday seasons like the infamous Black Friday. But knowing what common obstacles retail workers face will help you become better prepared for the job ahead. The key is to open to the experience, learn new skills and knowledge throughout the job, and to give the best service you can possibly give.

1. The First Day

First day jitters! Everyone remembers the feeling before your first day of work in retail. The doubt lingering in your mind, wondering if you’ll do something wrong, and if you could even have the capability of handling everything that your manager throws at you. The answer to that is, yes, yes you can! The jitters are especially high if it’s your very first job, but it’s not something to fret about. Being nervous on your first day is a completely normal, human experience, and with time, your job will feel second-nature to you. These are some common things that should be done on the first day at work:

• Befriend one of your coworkers: Someone will be in charge of training you and teaching you all the ins and outs of the job, and that’s usually one of your coworkers. Ask a lot of questions, in fact, ask too many questions! Understanding all the little details is the first step to overcoming that first-day fear. Absorb all that information they give to you like a sponge. Each job is unique, so ask them for advice on how to improve yourself, or things that the manager dislikes so you can avoid making those mistakes. Despite this fact, even with all this newfound information, mistakes are inevitable.
• Don’t be afraid to make mistakes! This fact is true not just for the first day of your retail job, but within the first few weeks. You may misplace an item somewhere, count inventory wrong, or get a little too frustrated with a customer, and that’s completely fine! No one is perfect. Even your coworkers who have had retail experience for years make a mistake every now and then. What matters is putting yourself out there and not shying away from the fear of doing something wrong, because how else will things get done?

1. Rude Customers

With more and more experience in retail, there are some things that can’t be avoided, and that is the dreaded rude customer. Rude customers are like that annoying itch, they’re difficult to get rid of and they just won’t go away. No matter how many times you explain to the customer that you’re just a worker and the situation is out of your hands, they still may not listen. These are common solutions to dealing with rude customers:

• Deescalate the situation: The customer might just be having a rough day and are just taking it out on the poor retail worker, which in this case, is you. Sometimes they aren’t rude, they’re just upset and want their problem to be solved. After it’s solved, they usually go back to their merry way. With these types of customers, it’s best to not yell back. Speak in a calm manner and don’t react, as that will merely fuel their fire. If you can fix their problem, then simply explain to them that everything will be alright, and that you’ll just go ahead and solve it for them. If it’s out of your hands, explain to them the limits to what you can do, or suggest other solutions. At this point, it’s best to bring in a coworker or the manager to help handle the customer.
• Take a different approach: With truly rude customers that simply want to make you mad and get a reaction from you, there are different policies that each store may take. Some may be able to refuse service, other times the security can be involved and escort the customer out. Remember that you are never on your own, and that there are other people to help you.

1. Rude Managers

A problem that is less common but not unusual in retail are difficult managers. While not all managers will be this way, after a few retail jobs, you’ll start to see common patterns. Rude managers may do things such as get overly angry for small mistakes that you make, and show favoritism by giving other coworkers better hours. They may make you feel lesser than by speaking to you passive aggressively, or treating you like you are dispensable. A recurring problem is discrimination in the workplace, when it comes to things such as gender, race, or sexual orientation. Though it may feel discerning, there is a solution to every problem.

• Communication is key: If your manager is giving you unfair hours, rather than avoiding or complaining about the problem, it’s best to face it head on. Speak to your manager, tell them what is causing you trouble, and tell your terms. Do not be rude, but rather, show them respect and speak politely. Don’t let them shut you down, and be strong about believe.
• Contact corporate: If your manager is being discriminatory, it’s a good idea to contact corporate so that they can handle the situation. A manager is supposed to be fair, and if it is not reported, then the workers after you could also be treated unjustly.
• Switch stores: Another option is to switch stores. If they do get to the point where they won’t cooperate, then that is the best time to start thinking about relocating to another branch of the store. It’s important to contact someone within the company to see if that’s possible, and switch to one near your location.

All in all, though retail work can be quite a handful, every obstacle can be solved with just a little bit of problem solving. The most fulfilling part of the job is developing new skills along the way and gaining unparalleled experience that couldn’t be gained anywhere else. Remember, with confidence and hard-work, anything is possible.

There are several things that you need to do, if you wish to get a job in the retail industry:

1. Visit the careers pages of the retail companies’ websites regularly: The major companies in the retail industry tend to have careers pages on their websites. It is on these careers pages that the positions that are currently open are posted, so that individuals who are interested in them can proceed to apply. Therefore, if you are keen on working within the retail industry, you need to make a point of regularly visiting the careers pages of the companies you are interested in working for. In most cases, the careers pages are updated in real-time (as positions fall vacant). That then makes it necessary for you to be visiting them as frequently as possible – say, daily or after every two days – if you are serious about getting a retail industry job. The way these careers pages are structured nowadays is such that you can easily initiate a job search: by simply entering keywords that are in line with type of role you are looking for. In most cases, you enter the keywords, then select a location near you – and the system returns all open positions that meet the criteria you entered.  You then browse through the links to positions that are currently open, and if you find one that interests you, don’t hesitate to make an application. Remember, it is an odds game – the more the applications you make, the higher your chances of clinching at least one of them. Even if you are only marginally qualified for a position (that is, even if you don’t fully meet the qualification criteria), you can still make an application for it. It may turn out that none of the other applicants actually has all the qualifications, giving your  application a chance to be considered. Remember, most of the HR managers in the retail industry are not perfectionists. They just want someone who will get the job done… So don’t shy from applying for positions just because you feel that you don’t have all the qualifications.
2. Visit the major job listings portals regularly: There are job listings portals (like Monster.com, Jobs.com, Dice.com, Snagajob.com… and so on) where open positions from various industries are posted. It is not rare to come across retail industry jobs in such portals. In fact, browsing through the listings in some of those portals, you discover that the retail industry jobs form a good percentage [of the listings]. Therefore, if you are looking for a retail industry job, you need to make a point of visiting such portals from time to time and undertaking searches for the roles you are interested in. The way  most of these portals are structured is such that you only need to enter keywords that are descriptive of the role you are looking for (and a preferred work location) — and then the system will give you links to all open positions that meet your criteria.
3. Network with individuals who are already working in the retail industry: The idea here is firstly to get information from them on how they got the retail industry jobs. You may learn, from them, effective job search strategies you hadn’t thought about — which can help you considerably in your retail industry job search. They may also tell you about positions that have been advertised internally within the retail companies they work for (that is, vacant positions that may not have been publicly advertised). You can then proceed to apply for those positions. You see, not all positions that fall vacant in various are advertised publicly. Some organizations have a policy of telling their employees (the folks who are already working with them) to ‘refer’ job applicants — their friends and family — for positions that fall vacant. Isn’t it obviously only by befriending the folks who are already working in the retail industry that you can get to learn about such positions? At yet another level, networking with individuals who are already working in the retail industry means that you wouldn’t be lonely, should you get a job there. You would already have friends [namely the folks whom you already networked with] as friends to start with, even as you get to create more friendships in the workplace.
4. Create a good resume: Keep it in mind that the HR managers in the retail companies get very many resumes. Loads and loads of them. You therefore have to figure out a way of making yours stand out. The most important thing here is to understand the types of skills and attributes  that are in demand within the retail industry. Then you need to acquire and include those skills/attributes in your resume, in order to make the resume stand out from the huge pile on the HR manager’s desk.
5. Prepare well for the interviews: Whether you get a retail industry job depends, to a great extent, on your performance during the interview. The most important thing is to create the impression (during the interview) that you are an ideal person for the role you are being interviewed for. But you also have to avoid being overzealous. Just give a solid but relaxed presentation during your interview, and you will have increased your chances of clinching the position considerably.

Having applied for a job in the retail industry — and having been shortlisted for the role — the next step will be that of going through the interview. It is highly unlikely, in this day and age, that you would get a retail industry job without going through some sort of interview. What usually varies from company to company is the nature of the interview. But the bottom-line is that you have to go through some sort of interview. And if you are to clinch the job you are looking for in the retail industry, you really need to put some effort in preparing for the interview. In this regard, you need to remember that the other individuals shortlisted alongside you have the same qualifications as you, if not better. You therefore have to give the employer a reason to select you [as opposed to one of those other individuals]. And the only way you can do so, once you are past the short-listing stage, is by performing in an impressive manner at the interview stage. That is why you need to prepare properly for your retail industry job interview.

In preparing for your retail industry job interview, you need to:

1. Refresh your technical skills: Nowadays, retail industry job interviews tend to have several components – one of which is the technical component. That is where you are asked questions about the role you are seeking or where you are asked to perform some tasks practically. Other components may include the aptitude component (where you are given a general aptitude test), possibly a psychometric component and then the oral interview. It is the technical aspect that tends to trip most people – which means that you need to pay special attention in preparing for it. If in the course of the interview, it emerges that you have a poor grasp of the technical area you are seeking to work in, you are unlikely to get hired. For instance, if you are seeking to become a merchandiser at a retail company, yet (in the course of the interview) it emerges that you don’t know anything or you know very little about merchandising, it is highly unlikely that you would get hired. So it is important to do whatever it takes to refresh your technical skills (in the area you are seeking to work) while preparing for your interview. You may read your books/notes on the subject area. Or you may conduct online research on the subject area… whatever it takes, ensure that you at least have the basics at your fingertips.
2. Undertake research on the company: In the course of your retail industry job interview, you may encounter questions that are designed to gauge how well you know about the company. So it is very important for you to (at the very least) visit the ‘about us’ page on the company’s website. You can go further and read online news articles about the company. And if the company is one of those that have a Wikipedia entry, you should make sure you go through it too. Otherwise if, in the course of the interview it emerges that you know next to nothing about the company, you would be exposed as an ‘opportunist’ (and that would lower your chances of getting the job). Oh, and while at it, you should also research on where exactly the company’s offices are/where you are expected to go for the interview, and how long it would take you to get there. The worst you can do is arrive late for the interview, on account of having got lost on the way.
3. Sleep well on the night before: Some of the questions you may encounter in the course of your retail industry job interview will require quick-thinking. That is especially the case if you will be put through an aptitude test and psychometric test in the course of the interview. Your performance will definitely be hampered if you are groggy on account of not having slept well. It is therefore very important for you to ensure that you sleep at a decent hour on the night before the interview. If the interview is in another far-off city, you may consider sleeping there (in that city) on the night before the interview. That is as opposed to a scenario where you have to wake up at a crazy hour on the interview morning (to travel for the event).
4. Dress appropriately for the interview: You need to make up your mind well in advance on what you will be wearing for the interview. The outfit you wear has to be one that depicts you as a ‘responsible’ person — someone who is capable of coping with the demands of work in a retail setting. Having made up your mind on the clothes you will be wearing for the interview, you need to have them cleaned and ironed in good time. In all this, remember that human beings tend to make their decisions based on first impressions.  Therefore the interviewers will be greatly influenced by the first impression they get of you. And one way in which you can ensure that they get a good first impression of you is by dressing in an appropriate manner. Therefore making decisions on what to wear for interview and cleaning/ironing the outfit in good time is a very critical aspect of interview preparation.