How to Apply for a Job at Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble is one of the largest bookstore chains in the United Stores. The company currently has approximately 40,000 full- and part-time employees in more than 700 retail locations and corporate offices in New York City and Connecticut. To apply for a job at Barnes & Noble, you will first have to choose between applying to a retail position and a corporate one, as the application process differs.
- Difficulty:
- Easy
Instructions
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To Apply for a Retail Position
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1
Be 16 years old, as this is the minimum age required to work for Barnes & Noble. Depending on local regulations, applicants who are 16 or 17 may also need to acquire working papers from their state department of labor.
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2
Check job listings on HotJobs.com, where Barnes & Noble posts all of their job listings.
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3
Select a store or stores to which to apply. You can also apply to more than one store at the same time, but be aware that upcoming or newly open stores will generally have more open positions than well-established stores.
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4
Select a position. You can apply to be a salesperson or a manager. Sales positions include bookseller, cafe servers, music sellers, leads (who are experts in an assigned section of the store), head cashiers, and receivers (who help maintain the store's inventory). Managerial positions include store managers, merchandise managers, community relations managers (who plan and execute community outreach programs) and district managers (who monitor sales in a particular district).
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5
Fill out an application. A single standardized application exists for all in-store positions.
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6
Submit the application, either electronically or in person. You can apply to a store even if an open position does not currently exist; your application will be kept on file.
To Apply for a Corporate Position
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1
Browse Barnes & Nobles corporate job listings. Fewer corporate positions are available than in-store positions, but the salaries are generally higher.
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2
Select from available positions. Examples of corporate positions include "Internal Auditor" and "Director of DVD Marketing."
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3
Compose a cover letter tailored to the position to which you're applying. The cover letter should outline your qualifications, related occupational experience and your reason for applying to the job.
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4
Submit your resume and the cover letter electronically.
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1
Tips & Warnings
When choosing which position to apply for, remember that Barnes & Noble does promote from within. According to their website, more than 70 percent of their store managers began as booksellers.
As of 2009, getting a job at Barnes & Noble was especially difficult. Reflecting a downturn in sales, in January 2009 the company laid off almost 100 corporate employees, the first mass corporate layoffs in the company's history.
