The Names of the Positions in Retail

Many retail jobs focus on making the sale.

From family-owned shops to 24-hour mega-mart department stores, the retail industry hosts a wide variety of positions. Employees usually work 8-hour schedules, full or part time, in jobs that are often accessible to students, graduates and non-graduates. However, the retail industry presents its employees with the opportunity to climb the ladder; some workers start as clerks become successful managers via hard work and motivation.

Sales Clerk and Cashier

Cashiers watch over the money in a store.

Retail sales clerks interact with consumers, answering their questions, seeing to their needs and helping them make decisions about their purchases. Clerks often perform other small duties like rearranging or cleaning up merchandise. Retail cashiers take on the task of register operation, ringing up purchases and storing money. In small retail stores, one person often performs the tasks of both sales clerk and cashier while larger stores are more likely to feature separate clerks and cashiers. These positions serve as entry-level retail jobs.

Store Manager

The position of retail store manager usually goes to experienced retail workers, often assigned by regional managers or store owners. Larger stores may feature specialized department or shift managers, while the managers at smaller stores often oversee all sections. Retail managers make employee schedules, file paperwork, motivate employees, handle the problems of customers and create sales ideas and initiatives. Managers also take on the task of hiring, firing and evaluating employees.

Security and Loss Prevention

Loss-prevention specialists may monitor store activity via security cameras.

In the retail environment, loss-prevention employees concern themselves with keeping an eye on a company's merchandise and hard currency. Most retails stores calculate the difference between the inventory they have and the inventory they should have based on sales records; the difference is known as shrinkage. Retail loss-prevention employees---including loss-prevention supervisors and security guards---combat shrinkage. Their duties include spotting and preventing employee theft, shoplifting and paperwork errors. Most loss-prevention positions require experience or initial training courses.

Warehouse Workers and Stockers

Some retail employees spend most of their time in the warehouse.

Warehouses store all the merchandise that hasn't yet made it to the store's shelves. Retail warehouse workers perform physical labor, often lifting merchandise weighing 50 pounds or more in a fast-paced environment. Sometimes, warehouse workers operate heavy machinery such as forklifts. Retail stockers, or stock clerks, work in the warehouses and on the floors of retail establishments. Stockers must quickly restock shelves when merchandise in the store runs out. They also regularly replenish shelf stock. Warehouse managers and supervisors often oversee these teams of employees. Warehouse workers and stockers sometimes work odd hours, often restocking shelves by night. Warehouse jobs tend to be entry-level, though operating heavy machinery requires special training.

References

• Job Monkey: Retail Jobs and Careers
• PI Mall: Loss Prevention
• Snagajob: Stock Clerk

Resources

• Bureau of Labor Statistics: Retail Salespersons