This tale belies the fact that retail does offer lots of fantastic
graduate opportunities.... and the sector is keen to promote this. A recent
careers conference I attended attracted 18 organisations including high street stores,
retail support services and the hospitality industry. Those present recruit to
over 2500 paid graduate and undergraduate opportunities.
The employers at the event recruit to 14 different job functions, including
Logistics, Marketing, IT, Property and Law, as well as more obvious areas such
as Buying, Merchandising, e-Commerce and Store Management. These roles offer
real responsibility, with the opportunity to really add value to the business through
projects and leading on new initiatives. According to Simon Roberts, Chief Operating
Officer at Boots, working in retail ‘is hard work but it’s great if you really
enjoy being around people, and making things happen that make customers feel
special’.
Yet retail does appear to be misunderstood by many students,
especially in terms of the nature and diversity of graduate opportunities. In a
recent Rate-My-Placement* survey of 2500+ students 54% said they were not
confident that they know what graduate roles exist in the industry. Only 65%
said they thought the sector offered retail management opportunities for
graduates (!), and only 40% thought that the industry offered jobs in
e-commerce and logistics. This misconception may be partly based on students’ own
experience of part-time student jobs in shops but retailers admit they have to
do more to promote the sector and more accurately represent the opportunities
available. Although, relevant existing work experience is useful for management
training schemes and placements, the employers stress that it’s definitely not
essential to have retail experience to get into the industry as a graduate. It
is a good idea, though, to visit stores that you want to apply to so you can
get a feel for the brand.
For more information on Retail Careers see www.prospects.ac.uk/retail_sales_sector.htm
*www.ratemyplacement.co.uk carries over 350 student reviews of
retail placements, scoring an average rating of 7.6 out of 10
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