Retail Sales Workers
Retail Sales Workers
Career Overview
Retail sales workers help customers choose products that meet their needs, explain product features, answer questions, process purchases and payments, and provide customer service. Depending on the workplace, they may also stock merchandise, organize displays, track inventory, and assist with deliveries.
Education
Retail sales workers generally do not need a formal post-secondary credential. Some employers may prefer a high school diploma or equivalent, and most workers receive on-the-job training in customer service, sales, store procedures, point-of-sale systems, and product knowledge. Specialized retail positions may require additional product or industry training.
Future Outlook
Retail sales workers will continue to be needed to provide personal customer service, product guidance, and in-store sales support. Online shopping and automation may limit employment growth in some areas, but physical stores will continue to need workers who can assist customers and complete sales. Replacement openings should continue to provide opportunities as workers change occupations or leave the workforce.
Work Environment
Retail sales workers primarily work in stores and other customer-facing retail environments. They spend much of their time interacting with customers and may stand for long periods. Work schedules can include evenings, weekends, holidays, and additional hours during busy sales periods.
Recommended High School Courses
- Math
- Business
- Communication
- Marketing
- Computer Applications
- Social science
- Principles of Advertising
- Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
- Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
- Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
- Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
- Gather customer or product information to determine customer needs.
- Greet customers, patrons, or visitors.
- Recommend products or services to customers.
- Maintain records of sales or other business transactions.
- Process sales or other transactions.
- Set up merchandise displays.
- Calculate costs of goods or services.
- Answer customer questions about goods or services.
- Review laws or regulations to maintain professional knowledge.
- Reconcile records of sales or other financial transactions.
- Prepare sales or other contracts.
- Advise customers on the use of products or services.
- Demonstrate products to consumers.
- Explain technical product or service information to customers.
- Monitor inventories of products or materials.
- Purchase stocks of merchandise or supplies.
- Estimate costs or terms of sales.
- Monitor work areas to provide security.
- Arrange delivery of goods or services.
- Sell products or services.
- Clean work areas.
References
Trend Analysis - Explorer the Market, Labour Market Information, Government of Canada https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis.
O*NET OnLine, National Center for O*NET Development, https://www.onetonline.org/.