Retail Merchandiser Careers

Answer 1

Being a retail merchandiser means helping businesses conduct their retail operations by properly shelving, stocking, and pricing retail products. A good retail merchandiser knows the product line back and forth, and knows how to present these items so that they sell. Most retail merchandisers conduct their business in a physical location such as a storefront or inside a big box retail store, though advances in technology mean that some retail merchandisers assist online shops in presenting and ordering their inventory.

Think of a retail merchandiser as a go between for manufacturers of a product and the retail stores that sell that product. A retail merchandiser’s day goes a little something like this: they start by picking up a specific number of retail goods from a manufacturer in the name of his employer, buying these items at a wholesale price. Then, retail merchandisers head to one of their affiliated retail locations to setup the product, arrange the display, and stock the product on that store’s shelves. This setup and display procedure is repeated at many different retail settings.

Your starting salary as a retail merchandiser isn’t going to put your kids through college -- depending on the area of the country you’re working in and your experience in the field, you could get a full time merchandising position that pays more than the average, part time, retail job. It is not uncommon for a part time retail merchandiser to make around $10 an hour plus bonuses for high sales numbers. If you manage to land a retail merchandiser job that covers a large service area, you could get full time work, health benefits, and mileage compensation from your employer.

People who work in retail merchandising need to be sticklers for detail, have a natural understanding of sales, work well with other people, and have a fairly clean driving record. Remember, you’ll be driving all day long between retail environments, so to get a job as a merchandiser, you’ll need to pass a background check that includes a look at your driving record. Generally considered a source of supplemental income, a job in merchandising can grow into a full time career with a little patience and a little bit of sales success.