Where does one go from retail management?

PardonTheWait

PardonTheWait

PardonTheWait

Soldato
Joined
26 Aug 2003
Posts
24,291
Hello,

I'm currently working in retail as a store manager and have been for the last four years (store manager for the last year). I ended up working retail pretty much by chance, I was offered a job that sounded like fun, and here I am.

It's not that I don't like it, it's fine and if I'm honest I really do enjoy it. I run a small shop, I have six staff, but it's not what I want for my whole life. I'm in my late 20s and in a year or two, I want to make a move to a new job.

But where? Are there any areas in particular that are easier to move to from retail management?

Has anyone here escaped from it, and where did you go? How easy did you find the transition?

I have no degree and my only qualification is a GNVQ in graphics from years ago - I'm resolutely not interested in design as a job and I wasn't good at it anyway! I did it for a while but it bored me - that's why I ended up working in retail :/

So... anyone?
 
I doubt that retail manager of a small shop has any real impact in the professional world.....unless it is to another retail sector and I think that even then each company (such as moving from Tesco to Sainsburys) would expect you to retrain at the minimum and would probably expect you to start from the shop-floor again unless you have relevant qualifications. That's probably not what you wanted to hear, but it really depends on what you want to do as to the relevance of your experience.

I would be more inclined to look into retraining or gaining a degree or equivalent and then looking to move.......
 
What sort of wage do you get just out of interest? I'm on the lookout for store manager positions to swap over from my current manager role.
 
Castiel said:
I doubt that retail manager of a small shop has any real impact in the professional world.....unless it is to another retail sector and I think that even then each company (such as moving from Tesco to Sainsburys) would expect you to retrain at the minimum and would probably expect you to start from the shop-floor again unless you have relevant qualifications. That's probably not what you wanted to hear, but it really depends on what you want to do as to the relevance of your experience.

I would be more inclined to look into retraining or gaining a degree or equivalent and then looking to move.......
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I do agree - I'm not under the illusion that someone with a bit of retail management experience is a huge catch.. Sure, there's some transferrable skills and so on, but I know that any move of trades so to speak is going to be a step down in terms of title (probably not in money though!)

Although the shop I manage is small it's quite a classy retailer, to be fair.

Retraining is one option - problem being that I just don't know with enough certainty what I want to do to make a big, one-off change.

ash_scotland88 said:
Maybe try assistant general manager of an office?
Other option move to a big company, bigger store then regional manager?
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This is the other option. Looking around on job sites, the easiest move and the most obvious in terms of career development would be to move to a larger company in a lesser role, like assistant manager of a large store. A step up in money and a step up the ladder.

On the one hand I'm afraid of waking up and being 45 and still being stuck running a shop. On the other hand I've worked in offices.. didn't much like it. I don't think the 'professional' world is for me.
 
Camalot said:
What sort of wage do you get just out of interest? I'm on the lookout for store manager positions to swap over from my current manager role.
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It's very commission based, basic is below £20k.

Retail manager wages seem to vary wildly from what I've seen. I've learned a lot in this position and have plenty more to learn, I don't intend on leaving yet but I'm at an age where I need to start thinking about the future.
 
I would have thought the natural progression would be to move onto a larger shop/store then on to an area manager role.

My wife started off as store manager but went into HR and is now head of HR of a large womens retail fashion chain.
 
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MrMoonX said:
Seriously ur in retail What do u expect? It's like one up from waiting tables
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Your signature on the internet is clickable and it leads to a page of the statistics of your activities on an online game, and underneath that are your usernames on the other two online gaming networks, so people can become your 'friend'.

Opinion void
 
Try to do something you enjoy, if that means re-training or getting a qualification then so be it.

As for easy to move to areas from retail management, with minimal qualifications, (presuming you want to earn more essentially) there's always sales(estate agent, financial adviser etc..). Doesn't require much in the way of qualifications (if any) and can certainly pay well but not necessarily enjoyable careers.
 
Either retrain or move to a bigger store.

To be honest, i would be inclined to move up and qualify in something part time.
 
Depending on your skill set you can head elsewhere.

I worked for an electrical retailer for almost six years after leaving college, the last two and a half years i was also volunteering for the samaritans. That experience let me move into the county police headquarters doing a telephone-based role and after 6 months there ended up moving into working as a Connexions adviser. Totally different to retail, working with teenagers with issues and jobseeking/careers advice.

Four years after that, I was made redundant due to funding cuts and I'm now a regional sales developer for a company that represents some big IT brands in the retail channel, so I now travel a lot and visit a lot of stores to train staff etc, so it's not store level employment, but it's retail-centric and it uses my people skills.

Not sure where I was going with this, but the fact is, that retail does not have to dominate your career path, outside interests and transferable skills are worth a lot to the right employers. You just need to target them.
 
It's not uncommon to move into Corporate after being store-based. Logistics, Buying, Supply Chain Management are all options if you have any interest in those areas. Once you're in a Head Office environment then things really open up.

I went Assistant Store Manager (Sainsburys) then to M&S in supply chain and then Woolworths, PC World and Homebase as a Buyer, Senior Buyer and Category Manager respectively. I'd had enough of retail so moved into Health Procurement.

Ignore that Moon cretin from earlier - there are lots of opportunities and they can pay fantastically well.
 
You could perhaps look at doing some sort of business degree via the OU part time which would presumably give more weight to any application to the corporate suggestions that Magnolia has made?
 
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