Sales staff are the front-line staff who have direct contact with customers and are mainly responsible for sales and other related activities. They are either:
Supervisory staff are responsible for managing sales and related matters in a store. The post titles and company structure may vary among different types of retailers. The following are some common positions:
Store Managers/ Branch Managers are responsible for the overall administration of the store. Their duties are:
Manage and train staff; assigning duties
Maintain and improving the quality of service
Minimise the operating cost
Take charge of the security and maintenance of the store
Answer customers' enquiries and handle complaints
Monitor sales figures and market trends and report the information to the senior staff and buyers
Floor Managers/ Floor Supervisors are usually employed in department stores or large retail shops. Their main duties are:
Handle the general administration of the floor
Plan the location and space occupied of different selling sections, consignments or counters
Perform periodical market research to understand customers' preferences
Section Heads/ Section Supervisors are usually employed in department stores or large retail shops to take charge of particular sales sections like men's apparel, women's apparel or electrical appliance, etc. Their main duties are:
Supervise a team of cashiers and sales assistants to perform sales duties
Allocate duties to subordinates
Provide on-the-job training for new recruits
Ensure that the section provides quality goods and services to customers
Most supervisory staff start their career in junior positions. After building up their knowledge and experience, they are eligible for more senior positions. Related working experience is essential for promoting to a senior supervisory staff. Further, a successful applicant should meet the following requirements:
F.5 graduate or above
Mature and stable
Have good interpersonal and communication skills
Demonstrate good leadership and management skills and adaptable
Pleasant and optimist
Sales Assistants/ Shop Assistants play an important role in the success of a retail shop. They are the front-line staff who have direct contact with customers and perform sales duties. Their duties may differ from store to store, but in general, they are mainly responsible for:
Understanding customers' needs and assisting them in locating products required
Giving advice to customers, recommending suitable products, peripherals or related merchandise
Demonstrating how to operate/ use the products
Providing quality customer services
Handling customers' enquiries and reporting to seniors whenever necessary
Receiving payments made by cash, cheque, EPS or credit card
Packing products for customers
Replenishing display items on shelves and maintaining their tidiness
Assisting in window-dressing
F.3 graduate or above, some may require F.5 graduate or above
Fluent in Cantonese and know simple English
Stores selling high-end products or located in tourist districts may require higher educational standard as well as good command of English or other foreign languages
Friendly, sociable and outgoing
Self-motivated, responsible, patient and courteous
Possess genuine interest in communicating with people
Cashiers are mainly responsible for receiving payments from customers. Some stores may employ full-time cashiers while others may require sales assistants to perform cashier duties in turn. Generally, the main duties of cashiers are:
Receive cash, cheques or payment by EPS or credit cards from customers and colleagues
Count the cash received and issuing receipts
Keep records of monetary transactions
Verify balances by comparing totals on cash register with amount of cash in register
Provide quality customer services
Handle customers' enquiries and requests and refer them to superior whenever necessary
Pack products for customers
F.3 graduate or above
Honest
Courteous, patient and helpful
Careful in handling figures and accurate in performing simple calculations
May be required to speak simple English in some stores
In considering promotion, abilities, experience and performance generally count more than educational qualification. Therefore, sales staff should work hard to build up their knowledge and experience in order to secure promotion.
Apart from the common promotion prospects shown as above, Store Managers/ Branch Managers with outstanding performance may be promoted to Regional/ District Managers or Purchasing Managers.