Retail Sales Workers

Summary

Retail sales workers assist customers in finding the products they want and process payments.

Quick Facts: Retail Sales Workers
2010 Median Pay	$20,990 per year $10.09 per hour
Entry-Level Education	Less than high school
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	See How to Become One
Number of Jobs, 2010	4,465,500
Job Outlook, 2010-20	17% (About as fast as average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	739,400

What Retail Sales Workers Do

Retail sales workers include both those who sell retail merchandise, such as clothing, furniture, and automobiles, (called retail salespersons) and those who sell spare and replacement parts and equipment, especially car parts, (called parts salespersons). Both groups help customers find the products they want and process customers’ payments.

Work Environment

Most retail sales workers work in clean, comfortable, well-lit stores. Many sales workers work evenings and weekends. More than one-third of retail salespersons work part time.

How to Become a Retail Sales Worker

Typically, retail sales workers do not need a formal education. However, some employers prefer applicants who have a high school diploma or equivalent.

Pay

The median hourly wage of retail salespersons was $9.94 in May 2010. The median hourly wage of parts salespersons was $13.88 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of retail salespersons is expected to grow 17 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Employment of parts salespersons is expected to grow 16 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Many workers leave this occupation, which means there will be a large number of job openings. This large number of job openings combined with the large size of the occupation should result in many employment opportunities.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of retail sales workers with similar occupations.

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about retail sales workers by contacting these additional resources.

What Retail Sales Workers Do About this section

Retail sales workers maintain knowledge of current sales and promotions.

Retail sales workers include both those who sell retail merchandise, such as clothing, furniture, and cars, (called retail salespersons) and those who sell spare and replacement parts and equipment, especially car parts, (called parts salespersons). Both groups help customers find the products they want and process customers’ payments.

Duties

Retail sales workers generally do the following:

• Greet customers and determine what each customer wants or needs
• Recommend merchandise based on customers’ wants and needs
• Explain the use and benefit of merchandise to customers
• Answer customers’ questions
• Show how merchandise works, if applicable
• Add up customers’ total purchases and accept payment
• Know about current sales and promotions, policies about payments and exchanges, and security practices

The following are the types of retail sales workers

Retail salespersons work in stores where they sell goods, such as books, cars, clothing, cosmetics, electronics, furniture, lumber, plants, shoes, and many other types of merchandise.

In addition to helping customers find and select items to buy, many retail salespersons process the payment for the sale.  This involves operating cash registers.

After taking payment for the purchases, retail salespersons may bag or package the purchases.

Depending on the hours they work, retail salespersons may have to open or close cash registers. This includes counting the money in the register and separating charge slips, coupons, and exchange vouchers. They may also make deposits at a cash office.

For information about other workers who receive and disburse money, see the profile on cashiers.

In addition, retail salespersons may help stock shelves or racks, arrange for mailing or delivery of purchases, mark price tags, take inventory, and prepare displays.

For some retail sales jobs, particularly those involving expensive and complex items, retail sales workers need special knowledge or skills. For example, those who sell cars must be able to explain the features of various models, the manufacturers’ specifications, the types of options on the car and financing available, and the details of associated warranties.

In addition, retail sales workers must recognize security risks and thefts and understand their organization’s procedures for handling thefts—procedures that may include notifying security guards or calling police.

Parts salespersons sell spare and replacement parts and equipment. Most deal with car parts, by working in either automotive parts stores or automobile dealerships. They take customers’ orders, inform customers of part availability and price, and take inventory.

Work Environment About this section

Retail sales workers often stand for long periods and may need supervisory approval to leave the sales floor.

Retail salespersons held about 4.3 million jobs in 2010.

The following industries employed the most retail salespersons in 2010:

Parts salespersons held about 203,900 jobs in 2010.

The following industries employed the most parts salespersons in 2010:

Most retail sales workers work in clean, comfortable, well-lit stores. However, they often stand for long periods and may need permission from a supervisor to leave the sales floor. If they sell items such as cars, plants, or lumberyard materials, they may work outdoors.

Work Schedules

Many sales workers work evenings and weekends, particularly during holidays and other peak sales periods. Because the end-of-year holiday season is often the busiest time, many employers limit retail sales workers’ use of vacation time between November and the beginning of January

About 37 percent of retail salespersons worked part time in 2010.

How to Become a Retail Sales Worker About this section

A friendly and outgoing personality is important for these workers, as the job requires almost constant interaction with people.

Typically, retail sales workers do not need a formal education. However, some employers prefer applicants who have a high school diploma or its equivalent.

Education

Although retail or parts sales positions usually have no formal education requirements, some employers prefer applicants who have a high school diploma or equivalent, especially those who sell technical products or “big-ticket” items, such as electronics or cars.

Training

Most retail sales workers receive on-the-job training, which usually lasts a few days to a few months. In small stores, newly hired workers often are trained by an experienced employee. In large stores, training programs are more formal and generally are conducted over several days.

Topics often include customer service, security, the store’s policies and procedures, and how to operate the cash register.

Depending on the type of product they are selling, employees may be given additional specialized training. For example, salespersons working in cosmetics get instruction on the types of products the store offers and for whom the cosmetics would be most beneficial. Likewise, those who sell computers may be instructed on the technical differences between computer products.

Because providing exceptional service to customers is a priority for many employers, employees often get periodic training to update and refine their skills.

Advancement

Retail sales workers typically have opportunities to advance to managerial positions. Some employers want candidates for managerial positions to have a college degree.

 As sales workers gain experience and seniority, they often move into positions that have greater responsibility and may be given their choice of departments in which to work. This opportunity often means moving to positions with higher potential earnings and commissions. The highest earnings potential usually lies in selling “big-ticket” items—such as cars, jewelry, furniture, and electronics. These positions often require workers with extensive knowledge of the product and an excellent talent for persuasion.

Important Qualities

Customer-service skills. Retail sales workers must be responsive to the wants and needs of customers. They should explain the product options available to customers and make appropriate recommendations.

People skills. A friendly and outgoing personality is important for these workers because the job requires almost constant interaction with people.   

Persistence. A large number of attempted sales may not be successful, so sales workers should not be discouraged easily. They must start each new sales attempt with a positive attitude.

Selling skills. Retail sales workers must be persuasive when interacting with customers. They must clearly and effectively explain the benefits of merchandise.

Pay About this section

The median hourly wage of retail salespersons was $9.94 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half of the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $7.75, and the top 10 percent earned more than $18.54.

The median hourly wage of parts salespersons was $13.88 in May 2010. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $8.77, and the top 10 percent earned more than $23.12.

Compensation systems vary by type of establishment and merchandise sold. Retail sales workers get hourly wages, commissions, or a combination of the two. Under a commission system, they get a percentage of the sales they make. This system offers sales workers the opportunity to increase their earnings considerably, but they may find that their earnings depend strongly on their ability to sell their product and on the ups and downs of the economy.

Many retail sales workers work evenings and weekends, particularly during holidays and other peak sales periods. Because the end-of-year holiday season is often the busiest time, many employers limit sales workers’ use of vacation time between November and the beginning of January. About 37 percent of retail salespersons worked part time in 2010.

Job Outlook About this section

Employment of retail salespersons is expected to grow 17 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Employment of retail salespersons has traditionally grown with the overall economy, and this trend is expected to continue. Population growth will increase retail sales and demand for these workers.

Although consumers are increasing their online retail shopping, they will continue to do most of their retail shopping in stores. Retail salespersons will be needed in stores to help customers and complete sales.

Among the various retail industries, other general merchandise stores, which include warehouse clubs and supercenters, are expected to see strong job growth. These large stores sell a wide range of goods from a single location. Thus, employment in the warehouse clubs and supercenters industry is expected to grow 51 percent during the next decade.

However, employment in department stores has declined in recent years and will likely continue to be weak. 

Employment of parts salespersons is expected to grow 16 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. People are keeping their cars longer and are buying new cars less often. Older cars need to be serviced more frequently, creating demand for car parts and parts salespersons.

Job Prospects

Many workers leave this occupation, which means there will be a large number of job openings. This large number of job openings combined with the large size of the occupation should result in many employment opportunities. 

Contacts for More Information About this section

For information about training for a career in automobile sales, visit

National Automobile Dealers Association