sorry for the lack of capitalization, i think i have a virus.
i think there's a lot of value to be had in both positions, and don't shortchange the knowledge you'll get as a lowly bookseller. for one thing, you'll get far more hands-on customer relations experience on the floor. you'll also rapidly develop your breadth and depth of knowledge of books when you're thrown into the fray as a bookseller.
as a manager, you'll probably get more insight into the workings of merchandising, an extremely important skill if you want to make it in retail. and of course, you'll get requisite managerial experience, but that might come at the expense of more extensive practcal bookselling experience.
I guess what I'm asking is whether or not a bookstore would hire someone like me as an Assistant Manager right off the bat. Is that unrealistic?
I'm intelligent, I'm a fast learner, and I have plenty of customer relations experience, so could is starting from scratch really indispensable?
Assuming that the ladder of progression goes from Bookseller, to Senior Bookseller, to Assistant Manager, to Branch Manager, and assuming that I do indeed have to start from the beginning, how long can I expect to take before I make it to each step?
Depends on the bookstore and what they're looking for. Some bookstores value book-related experience, and want that with their managers. Others want retail and customer service experice, and others want management and HR experience.
It can't hurt to apply for a managerial position, just to see what's out there, and if you're a fit for the job.
Assuming that the ladder of progression goes from Bookseller, to Senior Bookseller, to Assistant Manager, to Branch Manager, and assuming that I do indeed have to start from the beginning, how long can I expect to take before I make it to each step?Most retail positions have high turnover. Bookstores tend to more stability, but not always. I've worked in bookstores where you could achieve the first three steps of the progression in a year. Especially if you let them know that's what you'd like to do - lots of places prefer to promote from within, rather than hiring from outside
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don't count on that progression, or on them hiring you right off the bat. while your graduate degree and interpersonal skills will no doubt be a huge leg up, what all retail business look for in a manager is prior management experience, which has nothing to do with the product you are selling.
that being said, they might fast-track you to a management position if you make your ambition known.
Well, in my experience working in corporate chain stores (as bookseller and as management), I saw several Assistant Managers - and even a GM or two - hired without book experience. As someone mentioned above, the staff rarely respected them and oftentimes resented them. Not a healthy work environment. I know that sounds petty, but in pretty much every case, it was true
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i think there's a lot of value to be had in both positions, and don't shortchange the knowledge you'll get as a lowly bookseller. for one thing, you'll get far more hands-on customer relations experience on the floor. you'll also rapidly develop your breadth and depth of knowledge of books when you're thrown into the fray as a bookseller.
as a manager, you'll probably get more insight into the workings of merchandising, an extremely important skill if you want to make it in retail. and of course, you'll get requisite managerial experience, but that might come at the expense of more extensive practcal bookselling experience.
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I'm intelligent, I'm a fast learner, and I have plenty of customer relations experience, so could is starting from scratch really indispensable?
Assuming that the ladder of progression goes from Bookseller, to Senior Bookseller, to Assistant Manager, to Branch Manager, and assuming that I do indeed have to start from the beginning, how long can I expect to take before I make it to each step?
Reply
It can't hurt to apply for a managerial position, just to see what's out there, and if you're a fit for the job.
Assuming that the ladder of progression goes from Bookseller, to Senior Bookseller, to Assistant Manager, to Branch Manager, and assuming that I do indeed have to start from the beginning, how long can I expect to take before I make it to each step?Most retail positions have high turnover. Bookstores tend to more stability, but not always. I've worked in bookstores where you could achieve the first three steps of the progression in a year. Especially if you let them know that's what you'd like to do - lots of places prefer to promote from within, rather than hiring from outside ( ... )
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that being said, they might fast-track you to a management position if you make your ambition known.
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