What Does a Retail Manager Do


Every organization needs to be managed and taken care of which is also true for a retail store. Retail managers. You know the really important looking people in retail shops? The ones who comes across as being completely in control of the proceedings there? It is rather clear that they are the ones who manage the work and make sure that everything works out well in that establishment. But what does a retail manager do and what are his duties? Let's simply say that he is the one who manages to get everything in order. He is the one who looks after all the small and major things that are required for the smooth functioning of the store. He is the one who is responsible for looking after the need of the employees and the customers, and handle all the problems that might come up in the course of running the establishment. Let me just get you the details of the retail manager job description and what he needs to handle as a part of his duties in the following section.

Retail Manager Duties and Responsibilities

A retail manager is responsible for the efficient running of the day-to-day activities in a retail store. That means everything. And by everything, we mean everything that is concerned with the retail shop in any way. He has to be aware of the proceedings that take place in every department and handle everything well enough. Let's get into the details of the duties of a retail manager in the following section:

  • The crux of the retail store manager job description is that he has to get in the maximum profits while maintaining expenses as low as possible.
  • He is responsible for the hiring and firing of employees. He has to ensure that only those people are hired who are most efficient in their tasks and are able to complete the delegated duties perfectly.
  • He also has to have the ability to know when a person is not unable to handle the tasks well enough then take decision about reassigning them to some other task or fire them, if it comes to that.
  • There has to be proper training undertaken to ensure that each employee knows his/her responsibilities well enough. Regular workshops or training sessions have to be brought in to ensure that the employees are up-to-date with their work styles.
  • He needs to keep a check and a stock of all the things in the shop and ensure that regular orders are being placed by the employees to keep things in continuous supply.
  • He is responsible for keeping a check and accountable for the cash that comes in during the transactions of the day.
  • Giving the employees their pay checks is also one of the main responsibilities that he handles.
  • He has to be in constant contact with all the suppliers to talk about the quality of the goods or any other important business proceeding.
  • Another important task that a retail manager undertakes is to ensure that the customers are always happy. In that way he has to have a pleasant demeanor to be able to talk to the customers well enough and ensure that they are satisfied.
  • He has to have the capacity to handle a complaint from a customer and know how to act on it.
  • In times of crisis, he has to have the ability to think on his feet and handle the situation with ease.
  • He has to constantly think of innovative ways to introduce schemes and other offers so that the customers keep coming back.
  • He has to ensure that the store is appealing, is spacious and well-lit, so that the customers have a pleasant time when they shop.
  • He has to maintain the safety and health management proceedings in the shop.
  • He has to study the market and understand the possible future trends that are taking shape and take steps to counter them under guidance of top management.
Retail Manager Salary

So what exactly does a retail store manager make? The deal is that this depends on a number of factors. The size of the store for one and how high-end it is. The bigger the establishment, the more the responsibilities, and therefore the retail store manager salary will also be more as compared to a small store perhaps. Other than that the location and the type of management also play a major role in deciding what the figures of the pay will be like. The average salary of a senior retail manager will fall in the range of US $50,000 - US $60,000 per annum (approximately). These figures will change according to the educational qualifications and experience of the manager as well. In the sense that if a person has just started out then the salary will be lesser.

In this article I have tried to highlight and put forth for you a comprehensive list of some of the duties and responsibilities that he handles. This should clear your doubts and help you gain perspective about the same. And if you're thinking of getting into this profession, then the information on the same will have helped to clear your stream of thought in that direction.

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