The Best Retail Jobs That Are Hiring Now

Retail experience can open doors in many different areas—see what your options are.

By Camilla Andersson, Monster Contributor

Are you looking to start your first career or transition to a new one? Consider getting your start in the retail industry—one of the largest sectors of the U.S. economy. While about 4 million Americans work directly in retail sales jobs, the industry as a whole supports over 32 million jobs, making retail larger than healthcare or IT.

Now sure how to If you’re looking for some inspiration, we’ve compiled a list of the best retail jobs to apply to, including entry-level jobs and more advanced positions, along with the retail stores that are hiring now.

What Is a Retail Job?

There are different definitions of retail jobs. The term can refer to:

In this article we’ll take a look at jobs that are fairly unique to the retail industry. In these jobs you might work at a store, in a corporate office, or remotely, but you’ll be responsible for supporting retail store operations. If you want to work for an online store, consider searching for e-commerce jobs.

7 of the Best Retail Jobs to Apply for Now

No matter your experience and education level, you can find a job in retail that’s right for you. These are some of the best job titles that are unique to the industry.

Sales Associate

Sales associates work directly with customers, either at the cash register, on the floor, or both. As a sales associate, you might also be responsible for inventory, such as stocking and organizing shelves and storage. To thrive in sales, you’ll need to be a good communicator, service-minded, and knowledgeable about the products you sell, as well as skilled at closing sales.

This is one of the best retail jobs if you don’t have previous experience or a college degree but are interested in retail careers. Being a sales associate is usually an entry-level position, although customer-service experience is sometimes required. You can learn more about how to break into the industry in our article on how to get a sales job without experience.

The median salary for a sales associate in the U.S. is $28,005. This increases to $36,454 in New York City and $31,949 in Los Angeles. Some retail sales associates also get a commission on sales that they close.

Find jobs as a sales associate on Monster.

Retail Manager

Retail managers oversee one or several stores, as well as the staff reporting to them. There are different retail careers in management, and titles may vary from company to company. Here are the most common retail job titles in management, in order from lowest position to highest position:

  • assistant manager
  • store manager
  • area manager
  • district manager
  • regional manager
  • head of stores

Retail management positions are some of the best retail jobs because you can climb the career ladder without a college degree. Many retail managers start in an entry-level position such as a sales associate and work their way up from there.

For high-level manager positions, you might need a bachelor’s degree in a related major such as business or sales. You’ll also need a leadership personality, great interpersonal skills, and organizational skills. Since many retail managers start on the floor in a sales position, being good at closing sales can help you advance. Learn more about these job titles in our article on different retail management careers.

The median salary for a retail store manager in the U.S. is $44,388. This increases to $47,671 and $58,022 in the high-demand locations of Los Angeles and New York City. If you’re looking for high-paying retail jobs, you can make significantly more by advancing to one of the senior management positions. Sales managers make a median salary of $127,490 a year

Browse all retail manager jobs available on Monster.

Pricing Coordinator

The responsibilities of a pricing coordinator vary from store to store. At some retailers this is an entry-level position where you’ll primarily monitor that pricing is correct by inspecting merchandise and adding and removing labels. Other pricing coordinators have significantly more responsibility by also determining prices, monitoring sales data, researching competitors, tracking market trends, and more.

You’ll likely need an associate degree or a bachelor’s degree to become a pricing coordinator. For jobs that require you to set and track prices, you’ll also need several years of work experience. You’ll need to be analytical, have basic math skills, work well with spreadsheets, and be well-organized and detail-oriented.

The median salary for a pricing coordinator in the U.S. is $36,153. This number increases to $41,774 and $42,356 in the high-demand locations of Los Angeles and New York City.

Browse all pricing coordinator jobs available on Monster.

Visual Merchandiser

Visual merchandisers plan the visual design of a store, with a focus on product displays, including window mannequins, signs, and product promotions. This includes planning the displays virtually using design tools, as well as completing or supervising set-up on location. To guide your displays, you’ll also analyze sales data and track other metrics.

You’ll need a combination of creative and organizational skills to thrive in this position, as well as a bachelor’s degree. Learn more in our article on how to become a visual merchandiser. The median salary for a visual merchandiser in the U.S. is $35,000.

Browse all visual merchandiser jobs available on Monster.

Retail Buyer

A retail buyer determines what products to stock in stores and how many of each item. This entails researching trends in the industry, planning and completing purchases, analyzing product sales, creating reports, and more. Retail buyers may also be responsible for pricing and planning promotional campaigns in stores. Retail buyers may also be called assistant buyers, associate buyers, merchandise buyers, or just buyers.

This is one of the best retail jobs if you want a job that mixes creative and analytical tasks. Buyers often work closely with, and may be part of, the marketing or sales department.

Retail buyers need a bachelor’s degree, preferably in sales, retail, marketing, retail, or business. Some employers may prefer a degree related to the type of products you’ll work on, for example a degree in fashion if you’ll work for a clothing retailer. Previous experience on the sales floor can help you better understand customer shopping patterns. Buyers also need a mix of creative and organizational skills and great interpersonal skills.

The median salary for a buyer in the U.S. is $51,245. In the high-demand locations of New York City and Houston, this increases to $60,932 and $54,223.

Browse all buyer jobs available on Monster.

Merchandise Planner

Merchandise planners, also called retail planners, determine supply inventory. They work closely with buyers but serve a different function. Typically, planners decide what products to order for the company and how many, while buyers determine when to place them in the stores and how many products to distribute at once. At some retail companies these responsibilities are merged into a buyer/planner position.

While buyers often report to a sales or marketing team, a planner is part of the finance or inventory team. This difference is also reflected in a merchandise planner’s responsibilities: planners take on a more analytical role, while buyers are more creative, focusing on predicting future trends and creating a store vision.

Most merchandisers have a bachelor’s degree in merchandising, economics, logistics, finance, or business administration. You’ll need excellent organizational, collaboration, and communication skills and good insight into the retail products you’ll be responsible for.

The mean salary for buyers and purchasing agents is $72,540. This increases to $86,660 in New York City and $89,880 in Washington D.C.

Find retail planner jobs on Monster.

Security or Loss and Prevention Managers

Many retail jobs are customer-focused, but security is one of the best retail jobs if you prefer to work behind the scenes. In this role you’ll be responsible for planning and overseeing strategies for reducing theft (or “shrinkage”), losses (such as internal and external cash theft), and other safety risks. This could include training employees, investigating incidents, tracking and analyzing inventory, and installing and maintaining security equipment.

Loss and prevention managers typically need a bachelor’s degree. Common majors for loss and prevention managers include accounting, business management, psychology, criminal justice, or loss and prevention.

The median salary for a security manager is $46,540. This increases to $90,927 in San Francisco and $79,411 in Washington, D.C.

Find jobs as a security or loss and prevention manager on Monster.

Top 10 Retail Stores Hiring Now

Are you ready to get started in a new retail career? Try searching for jobs at these top retailers that are looking for candidates:

Add Retail Jobs to Your Shopping Cart on Monster

Now that you know what the best retail jobs are, it’s time to start ringing up those interview invitations. Create a Monster profile and upload your resume to start applying to jobs today. Or, sign up for email alerts so we can send you a shopping list of the best retail jobs to apply for in your area.