O’Farrill 1

Anwyn O’Farrill

Mrs. Smith

Advanced Composition

10 April 2021

Career Research Essay

I have chosen secondhand retail management as a career because in addition to enjoying

the retail environment, the sustainability of environmental resources by reusing clothing instead

of throwing them away is very important to me. Historically, clothing was reused or repurposed

within families. However, the industrial revolution brought on mass-production of clothing

which made purchasing new outfits less expensive, so old clothes could be donated or resold.

While retail management has been around for centuries, resale stores began between 1897 with

the Salvation Army and 1902 with Goodwill (Waxman).

There are currently 2.2 million retail managers in the US, and some of these managers

work at the 30,000 resale and thrift stores in the US (“Retail Manager Career”: Swanston). This

is a stable career choice because even when there are economic changes, shoppers are looking

for more affordable clothing, which resale shops provide (Waxman). As a recent example of

Waxman’s statement, donations and resales exploded during the COVID shutdown, which

brought shoppers to the stores. Secondhand stores can be found in both cities and suburbs

wherever people live, so managers are not limited to where they can live.

Retail managers are responsible for many duties at the stores where they work. They

must supervise the employees, manage inventory, and provide customer service (“How to

Become a Retail Manager”). They also hire, train, and supervise new and existing employees
 O’Farrill 2

(“Retail Manager Career”). Store hours can vary from location to location, but many stores are

open between 10:00 am and 9:00 pm., and managers are responsible for being at the store before

it opens and staying until after closing. Managers need to be available every day a store is open

including weekends (“Retail Manager Career”). During the Christmas shopping season, opening

may be earlier and closing may be later (“How to Become a Retail Manager”).

Qualifications for entering retail management are simple. A 16-year old can start out in

management, but generally they are 18-years or older because a high school diploma is often

required and many stores prefer a person have at least 2 years of sales experience before

promoting them to management (“How to Become a Retail Manager”). Some companies may

require a bachelor’s degree to advance into higher management (“Retail Manager Career”) Men

and women both can be successful in this field. Conlan lists several skills that retail managers

should have to be successful: sales leadership, people leadership, flexibility for daily changes,

organized planning, troubleshooting, and good communication skills. Many of these skills can

be developed on the job or through books. Like the sales employees, the health and physical

requirements of the job may be standing for long periods of time and the ability to lift heavy

items. Most managers worked their way up into the position by starting out as a sales employee

during high school and college, then applying for higher positions until they qualify for manager

(“Retail Manager Career”). I have already been building my experience to qualify for lower

level management positions by working in retail for a year and a half.

Besides experience, there are a few options for education and training in this field.

Courses are available online to teach people who are interested in learning more about

management. The IAP Career College offers a secondhand store owner certificate program

where they teach management, marketing, resale principles, and running a store to students
 O’Farrill 3

(“Secondhand Store Owner Certificate Course Online”.) This course is regularly $377 for 4 to

12 weeks of instruction. A bachelor’s degree can be helpful for advancement, with courses in

business, marketing, accounting, and advertisement (“Retail Manager Career”.) Students might

take out federal or private loans to attend college. Some companies have their own management

training programs where new managers can learn more about how the company operates, and the

employee does not have to pay to attend the programs (“Retail Manger Career”.) The salary

range for the career ranges from $34,000 to $72,000, with the average being $46,906 (“How to

Become a Retail Manager”). Managers with bachelor’s degrees may earn at the higher end of

the range.

With the number of secondhand stores in the US, advancement options in retail

management are excellent. Assistant manager can lead to front end manager, which can lead to

store manager, which can lead to regional manager, which can lead to a larger region manager,

and so on. The higher levels will most likely require more college education. As the person

advances, the duties increase to being responsible for many more employees to being responsible

for several stores (“Retail Manager Career”).

After researching this career in depth, I am still interested in retail management as a

pathway. I will meet the requirement soon, and the salary is sufficient for my needs. Resale

stores are successful and there are enough of them in the US to almost guarantee that I will find a

job no matter where I choose to live. I have had a great deal of positive experience managing

coworkers and teams through my extra-curricular and community service activities. Plus, my

current and previous jobs have provided training leading up to management duties. Finally,

knowing that I will be contributing the recycling movement by keeping useable clothing out of

landfills will be fulfilling.

 O’Farrill 4

Works Cited

Conlan, Catherine. “Important Retail Manager Skills Needed to Succeed.” Monster,

www.monster.com/career-advice/article/retail-manager-skills. Accessed 10 Feb. 2021.

“How to Become a Retail Manager: Education and Career Roadmap.” estudy.com, 10 Mar. 2020,

study.com/articles/How_to_Become_a_Retail_Manager_Education_and_Career_Roadma

p.html. Accessed 10 Feb. 2021.

“Retail Manager Career.” IResearchNet, career.iresearchnet.com/career-information/retail-

manager-career/. Accessed 12 Feb 2021.

“Secondhand Store Owner Certificate Course Online.” IAP Career College,

www.iapcollege.com/program/secondhand-store-owner-course. Accessed 10 Feb. 2021.

Swanston, Brenna. “Thrift Stores & Average Income.” Houston Chronicle, 19 April 2019,

smallbusiness.chron.com/thrift-stores-average-income-38527.html. Accessed 10 Feb.

2021.

Waxman, Olivia B. “People Have Been Reusing Clothes Forever But Thrift Shops Are

Relatively New. Here's Why.” Time, 17 Aug. 2018, time.com/5364170/thrift-store-

history/. Accessed 12 Feb 2021.