Retail resume examples & templates

Your retail resume accomplishes the same purpose as a great store display: it creates an eye-catching design to attract attention and then sells the product. That’s the goal as you build your retail resume.

Shop Assistant

Retail Cashier

Clothing Store

Sales Assistant

Stock Clerk

Retail Manager

Your resume serves as your first impression to a hiring manager. It’s your sales pitch of the skills and abilities you can bring to the role. When you present your qualifications in this way, you can show a prospective employer why you’d make the perfect addition to their team or store.

Don’t allow a hiring manager to toss your resume aside like last season’s unsold inventory. Put your best foot forward with a well-written resume that gets their attention and inspires them to reach out for an interview.

Resume guide for a retail resume

Start with Resume.io, a powerful tool for job seekers with resume examples for hundreds of professions and an easy-to-use resume builder. With our tools and your sales skills, you’ll be well on your way to creating a retail resume that resonates with hiring managers.

This resume guide, along with the corresponding resume example, will cover the following topics:

• How to write a resume for retail jobs
• Choosing the right retail resume format
• Adding your contact information
• Writing an impressive summary
• How to describe your retail experience on a resume
• Listing your education and skills
• Advice for selecting the right resume design and layout
• What the retail market looks like and how much you can earn

How to write a retail resume

Before you begin your resume, you must understand what goes into it. Your resume should have the following sections:

• A resume header
• A resume summary, also known as a profile or personal statement
• A work history section
• A resume skills section
• An education section

Each retailer offers something a little different, and your resume should do the same. To craft the best retail resume possible, research your prospective employer. Learn about the company’s background and get to know its range of products. The more tailored you can make your resume, the better chance you will have of landing an interview.

Think of your resume as a sales pitch you make to a potential employer. Close the sale with these tips:

• Showcase your strengths. Anyone can say they know how to stock shelves or run a cash register. Highlight your unique strengths and abilities for the retail position. For example, you can mention your ability to handle high-pressure situations, build relationships with customers, or consistently exceed sales targets.
• Use a clean, polished resume template. Highlight your professionalism to show an employer you’d be a good representative of the store or company.
• Optimize your resume with keywords. Some retailers use applicant tracking system (ATS) software to sort and rank resumes. Make sure your resume includes relevant words and phrases to pass the ATS.

Choosing the right format for a retail resume

When an employer glances at your resume, they should be able to see your top qualifications within a few seconds. The reverse-chronological resume format is the best way to showcase your relevant experience, retail knowledge, and sales skills.

This format lists your work experience in reverse order, beginning with your current or most recent position. It’s favored by recruiters and the ATS, so if you have recent retail experience, use this format for your resume.

If you’re applying for your first job or transitioning into the retail industry, another format may work better for you. The functional resume format can emphasize your transferable skills, such as communication, friendliness, adaptability, and similar characteristics.

You may also be returning to the retail industry after a gap in your work history. If that’s the case, a hybrid resume can disguise the gap by placing equal attention on your relevant skills and past experience.

As you decide which format to use, explore the resume templates we offer in our resume builder. You can also browse our resume examples to see versions of all three formats.

Include your contact information

Your resume should present your contact information as clearly as a store’s signage directs customers to different areas. Make your contact information accessible at the top of your resume.

Include this information in your resume header:

• Full name and title. Provide your first and last name as well as the job title you’re applying for.
• Professional email address. Don’t use the same email address you’ve had since junior high. Use a professional email with a combination of your name or initials, such as firstinitial.lastname@email.com.
• Phone number. Provide the phone number you use most often and set up a professional voicemail greeting should you miss a recruiter’s call.
• Location. For safety reasons, don’t list your full address. Provide only your city and state.
• LinkedIn profile. If you have an active, updated LinkedIn profile, you can include it on your resume.

Don’t include:

• Date of birth. This information isn’t relevant, and providing it may lead to age discrimination.
• Personal details. Your resume should focus on your professional details. Don’t provide your marital status, Social Security number, or other personal information.
• Photo or headshot. An employer doesn't need to know what you look like, so don’t include a photo on your resume.

Write an impactful resume summary

Retail involves making connections with others. In your resume summary, make a connection with the hiring manager. Sell yourself professionally by explaining why you’re a great fit for the position.

In your summary, also known as a profile, aim to answer the question, “Why should I hire you?” In three or four sentences, describe your top attributes or biggest professional achievements. For example, you might highlight a huge sale you made or a store reorganization you designed for better efficiency.

Exude passion and confidence in your resume summary by using strong verbs, such as “achieved,” “managed,” “resolved,” “exceeded,” and “implemented.” Along with strong verbs, use measurable data to show your impact as a retail employee. You might include your sales numbers or the average number of interactions you had with customers.

You can also use these adaptable retail resume summary examples for your resume:

Outline your retail work experience: aisles of success

A prospective employer will look at your work history to determine the skills and knowledge you can bring to the new role. In this section, list your most recent position first and work backwards. For each retail job on your resume, provide the relevant tasks and achievements you had in the role.

When describing your experience, focus on the results and accomplishments of your work, not just the duties you completed. Recruiters want to know how you performed in a role.

For example, these task-focused bullet points don’t provide much information about your impact as a retail employee:

• Sold high-end women’s clothing
• Handled the point-of-sale system
• Processed returns quickly

Anyone who’s worked in a clothing store could have performed those tasks. They don’t set you apart from the competition because they don’t show how you made a difference in the role.

Avoid having bullet points like these on your resume by making a few adjustments. Start each bullet point with a strong action word and follow it with a detailed description of what you did. Provide data about the results you achieved as a retail employee. For example, you may discuss how you improved store efficiency, contributed to customer retention, or met individual sales goals.

Consider these reworked versions of the vague bullet points above:

• Boosted sales of silk blouses by 20% by taking the initiative to pair them with complementary cashmere sweaters
• Managed the point-of-sale system efficiently, handling an average of 75 transactions per day with a 99% accuracy rate
• Processed returns within an average of three minutes per transaction, reducing wait times by 43% and contributing to higher customer satisfaction

Check out the adaptable retail work experience resume example below.

How to write a retail resume with no experience

Retail jobs are an entry into the workforce for many people. If this is your first job, consider other experiences you can highlight in your employment history section.

For example, you can include volunteer work, extracurricular activities, and school projects on your resume. Write bullet points that explain what you did and the impact you had. Mention how you used relevant skills, such as organization and collaboration, to achieve successful outcomes.

If you have experience in another industry, you can also include those jobs on your resume. Emphasize the transferable skills you used in each role, such as customer service, conflict resolution, and communication. As much as possible, tie your experience to the retail industry, even if you’ve never worked in this environment before.

Include your relevant key skills for a retail position

The importance of your skills section can’t be undersold. Curate a list of your best skills that are most important for the targeted position. With space at a premium in your one-page document, you need to show recruiters that you have what they need to get the job done well.

Your resume should have a mix of hard and soft skills. Hard skills, like cash handling and inventory management, show a hiring manager you have the right knowledge for the role. Your soft skills, such as communication and problem-solving, prove your ability to interact with customers and provide great service.

Our resume builder includes some pre-written retail resume skills you can choose to highlight. You can also add your unique skills.

Here’s what the skills box looks like in our retail resume template. 

Don’t forget to mention your skills in other sections of your resume, too. For example, you can highlight your customer service skills in your resume summary and describe your experience with inventory management as part of your work history.

Back up your skills by providing specific examples of how you’ve used them in other jobs. For example, you may highlight your:

• Problem-solving skills by describing how you found solutions for customers who were dissatisfied with the products or services they received.
• Marketing and sales skills by explaining how you upsold products or persuaded customers to make purchases.
• Cash handling skills by quantifying how many transactions you handled and your accuracy rate.

As you think about what skills to include on your resume, review the job description for guidance. An employer will usually list the key skills and attributes they want retail employees to have.

Detail your education & relevant retail certifications

You may have learned all your skills on the job, or you may have a degree in marketing, merchandising, or a related business area. Whatever the case, you should list all your academic degrees in your education section. If you’ve earned any certifications related to your career, you can also list those with your education.

For first-time workers, feel free to list specific classes that show you have the skills necessary for the job. For example, you may discuss courses you took in business management, economics, or communications.

A great way to set yourself apart from other candidates is by including the ongoing training or continuing education you’ve completed. For example, you may list your:

• Retail training or certifications. Discuss certification courses, on-the-job training programs, or other classes you’ve completed in sales, marketing, or business.
• Internships. If you’ve interned or job shadowed in a retail environment, include this experience on your resume.
• Professional memberships. Your membership in a professional organization, such as the National Retail Federation, can show your commitment to the industry. You can also mention courses or workshops you’ve completed through these organizations.

Below you will find an education section resume example as a formatting guide.

Pick the right resume layout & design suited for a retail resume

As a retail professional, you know the layout of a store or the design of a display can make a big difference. In the same way, the layout and design of your resume matters. What visual message are you hoping to convey to a hiring manager?

To some degree, you can match your resume style to the company where you’re applying. If you’re applying to work in a children’s toy store, for example, you may add a touch of color or creativity to your resume layout. When in doubt, however, err on the side of conservatism, so the employer stays focused on your qualifications.

Your true goal is legibility. To that end, follow these tips for a layout that wows while remaining easy to read:

• Use one-inch margin sizes. You can make them slightly smaller if you need to fit everything on one page but don’t make the document unreadable.
• Choose standard fonts that are easy to read. Try a sans serif for the text and a serif font for your contact information or vice versa.
• Consider using one of our resume templates to guide you and take care of small formatting details.

Retail text-only resume example

Retail job market & outlook

Retail is a vast industry, so the job market can look different depending on the type of job you want. While online shopping has reduced the demand for in-person retail workers, stores will continue to need employees who can interact with customers, recommend items, and answer questions.

What type of salary you can expect in retail

Just like the job market, the salary you earn in retail depends on your job. In general, you can earn more money as you advance in your retail career. For example, a cashier makes $30,267 per year on average, while a retail store associate/supervisor earns $36,810 annually. A retail store office manager makes an annual salary of $40,188.

Key takeaways for building a retail resume

Whether you’re just starting your retail career or you’re a seasoned professional, a well-crafted resume can increase your chances of landing the job. Think of your resume as a sales pitch you can use to sell your retail abilities. For some extra help, take advantage of our online resume builder to transform your resume and maximize your job search!

Your job search starts with a resume builder, but don’t stop there. With Resume.io’s 18 innovative tools, you can look for retail jobs, track your progress, prep for an interview, and negotiate your salary. We have everything you need with an all-inclusive career toolkit.