1. Seek : Study : Succeed

2. Before you start off with a career in Retail

3. No doubt, the boom of the retail sector ensures a very promising future ahead for the young aspirants. As the retail evolves along with the arrival of the international retail brands in the Indian market, there will be a whole ladder of careers in the near future. Before you step into the retail industry, you need to contemplate over the nature of the job in this sector as it is not all the hunky dory or cushy sort work environment like jobs in other corporate sectors. In retail segments, one would require to put in a lot of hard work involving long working hours in the beginning of one's career. You may have to lift cartoons, managing database, maintaining records, deal with the whims, fancies and ire of the customers with patience and a smile on your face. Of course, there are proportionate rewards for every genuine work done and chances to move up the corporate ladder to rub shoulders with the world's best retailers like Wall-mart, Carrefours, My Dollar Store, to name only a few.

4. As far as the qualities of head and heart are concerned, an aspirant needs to have people's skills i.e. flair for talking with people of different mindset and behaviour pattern, with never ending enthusiasm in order to entertain them. Customer orientation is the prime focus of all the retail jobs. The crucial factor of every retail personnel is to provide the customer quality products and quality services with an aim to promote sales. He/ she must be storehouse of high energy level and untiring dedication and determination to satisfy the customers by providing them quality service. One has to be responsible to his customers and company and perform with strong analytical skills and a good understanding of various concepts and functions of retailing. Neeti Chopra, Head Marketing, Trent Ltd., suggests to the young aspirants, "In this sector, there is no substitute for experience and observation - spend time in various stores, see how people buy and how the store works."

5. Acquiring Requisite Qualifications In India, till recently, the retail sector was understated and underrated, but now it is in its full swing, capturing the top slot as the most wannabe sector, earlier dominated by IT sector. That's the major reason that the retail market is facing the problem of scarcity of human resources. There is a huge gap between the demand and supply. Retailers are desperately looking out for the professionally qualified candidates who possess a comprehensive insight of the retail industry. This has led many big names of the retail industry to step into the academic arena. Some have opened their in-house training schools to meet their specific demands whereas some others have started retail programmes in collaboration with established business schools. Some of these are: (1) RPG Institute of Retail Management, Chennai (2) Ebony Retail Academy, Delhi (3) Welingkar Institute of Management Development and Research -(PGPRM - Pantaloon)

6. Institute of Business Studies & Research (IBSAR) in association with Retail Association of India. (5) IILM Institute for Higher Education & Pantaloon Retail India Ltd. 6) MICA in association with Retail Association of India - offers visual merchandising and creative communication course 3-month programme on Professional retailing skills by Retail Association of India.

7. Apart from these there is plethora of private as well as government institutions who have started various short term as well as long term programmes in various branches of retail management like programmes for visual merchandising, logistics or supply chain managements. Most of these programmes are offered to graduate students at post graduate level. There are very few programmes offered at bachelor's level. Details about these institutions are given separately in chapter on "Institutes and Courses" What do the institutes look for in the aspirant before offering admission? Passion and enthusiasm for a career in retail is the first and foremost thing that most of the institutions consider before granting admission. They like to enroll those candidates who have unique combinations of strong customer orientation along with high leadership potential, academic excellence, individual experiences and fresh and innovative perspectives.

8. To cite an example, the selection procedure of most of the private institutions like RPG, Welingkar, Ebony focuses on a strong academic background, personal attributes - an innovative approach, creative mindset, effective leadership qualities, result oriented, communication skills and a quest for excellence. The institutes seek candidates with a sincere desire to engage intellectually in the classroom and implement this knowledge practically in the industry.

9. Parameters on which efficiency of each candidate is generally assessed: 1) Good Academic Record Personal Attributes Life/people skills 2) Innovative approach to work related issues Ability to work under pressure 3) Prior Work Experience Extra Curricular Activities Prior work experience in retail or marketing in a particular industry proves very useful for the candidate in later stages of one's career. Having already mentioned that in this industry there is no substitute for the field work or work experience. Practical knowledge gives an added advantage to the candidate.

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