Retail Resume Examples + Skills & Experience for 2024

Your career in retail starts with a single transaction—selling your skills and experience to the recruiter. Picture your retail resume as a store shelf. Want to sell everything you put there? You must pick quality stuff that addresses the buyer’s needs, and merchandise it masterfully.

How? Read on to see a professional retail resume example you can adjust and make yours. 

Plus, an easy formula for writing a resume for retail jobs to land you 10x more interviews than any other resume you’ve written in the past.

Want to save time and have your resume ready in 5 minutes? Try our resume builder. It’s fast and easy to use. Plus, you’ll get ready-made content to add with one click. See 20+ resume templates and create your resume here.

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Use this resume template

Sample retail resume—See more resume examples here.

Considering other jobs in retail? See related resumes:

• Buyer Resume
• Cashier Job Description for a Resume
• Ecommerce Resume
• Grocery Store Resume
• Resume for Part-Time Jobs
• Retail Manager Resume
• Retail Sales Associate Resume
• Salesforce Resume
• Walmart Resume
• Home Depot Resume

Retail Resume Sample to Get You Inspired (Text Version)

Now, here’s the job-winning retail resume formula:

1. Structure Your Retail Resume Template Properly

First things first—

Your retail resume must always be formatted professionally.

These guidelines will help you format your resume for retail jobs just right:

• Go for the standard reverse-chronological resume format.
• Add section headings to make your retail resume easy to navigate.
• Don’t go crazy with the fonts. Pick a professional resume font that’s easy to read.
• Make sure your standard text fonts are in the 11–12pt range for readability.
• For headings use fonts that are 2–4pts larger.
• Set a one-inch resume margin all around your resume for retail.
• Stick to single-line spacing and make good use of white space to add lightness. 
• Save your resume as a PDF if the employer has no specific requirements.

And this is what sections a professional resume for retail should consist of:

• Resume header where you put your contact details.
• Introductory paragraph in the form of a summary or objective statement.
• Professional experience section that details your past relevant responsibilities.
• Education section that gives a glimpse into your academic background.
• List of skills where you highlight your most relevant retail skills.
• Additional sections that show off your extra skills, e.g. languages, awards, licenses, etc.

Need more information on formatting a resume? Here’s a guide you may find interesting: How to Select the Ideal Resume Format

Now, let’s see how to write the first section of your retail resume—work experience. (Yes, that’s right, we’ll start with the experience section and finish with the summary or objective statement).

2. Start With a Retail Experience Resume Section

Cut to the chase—

This is how to write a professional resume job description:

• Start with your latest / current position and then list the previous ones in reverse-chronological order.
• Make sure each entry includes the job title, dates worked, and the company’s name.
• Don’t exceed 6 bullets when describing your duties and achievements.
• Tailoring your resume sections to the requirements defined in the job ad.
• Quantify your responsibilities whenever you can. Numbers reflect your real impact.
• Use the right resume action verbs to impress ATSs and recruiters alike.

The examples below show you how this all looks in practice:

Sample Retail Resume with Experience

The difference is huge.

But here’s the kicker—both samples come from the same candidate. As you can see, the way in which you describe your experience makes all the difference.

If you only list what you’ve been “responsible for,” you’ll be hard to tell apart from the other candidates.

And there’s only one vacancy.

Now—

If your experience is limited and achievements aren’t yet stellar, you can still make your resume job description look great. How? Populate it with volunteering, internship experience, or your educational accomplishments. Anything will do, as long as it’s relevant.

The two examples below will show you how:

Retail Sales Associate Resume—Work Experience

As you can see, the candidate may not have bags of experience, but what they do have is relevant to the position.

Plus, when you describe it in a way that highlights the value you’ll bring to the company, the recruiters will have a hard time disregarding your retail resume.

Need more information on how to show off your experience? This article has all the answers How to Make a Work Experience Section for a Resume

3. Enter Your Education (It’s Not That Straightforward!)

Listen:

Your education does matter and it can really make a difference between getting into the approved or rejected folder. Especially when you’re writing a retail resume with no experience.

Here’s how it works:

If you’re a seasoned retail pro all you need to put in the education section of your resume are the name of the school, dates attended, and the degree earned. End of story.

Your experience says it all.

So here’s an example of what the education section on a retail resume with experience could look like:

Retail Resume—Example Education Section

And this is what look like on an entry-level retail salesman resume:

Resume for Retail—Education (Entry-Level Position)

As you can see, the example above includes several extra bullet points that focus on coursework and extracurricular activities that are relevant to the position the candidate pursues.

So, depending on the requirements specified in the job ad, you may also consider adding such information as:

• Dean’s List
• Degree you received
• GPA score 
• Latin honors
• Major or minor
• Relevant Coursework
• Study abroad programs

But—

Before you add anything, ask yourself if it’s relevant to the position you’re after.

Feel like you need more information on how to put education on your resume? Read our guide: How to Put Your Education on a Resume [Tips & Examples]

Creating a resume with our builder is incredibly simple. Follow our step-by-step guide and use content from Certified Professional Resume Writers to have a resume ready in minutes.

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When you’re done, our easy resume builder will score your resume and our resume checker will tell you exactly how to make it better.

4. List Retail Resume Skills Relevant to the Position You’re After

Your experience and skills will or won’t sell you to the recruiter. That’s why you need to pay particular attention to the right choice and presentation.

So—

How to choose the right skills for your retail resume?

I don’t think it will be much of a surprise to you if I tell you…

The relevant ones.

This is what you can do to identify which skills to put on resume for retail:

• Revisit the job ad and make a list of all the skills the position requires.
• Then create a comprehensive list of your skills. Think of everything you can offer.
• Once you have both lists in place, identify the ones present on each list—these are the ones you can include in the skills section.
• See to it that your skills section includes between 5 and 10 relevant skills.

You’re almost done with the skills section.

Now just make sure your retailing skills are reflected in your retail experience section. In other words, see to it that your experience bullet points illustrate the skills you listed. If you find it hard to make the connections try out different wording for example.

This way your resume will not only be full of relevant skills for retail in different sections but also consistent throughout.

Here’s a list of retail resume skills you might want to use as a source of inspiration:

Retail Resume Skills—List

Soft Skills

• Communication skills
• Critical thinking skills
• Decision-making skills
• Interpersonal skills
• Organizational skills
• Problem-solving skills
• Teamwork skills
• Time management skills

Hard Skills

• Computer skills
• Epicor
• Inventory management
• Loyverse POS
• Math
• Merchandising
• NCR
• Netsuite
• Oracle Micros
• Project management skills
• Quickbooks POS
• Sales
• Shopify POS
• Square
• Technical Skills
• uniCenta
• Cashier Skills
• Generating sales
• Housekeeping
• Product Knowledge

And this is how you can put your retail skills on a resume:

Skills to Put on a Resume for Retail

Skills on a Resume for Retail Jobs (No Experience)

Remember—

Pick the skills you really have, don’t be tempted to lie on your resume, and list only the ones relevant to the job offer.

Need more information on how to make the most of your retail skills on a resume? Read this guide: 99+ Skills for Resumes

5. Show Don’t Tell: Add “Extra” Sections to Your Retail Resume

Without additional sections, your retail resume is just a plastic mannequin with no clothes on.

It’s just like all the others.

To give it some individual character you must clothe it into something unique.

If chosen wisely, things like interests, volunteer work, certifications or languages can seriously boost the chances of your resume getting noticed.

Here’s a couple of ideas to get you inspired:

Retail Resume—Examples of Additional Sections 

Retail professionals may want to show off their industry certifications as well as involvement in local communities.

Retail Sales Associate Resume—Examples of Extra Sections

Those seeking junior retail jobs may benefit from highlighting their general interest in retail/sales as well as communication skills.

Not sure what else to put on your retail resume? Read this guide: What to Put on a Resume: 20+ Great Examples

6. Compile the Best Bits Into a Resume Summary or Objective for Retail

Your perfect retail resume is almost ready.

Now it’s time to put the icing on the cake.

The topmost section of your retail resume is called the resume profile. Long story short, it’s a paragraph that serves as an introduction to the document and brings out the highlights of your professional career.

The profile comes in two varieties

The first one is called the resume summary statement and it’s suitable for more experienced candidates. As you’ve probably guessed, the summary… well, summarizes your experience and professional achievements.

Take a look at the resume summary examples below:

Retail Resume Summary—Examples 

Now—

The first of these resume summary examples for retail gets several things right:

• Specifies how much experience the candidate has.
• Addresses the company by name.
• Says how exactly the candidate wants to help the company.
• Refers to the skills mentioned in the job offer.
• Highlights the candidate’s key accomplishments and supports them with numbers.

On the other hand, the wrong example is so generic you could easily copy and paste it into any resume without even making any alterations.

Moving on—

The second variety of the resume profile is the so-called resume objective.

In contrast to the resume summary, the objective is suitable for entry-level candidates who write their first resume with no experience. Why? It focuses on the skills you learned and how they can be of use to the company you’re applying for.

Take a look at these resume for retail objective examples to get inspired:

Examples of Retail Resume Objectives

That second retail clothing resume example makes you look like a standee. The first one gets the hiring manager's attention.

Why?

Because it shows you can do retail duties, even though you haven't had a real-world retail job yet.

No ideas on how to write a captivating opening to your resume? Head straight to this guide: Resume Opening Paragraph Examples

7. Write a Retail Cover Letter

You need a cover letter for your retail resume to boost your chances of landing an interview.

Why?

Studies show that 49% of HR managers regard cover letters #2 option to give your job application a boost (tailoring your resume being the #1 factor). Another study on employer preference suggests that 56% want applicants to attach a cover letter to the resume. 

Here’s a quick guide to nailing your retail cover letter in a few simple steps:

• Write a powerful cover letter introduction in which you introduce yourself and hook your reader to read the rest.
• Tell the reader what you like about the company and how you can help it grow.
• Back up your claims with quantified achievements.
• Finish your cover letter with an explanation why you’re a great fit and a call-to-action.
• And don’t forget to format your cover letter, so it looks like a letter.

This is it!

If you need more detailed instructions and examples, read our comprehensive guide on how to write a cover letter.

And if you’re looking for a ready-made sample you can quickly tweak and adapt for your needs, we have a guide you might be interested in Retail Cover Letter: Sample & Complete Guide

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

Create my cover letter now

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

8. Recap—Retail Resume In a Nutshell

Here’s how to write a job-winning retail resume:

• Start with writing powerful bullet points that highlight your relevant experience on your retail resume.
• Make sure you provide all the necessary details regarding your education. The more experienced you are the less attention you need to pay to this section.
• Put your relevant skills in a dedicated skills section and make sure they tie in with your experience.
• Add more flavor to your resume by including such sections as languages, certifications, or interests.
• Write a compelling intro paragraph that focuses on the essence of your resume.
• Once your retail resume is ready, format it professionally by choosing the right fonts, adding proper spacing, and adequate section headings.
• Boost your chances by writing a captivating cover letter that tells your story and fills in all the blanks.

Wanna chat? We’d love to hear from you: 

• Which company offers the best retail jobs? 
• Do you struggle with tailoring your retail job description for resumes? 
• Need help adding achievements to your retail experience resume section?

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This article has been reviewed by our editorial team to make sure it follows Zety's editorial guidelines. We’re committed to sharing our expertise and giving you trustworthy career advice tailored to your needs. High-quality content is what brings over 40 million readers to our site every year. But we don't stop there. Our team conducts original research to understand the job market better, and we pride ourselves on being quoted by top universities and prime media outlets from around the world.

Sources

• http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1080569909334015