Staffing

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Elevating Retail Excellence: Retail Roles That Drive Success

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In a competitive retail landscape, the impact of retail roles extend far beyond their job descriptions. They're the bridge between the products and the customers, ensuring that every touchpoint reflects excellence, reliability, and innovation. At EB, we understand that the heartbeat of any successful retail venture lies in the expertise and dedication of its team. If you’re exploring a career in retail, or are looking to increase the success and efficiency of your retail team, here are a few common positions that you may want to familiarize yourself with:

1. Store Operations Manager: A Store Operations Manager ensures the day-to-day activities run smoothly. They handle workflows, keep an eye on inventory, and make sure customers have a great experience.  Their ability to coordinate various tasks and teams within the store is pivotal for maintaining high standards of service and satisfaction.

 2. Visual Merchandiser: Responsible for how a retail store looks and feels, they craft displays that catch your eye and encourage purchases by showcasing products effectively. Bringing the right talent onboard for this role means having someone who can visually narrate the story of a brand's products. 

 3. Inventory Control Specialist: They're the precision team, monitoring stock levels, managing restocking, and ensuring products are consistently available for customers. ​​Their attention to detail directly impacts customer satisfaction and loyalty.

 4. Wholesale Manager: Hiring the right talent for this a Wholesale Manager means securing a professional who can build and nurture supplier relations, negotiate effectively, and strategize to expand a wholesale side of a brand. Their expertise directly influences a brand’s ability to access quality products, maintain favorable terms, and ultimately drive business growth.

 5.Retail Analyst: Digging into numbers, trends, and consumer behavior, they provide insights crucial for making informed decisions and optimizing operations. Hiring the right Retail Analyst equips brands to stay ahead in a competitive market.

 6. Supply Chain Coordinator: Finding the right person for a Supply Chain Coordinator ensures a seamless flow of products from suppliers to stores. Their knack for managing logistics and vendor relationships directly impacts a brand's ability to maintain product availability, optimize costs, and uphold operational efficiency.

At Emerging Blue, we value the diverse expertise crucial for thriving retail. Our focus on finding top-tier talent for these roles creates a team dedicated to operational excellence, precise inventory management, and strategic growth. If you’re interested in exploring a career in retail, or are looking to grow your team, connect with our retail recruiting team!

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Opportunities with UpWest!

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Now Hiring: Master Tailor

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We are looking for an experienced and highly skilled Master Tailor for a menswear apparel brand at their Phoenix store. This role will be temp to start (est. 20 hours a week) with the possibility to move full-time within a 3 months.

If you are or know a skilled tailor in the Phoenix area, be sure to apply or share today!

Brand DNA: Finding the Authentic Match

Emerging Blue Brand DNA Blog

The term ‘Brand DNA’ isn’t new to brands within the retail industry, but it has grown to be more of a focus in brand talent consideration and acquisition.

Much like in biology, Brand DNA is the core of the brand. It is the make up of the brand’s personality, ethos, and voice within the industry. A brand’s DNA is what separates it from its competitors, not necessarily in strategy or product, but in identity and values.

In retail specifically, setting a clear of expression of brand DNA creates greater opportunity for customer brand loyalty and attracts talent that parallels brand DNA.

Emerging Blue Brand DNA

Image Source: Brandculture.com

It is often said that people are a company’s greatest asset. Employees are an extension of the brand. Hiring the right talent that inherently possesses the brand DNA ensures a more seamless and authentic experience for the customer.

In retail specifically, skills can be taught. DNA, however, is inherent and can only be enriched. Hiring a new associate for a retail space will likely require training of the POS system, restock procedure, and cleanliness and merchandising standards. Often brands even go as far as instructing the new hires on how to greet, engage with, and sell to the customer. It is fair to say that customer interactions may take some time to become comfortable.

The difference between hiring someone with the basic retail skillset vs. someone who shares the brand DNA, is authenticity in engagement and enthusiasm for the task being completed. When a brand hires individuals who share the personality, ethos, and voice of their brand, the talent better represents the brand during the time of development and will be more authentic in doing so. Naturally, shared purpose + shared fate= higher performance + better results.

According to statistics pulled from a commissioned Forrester Consulting study conducted on behalf of Shopify,

“Forty-nine percent of retailers say hiring and retaining employees will be a top challenge over the next year, something 40% of brands are striving to improve. This comes as no surprise considering staff at major retailers have been expressing their frustration with the industry through striking and quitting.”

Now more than ever, talent is focusing on finding brands that they identify with to work for. According to the same study, “83% of millennials expect brands to align with their values.”

Brands are being called to greater transparency in their practices and values. Brandculture.com said it well,

“ Your employee brand experience represents the manifestation of what employees see in the company now… and the aspirations of what they’re working for in the future. By defining the value, you claim as a company and creating an employee brand experience rooted in a common bond and shared values, the flag of your culture will fly high, long into the future.”

Clearly, hiring brand DNA matched individuals leads to greater retention and reduces turn over.

Vuori, a premium performance apparel brand, is a great example of a brand who is in touch with their brand DNA and keeps it at the forefront of their hiring process. They look for those who are an authentic match and not just those who have the skillset.

They are a value-based business who aim to “bring together people from all walks of life to create and share positive, meaningful experiences.”

“At Vuori our guiding principles are simple...we aim to make great products, be in great relationships and live extraordinary lives.”

Since the retail staffing environment is competitive and challenging, finding that authentic brand DNA match can take time and work.  As a brand focused recruiting agency, Emerging Blue makes it a priority to understand your brand’s DNA, ethos, and culture to the fullest extent.

With a robust internal database of candidates and recruiters with large networks of talent connections, Emerging Blue is driven to find candidates that are not only top tier talent but that inherently possess your brand DNA.

If you’re looking for talent that shares your brand’s DNA, connect with us here or send us an email at info@emergingblue.com.

Additional Sources:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/brand-identity-hiring-employees-fit-planning-your-recruitment-gill
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-ensure-your-employees-have-companys-dna-rosalin-mohanty

From Start to Start Date

Emerging Blue EB360 Recruiting Staffing

EB 360 is a one-of-a-kind, full cycle recruiting solution that provides support during the entirety of the hiring process. We are continuously evolving this program to cater to our clients’ current needs and those as we grow together in partnership. A flexible and adaptable service, EB 360 can be customized for any brand looking to grow their team. Originally named our ‘On-Site’ service, EB 360 will partner as your very own full-time, in-house recruiting team, at a competitive cost.

The bonds we share with our EB 360 clients are special. Being so integrated with their teams, we build very strong relationships that teach us about their internal dynamic, company culture, and their mission. To provide the full 360 service, our team manages the entirety of the recruiting process. We will leverage all of our systems, tools, and resources to find the best talent for the job. For our special EB 360 clients, we will:

  1. Write & edit job descriptions, so you don’t have to.

  2. Post your jobs on a wide range of job boards and social platforms including, but not limited to, our Jobs Page, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Handshake, Creatively, and more.

  3. Create & promote content about your brand on our Blog.

  4. Manage your internal applicants.

  5. Conduct multiple screenings & submit only the best candidates for the job.

The hiring process can be lengthy and challenging. EB 360 is designed to take the weight and pressure of talent acquisition off our clients’ shoulders. From the start of the search to the start date of the dream employee, our EB 360 clients have our full support.

If you are growing your team and need staffing support, we would love to work with you. You can reach out to our VP and leader of EB 360, Christina Jones, to learn more about our EB 360 service and how it could benefit your business. Connect with us at info@emergingblue.com.

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Emerging Blue: Talent Solutions

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Have staffing needs? Let Emerging Blue stitch together the perfect team with our freelance, full-time, or our specialized EB 360 options.Freelance: Add to your team by hiring a temp for short-term or long-term assignments. We present highly-qualifie…

Have staffing needs? Let Emerging Blue stitch together the perfect team with our freelance, full-time, or our specialized EB 360 options.

Freelance: Add to your team by hiring a temp for short-term or long-term assignments. We present highly-qualified screened candidates, add them to our payroll & take care of the rest.

Full-time: Our full-time recruitment option follows a traditional model for contingent staffing solutions. You can shop our candidates, review and interview as often as you'd like, on the interview platform of your choice, with no fee attached.

EB 360: With EB 360, our team can work directly with yours by providing full-scope Recruiting & HR services.  We’ll create a customizable and effective plan for your team and business. We will take care of all the recruiting & HR needs that align with your brand and culture.

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Hiring For This Retail Holiday Season

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The retail holiday season is going to be different this year.  With people still hesitant about shopping inside stores, and curbside pick-up and eCommerce shopping at an all-time high, staffing for your usual holiday season will need to be analyzed and thought-out.

Here are a few ideas to help you be prepared:

  1. Listen to your customers. Ask your customers what their shopping preference will be this holiday season and how best you can support them. Based on the results, analyze your current org. charts and adjust where needed to support the additional staffing needs. 

  2. Safety comes first. The last thing you need is a new hire that has to take 2-3 weeks off for testing positive. Therefore, ensure you’re following CDC guidelines when conducting interviews, staying 6 feet away, wearing a mask, and swap the handshake for an elbow bump. Also, when possible, utilize digital or video interviewing instead of in-person.

  3. Extra, Extra! We can’t predict the future, but chances are there will be times when employees call-out last minute to care for someone or to care for themselves. Therefore, hire a few extra seasonal employees to allow for back-up needs.

  4. Ask for help. This is the time to work with external partners to help recruit and hire for your staffing needs.  At Emerging Blue, we are here to support your hiring objectives with temporary staffing, seasonal hourly workers and pop-up retail support. Reach out to us at info@emergingblue.com to learn more about how we can help you!

Happy Holidays!

With Love,

Emerging Blue

EB 360: A Sharp Approach to Hiring and HR

EB_360_Emerging_Blue Fashion Beauty Home Staffing Recruiting.png

From one small business to another, we understand you.  We know at times resources and expertise can be limited. We have all experienced long workdays, juggling multiple priorities, and needing capable help… fast.  With these problems in mind, we created an easy and sharp solution to hiring and HR:  EB 360. 

EB 360 offers a dedicated partnership that’s effective and cost-efficient.  It’s customizable to meet your needs for today while helping you prepare for tomorrow.

As the CEO of Ivory Ella, a start-up, Cathy Quain looked to EB 360 as her HR and recruiting provider.  She needed a fast and reliable partner to build her executive management team and further support the growth of their organizations.  Cathy’s experience working with Emerging Blue in the past reassured her that not only was EB 360 able to get the job done, they would do it with “passion for wanting to help and build a great team.”

Similarly, Chris Phillips, CEO of Mizzen+Main, selected EB 360 to source and hire for their key roles.  Chris was attracted to their expertise and appreciated that “they have some unique models for how they work with clients, which are especially advantageous for younger, growth businesses.  In example, somewhat resource and experience constrained due to the nature of a young business, their first step is gaining an understanding of the business, brand, and culture and they act as if they are one of us." 

EB 360 is a great option for small to mid-sized companies because it provides that “in-house recruiter” without having to hire or commit to a full-time position.  Therefore, there’s major cost-efficiency to this model.  Or, as Cathy said, “you get the bang for your buck because EB 360 not only gives you a group of recruiters or HR professionals to work on your hiring and HR needs, it provides all the resources, tools and systems too.”

Another advantage to EB 360 is the birds-eye view mindset to building a team.  They understand hiring executive priorities and expectations, the inner-workings of the organization, and the criteria it takes for people to work well together and succeed.  Further, as Cathy said, “EB has the ability to hire across multiple levels (executive to entry) which means there is consistency with people and understanding around culture, business and organizational needs.”

EB 360 is a terrific solution all around. Whether you’re in key hiring mode like Cathy and Chris, or you’re just looking for a different answer to outside staffing and HR, let EB 360 be your sharp approach to hiring and HR.  

Contact us here to get started today!

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When Should you Start Planning for your Holiday Pop-up Shop? Today.

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Pop_Up_Staffing_Emering_Blue

Yes, we know its summer and most people aren’t even thinking about the holidays yet…but you should be if you want to have a successful pop-up shop. There’s lot to think about and plan for so we put together a list of 5 things you can do now to ensure your pop-up is a smashing success this winter.

1. Budget. This should be first on your list, as it will help you to put together all of the below items!

2. Location. Pop-up shops have become increasingly popular and the holidays are an especially fashionable time to have one. Given this, desirable spaces can become limited. Our friends at Storefront (www.thestorefront.com) are a great resource to find the perfect location for what you need.

3. Merchandise. Curate the collection of items that you will showcase in the pop-up, keeping in mind climate appropriate items, i.e. warm weather products in the south.

4. Marketing. Decide how to best broadcast your pop-up to your customer base. Consider a combination of in store marketing, social media, signage and influencer outreach. You could also run a promotion to help convert online traffic to in store traffic.

5. Staffing. Pop-ups require candidates who are aligned with your brand philosophy, reliable, retail focused and customer service oriented. Think about your goal and vision for the pop-up and be sure to choose candidates that can bring that to life. We recommend over hiring & training the staff to be ready for whatever the pop-up throws at you.

We hope this helps to jump start your preparation for your holiday pop-up shop and as always, we are here to help with any staffing needs. We’ve already started working with some of our brand partners to get ready for their holiday pop-up and we’d love to do the same for your company!

Top 3 Things We Learned from the Holiday Pop-up Season

Pop-UP_Staffing_Emerging_Blue

What a wonderful Holiday season! It helped drive retail sales for many companies. According to Mastercard, total US retail sales rose 5.1% between November 1 and December 24 from the prior year. As you were out shopping, you probably noticed at least one pop-up shop. They have become more and more popular as they give a fresh twist to the former all brick and mortar retail environment. In addition to an influx in commerce, retail hiring rose this past Holiday season as well. According to the Labor Department, 312,000 jobs were added in December 2018. That number includes many seasonal retail jobs.

Since the holidays have come to a close, we want to take a few moments to step back… give out some high fives, and reflect on what we learned by staffing a record number of pop-ups across the country. 

The top three trends we saw for a successful pop-up this season:

Plan out staffing needs. We cannot stress enough how important it is to hire, at least, 25% more staff than you think you are going to need. Life can be busy around the holidays and this applies to the staff you hire. Plan for additional staff to cover increased business or any ‘holiday attrition’. To keep your team engaged and committed to your pop-up, plan to pay and train them well.  Development of a well-trained and informed team will make the short-term sales associates feel like they are part of your brand.

Create a lasting relationship with your customers. Channel all of your resources to find ways to continue the retail momentum you’ve built by leveraging in-person interactions, digital or social media, and to extend the brand experience beyond the event. You’ve gotten them excited about your brand and now you need to stay top of mind for their future retail purchases. One example is to interact with customers on Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook so you can stay connected after the pop-up shop closes.

Have an end game. Plan out how the pop-up shop will close and make your staff aware of your plans. Will you need them to work after the shop closes to wrap everything up? Are they good candidates for working any permanent retail locations you have? Consider offering a bonus for working through the entire pop-up or consider those candidates for future full-time positions with your company.   Either way, your end game, is as important as your roll-out plan.  Execute both and your pop-up will likely be a success.

To sum it up, it is critical to develop a thorough and practical staffing plan, create a lasting relationship with your clients, and have a long-term game plan. Mapping out those three key areas will have you on the right path to a highly successful pop-up event. As always, if you need support, our team at Emerging Blue would gladly connect you with the best pop-up event staff.

About Emerging Blue:

Emerging Blue is a creative recruitment agency that represents full-time and freelance talent in Fashion, Home and Beauty. We fill jobs from San Francisco to New York, and everywhere in-between. We represent top candidates, the hottest brands and innovative companies of all shapes and sizes. If you need recruitment and hiring support, we would love to support you. We fill jobs from Visual Merchandisers and Keyholders to Luxury Retail Store Managers and Sales Associates. Our talent is your strength.

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Top Five Staffing Tips for Pop-up Shops

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Pop-Up Staffing Emerging Blue

As the retail landscape changes and evolves, pop-up shops are quickly becoming a great way for a brand to get consumers to touch, feel, and try on their products… without having to make the commitment to a permanent retail space.   Many landlords, commercial real estate firms and companies, like Storefront (storefront.com), can help find the perfect location.

Whether you are looking to showcase a new line, engage with your customers or generate brand awareness, hiring the right people to work your pop-up shop can be as important as your product and your location.  Maximizing the customer interaction with your brand and hiring the right temporary employees is often the key to success.  

At Emerging Blue, our pop-up clients have benefited from our “Top Five” list of things to keep in mind when staffing the perfect pop-up shop.

  1.  Hire like your Brand depends on it – Your employees and staff are your brand. As pop-up shops are becoming more and more popular, it’s important to hire employees that can take customers through the full brand experience.  From greeting them to establishing a connection to the product, it is key to hire Brand Ambassadors that are friendly, eager, enthusiastic and approachable.

  2.  Over hire – Life happens, and employees sometimes do not show up. For a successful pop-up, make sure you are covered for the unexpected. We always recommend that our clients hire and train at least 20% more people than they think they will need.

  3.  Train, Train, Train – We suggest providing your Managers, Sales Associates and Brand Ambassadors with training materials and an in-person training session that covers your brand story, products and store technology.  A staff that understands these, will make sure everything runs smoothly once the shop opens.  

  4.  Plan Ahead – We cannot stress this enough. Allow enough time to source, hire and train great employees.  Plan for your projected volume, hours, product training and internal systems.  Devising a plan to have the proper sized staff to maximize sales will set you and your team up for success.

  5. Agency Partners – Find a staffing agency partner that can help you with the points above.  It is beneficial to use an agency to manage your hiring needs, if you do not have enough bandwidth to do so.  Agencies will source, hire and take care of new hire and payroll needs for your pop-up shop employees. This allows you to focus on the execution of your event and not focus on details like payroll, workers compensation, taxes, and other additional HR expenses for your pop-up shop staff.

In summary, with the growth of pop-up shops, it is key to understand what makes a pop-up shop effective, as well as how to attract the right talent to work the event. A few takeaways to remember, make sure you hire staff that represents your brand well. Additionally, staff must be friendly, energetic, approachable, and a fit for the brand; this will also help to drive traffic and overall sales. For the staff to be successful, make sure they are well trained and fully understand their job duties. Most importantly, hiring enough staff will make a positive impact on the event, so make sure to over hire and have a plan for when people call out and for any unexpected emergencies that may occur. Lastly, finding reliable and top talent can be a challenge, so to save time and money, reach out to a staffing agency, like Emerging Blue, to support your hiring efforts so that you can focus all your attention to bringing your vision to reality.

* To engage Emerging Blue to help with pop-up staffing, contact us at 415-543-6636 or www.emergingblue.com