NOT A DRESS REHEARSAL

UNIVERSITY graduates struggling to find work are urged to look at the retail industry, where highly-paid positions await those with a range of qualifications.

David Jones retail operations general manager Aaron Faraguna says graduates do not typically consider the retail sector.

“There are more opportunities in retail now than there would be in many other industries,’’ Faraguna says.

“If you look at the nature of the employment market in the last few years, retail is still growing and retail space is still growing, particularly with the northern hemisphere retailers moving into Australia. We offer opportunities to be a generalist in your area (of study) or a specialist – something I don’t think you get in other industries.

“You also find graduates, or people with formal qualifications, tend to progress (to higher roles) quickly.”

Faraguna says David Jones hires graduates for roles including marketing, finance, human relations, buying, visual merchandising and IT.

He says graduates are buddied with a senior worker and “bespoke” training packages formulated, based on their interest and area of study.

However, Faraguna concedes the retail industry has a poor image among graduates.

“We do have to take some accountability in how we sell the career opportunities — probably a lot of graduates see retail as the job they do while they’re getting through uni,’’ he says.

Louise Paolucci (pictured), 24, did not consider a retail career until she was almost finished her commerce degree.

“My friends were using retail as a part-time role (while studying) … none of them thought further about how they could utilise retail,’’ she says. “I love the diversity (of retail) and the complexity of it. It’s so fast-paced and it’s changing every day.”