Retail education, careers set for boom

With globalisation taking over the world economy, India is fast growing to be one of the largest retailing markets in the world. As the retail sector amounts to about 22% of the country’s total GDP, sector is growing at a phenomenal pace.

Widely considered one of the most challenging yet exciting industries, retailing offers many job opportunities for a wide variety of roles available. It is not only the fastest growing industry but also allows one to pick any passion from the three broad areas in which the jobs exist: buying and merchandising, category management and brand management .

Retail marketing as a career option includes in-store marketing and point of purchase, while the other key elements in this field comprise retail design, visual merchandising, store lay out, store promotions and customer service.

With multiple brands from Europe and United States making their way to the Indian market, the retail systems provide opportunity to work and interact with people .

Skill-set required

While formal education is not the prerequisite for a career in the retail industry, like it is in other areas like marketing and management, it is always a bonus to equip oneself with skills that will help in the retail business.

Many seniors in the industry were initially hired as retail staff and support, who, with hard work, enthusiasm and unwavering customer-centric experience, went on to become veterans in the space. Many colleges and institutes also provide fullfledged and diploma courses on retail management.

The author is dean FLAME University, Pune, and former associate professor & assistant dean, executive education, at Iim-kashipur