Christmas is a gift if you want a new role
IF YOU want a Christmas job, apply now — employers are already recruiting.
For Hennie Rawe, 22, a seasonal job at John Lewis Cambridge, led to a career. Hennie says: ‘ I was a Christmas temp here in my gap year. A week into university, I knew it wasn’t for me.
‘I’d appreciated being a partner at John Lewis, because it gives you a say in the business. I longed to go back and work my way up the ladder, so I left university and applied for another John Lewis Christmas role.
‘ This time I started in customer support, helping with gift wrapping and customer queries. I soon saw John Lewis as a career — there are so many different paths to explore that I was keen to stay and was encouraged by my senior managers, who could see that I could flourish in retail. ‘ My manager and I discussed my five- year career goals and I was given the opportunity to learn from different areas of the business and develop my retail management skills. ‘ When a permanent position came up, I applied. I am now the section manager of business protection, systems and finance in John Lewis Cambridge, managing a team of 20 partners, ensuring the smooth day-today running of the branch.’ Hennie advises others hoping to turn a temp Christmas job into a permanent career: ‘Always demonstrate excellent customer service skills, be flexible, and get as much experience in as many different areas.’
Charlotte Veil let, resourcing manager at John Lewis, says: ‘We are looking for over 3,500 enthusiastic applicants willing to go the extra mile to make John Lewis customers smile this Christmas. A temporary role can demonstrate your skills, and is ideal for people who think a retail career could suit them.’
Christmas vacancies are available now. See jlpjobs.com.
Other companies are also recruiting — indeed.co.uk has more than 1,000 Christmas vacancies with companies including Boots, Ernest Jones, Matalan and Debenhams.