Career Change - Getting out of retail

[Bollah]

I'm hoping the PH masses will be able to hopefully give some useful advice on this topic.

My finaceé has finally decided to hand her notice in with no job to go to, after much discussion with her about what she does for the company and how they treat her.

To try and give some background information, she has pretty much been in retail since 18 (she's now 32) and pretty much been a manager for every brand that she has worked for, with the last 3 roles being store manager for Fat Face, White Stuff and currently Outfit (Topshop, Topman, Burtons, Dorothy Perkins etc..) The role at Outfit is currently the busiest and largest role she has ever undertaken, turnover of about £4m per annum and manages 32 members of staff, along with sorting rota's out, staff disciplinaries, deliveries, security, CCTV, auditing, stock take, visual merchandising etc..

She's finally had enough of working random hours, putting in extra hours with no reward, working weekends, getting stressed and generally feeling like crap as generally ends up with shingles every year in the lead up to Christmas.

Home situation is we currently live with in the in-laws house so pay no rent and just half the bills. We don't have children, no mortgage to worry about, I earn enough to help her out with debts (and my own debts), but do have a wedding coming up at the end of March, but do have money stashed away to help pay for the things nearer that time. Qualification wise, she went to college and did a hospitality & catering course, but that is it.

What would be the recommended change in career path or transferable skills that could help her find a new role where she can do away with silly hours and start gaining weekends back. Also, she doesn't know what role she wants to go into, as she only put her notice in today, so she can actually have more than 1 day off over Christmas.

Thank you.

[CX53]

My step mum was a manager for a big health and beauty shop for years, and then went to be a shift manager at a large warehousing company. Set shift hours, so no random hours and less overtime needed. Also a lot more money too. Might be an idea.

[rog007]

What would she enjoy doing?

Identify 3 roles she’d think she’d love to do, then look entry requirements and see what she’s closest to. If the gap isn’t too great, work to fill the gap and away she goes. If she’s lucky, there may be no gap!

[bazza white]

Retail banking. Banks quite like retail managers but its quite sales heavy. My mate went in as assistant branch manager and did quite well.

I went from retail management to working in a steelworks.

Edited by bazza white on Sunday 26th November 20:13

[Yipper]

She is in low-end retail looking after low-end staff and low-end customers. They are always miserable roles.

Get her to try high-end retail with high-end staff and high-end customers. If you're within striking distance of Central London, try something like a premium jeweller or premium accessories store. The pace of life will be less manic and pay / bonus possibly the same or higher.

[iwantagta]

Why not work in the head office of a retailer?
Loads of roles - merchandiser or store operations would be the two most obviously transferable.

[jakesmith]

If she has great knowledge of retail operations then a retail or vendor head office job would work. Either in the ops team who almost always come from stores, but are quite downtrodden and limited growth opportunities, or as a junior buyer, merchandiser, marketeer. Her experience will be valued somewhere. Take a junior role and work very very hard for 5-10 years and she’ll be a manager on £50k kind of money or more