Retail salespersons

About this job

Retail salespersons sell, rent or lease goods and services directly to consumers.

See what a day in the life of this job is like—watch WorkBC’s Career Trek video about this occupation.

Source: WorkBC’s Career Trek

People in this occupation:

prepare sales, rental or leasing contracts and/or take payment for services or goods using a cash register
can be responsible for maintaining sales records and tidying the store, creating display counters and stocking shelves
work in small, medium and large organizations, including stores and other retail businesses and wholesale businesses
are polite, friendly and patient
should be self starters who can interact well with customers
need to be able to explain and answer questions about the products or services they are selling

Common job titles

automotives sales consultant
bookseller
clerk, sales and rental (retail)

food preparer / deli cook - grocery store
sales advisor - retail
sales assistant
sales clerk, automotive rental
sales clerk, consumer goods
sales clerk, customer service
sales clerk, department store
sales clerk, food and beverage
sales clerk, gift shop
sales clerk, rental
sales clerk, storage facility rental
sales consultant - retirement homes
sales consultant, bridal / wedding
salesperson, aluminum products
salesperson, art / picture framing
salesperson, automobiles
salesperson, boats and marine
salesperson, books / magazines
salesperson, clothing / shoes
salesperson, commissioned
salesperson, construction
salesperson, cosmetics
salesperson, education & training

salesperson, electronics
salesperson, entertainment
salesperson, fabric / fur / leather

salesperson, fitness
salesperson, florist - arranger
salesperson, furnishings
salesperson, garden / lawn supplies
salesperson, hardware
salesperson, health aids
salesperson, house trailers
salesperson, housewares
salesperson, hunting guns
salesperson, jewellery and watches
salesperson, leisure
salesperson, lottery sales
salesperson, memorial
salesperson, musical instruments
salesperson, pet store
salesperson, photographic equipment
salesperson, recreational equipment
salesperson, sewing machine
salesperson, telephone equipment
salesperson, tool and equipment rental
salesperson, transport
salesperson, travelling

automotives sales consultant
bookseller
clerk, sales and rental (retail)
food preparer / deli cook - grocery store
sales advisor - retail
sales assistant

sales clerk, automotive rental
sales clerk, consumer goods
sales clerk, customer service
sales clerk, department store
sales clerk, food and beverage
sales clerk, gift shop
sales clerk, rental
sales clerk, storage facility rental
sales consultant - retirement homes
sales consultant, bridal / wedding
salesperson, aluminum products
salesperson, art / picture framing
salesperson, automobiles
salesperson, boats and marine
salesperson, books / magazines
salesperson, clothing / shoes
salesperson, commissioned
salesperson, construction
salesperson, cosmetics
salesperson, education & training
salesperson, electronics
salesperson, entertainment
salesperson, fabric / fur / leather
salesperson, fitness
salesperson, florist - arranger
salesperson, furnishings
salesperson, garden / lawn supplies
salesperson, hardware
salesperson, health aids
salesperson, house trailers
salesperson, housewares
salesperson, hunting guns
salesperson, jewellery and watches
salesperson, leisure
salesperson, lottery sales
salesperson, memorial
salesperson, musical instruments
salesperson, pet store
salesperson, photographic equipment
salesperson, recreational equipment
salesperson, sewing machine
salesperson, telephone equipment
salesperson, tool and equipment rental
salesperson, transport
salesperson, travelling

Earnings

Annual provincial median salary

$25,027

Source: 2016 Job Bank Wage data

Note:Estimated median employment income based on 2016 Job Bank median hourly wage rate (median annual salary = hourly wage rate x 40 (hours per week) x 52.14 (weeks per year))

Provincial hourly rate

High
Median
Low

Source: 2016 Job Bank Wage Report

B.C. Labour Market Outlook (2017-2027)

Provincial outlook

Forecasted average employment growth rate

2017 - 2022
2022 - 2027

Source: B.C. Labour Market Outlook

Job openings

10 year expected job openings: 26,950

2017
2022
2027

Source: B.C. Labour Market Outlook

Composition of job openings

New jobs due to economic growth:
30.0%
8,100 openings

Replacement of retiring workers:
70.0%
18,860 openings

Source: B.C. Labour Market Outlook

Regional outlook

Cariboo

Employment in 2017:

3,590

Average annual employment growth:

0.7%

Expected number of job openings:

860

Kootenay

Employment in 2017:

2,860

Average annual employment growth:

1.2%

Expected number of job openings:

950

Mainland / Southwest

Employment in 2017:

65,470

Average annual employment growth:

0.8%

Expected number of job openings:

17,010

North Coast & Nechako

Employment in 2017:

2,550

Average annual employment growth:

-0.1%

Expected number of job openings:

370

Northeast

Employment in 2017:

1,600

Average annual employment growth:

0.7%

Expected number of job openings:

390

Thompson-Okanagan

Employment in 2017:

11,570

Average annual employment growth:

1.0%

Expected number of job openings:

3,650

Vancouver Island / Coast

Employment in 2017:

15,650

Average annual employment growth:

0.5%

Expected number of job openings:

3,730

Source: B.C. Labour Market Outlook

Duties

Retail salespersons and sales clerks perform some or all of the following duties:

greet customers and discuss the goods or services offered for purchase, rental or lease
tell customers about the use and care of merchandise, and provide advice concerning specialized products or services
explain merchandise in detail to customers (i.e., distinctions between models, manufacturers' specifications, available financing options, details of associated warranties, etc.)
describe sales promotions or policies regarding payment and exchanges
estimate or quote prices, credit terms, trade-in allowances, warranties and delivery dates
prepare merchandise for purchase, rental or lease
set up sales, rental or leasing contracts
take cash, cheque, credit card or automatic debit payments and operate a cash register
create displays and stock shelves
keep sales records for inventory control
run computerized inventory record keeping and re-ordering systems
bag, wrap and/or package purchases
order or ship goods
may do sales transactions through internet-based electronic commerce
may specialize and give expert advice on interior decorating, home entertainment systems, computers and other products and services

Work environment

Retail salespersons and sales clerks typically work indoors, though some sales (i.e. car sales) involve working outdoors. Hours tend to be irregular but flexible. Employees often work weekends, evenings and holidays.

Workers typically stand for long periods and may need permission to leave the sales floor. They spend most of the day working directly with the public, answering questions and selling goods and/or services.

Staff may have to stay after closing to clean and organize the sales floor for the next day. Some workers may lift and package or bag heavy products.

Workforce and employment statistics

Workforce characteristics

91,400 workers are employed

31% of workers are working mostly full time

Source: 2011 National Household Survey

Employment by gender

Men

Women

Source: 2011 National Household Survey

Employment by age group

15 - 24 years

25 - 44 years

45 - 64 years

65+ years

Source: 2011 National Household Survey

Labour force by industry

Wholesale Trade¹:

86%

Retail Trade¹:

86%

Finance, Insurance and Real Estate:

3%

Information, Culture and Recreation:

3%

Manufacturing:

2%

View more industry data

Source: 2011 National Household Survey

Note:¹Data represents Wholesale and Retail Trade and will be updated when the 2017 data is available from Statistics Canada.

Employment by region

% employment of this occupation

% employment of all occupations

Cariboo

Kootenay

Mainland / Southwest

North Coast & Nechako

Northeast

Thompson-Okanagan

Vancouver Island / Coast

Source: 2011 National Household Survey

Job requirements

Education, training & qualifications

Some positions require little or no prior knowledge (i.e. salesperson in a toy store), while others (i.e. car salesperson) require a lot of training to make sure staff are knowledgeable about the product(s) they are selling. Other training may include:

secondary school graduation
on-the-job training, which can range from one-on-one instruction in small stores to official training programs in large chain stores
additional training may be provided for products that are expensive and/or specialized (i.e. car sales, computer sales)

Skills

Social
Detail-Oriented
Motor Coordination
Manual Dexterity
Numerical Ability
Spatial Perception

View skills definitions

Education programs in B.C.

The following program areas are related to this occupation:

Adult Special Education

Esthetics/Skin Care

For more information about programs offered specifically for this career, visit EducationPlannerBC.

Related careers

Career paths and resources

Career paths

With additional training or experience, progression to a store manager or retail supervisor is possible. Depending on the size of the company, progression to a regional/provincial manager is possible. In some retail companies it is also possible to move into team training positions.

Additional resources

Additional resources are not currently available for this career.

Retail salespersons (NOC 6421)

About this job

Earnings

Annual provincial median salary

Provincial hourly rate

B.C. Labour Market Outlook (2017-2027)

Provincial outlook

Forecasted average employment growth rate

Job openings

Composition of job openings

Regional outlook

Duties

Work environment

Workforce and employment statistics

Workforce characteristics

Employment by gender

Employment by age group

Labour force by industry

Employment by region

Job requirements

Education, training & qualifications

Skills

Education programs in B.C.

Related careers

Career paths and resources

Retail Associate

Sales Associate for Liquor Section

Sales Associate Team Leader