Job Roles In Demand For Freshers In The Retail Segment

India is considered as the fifth largest and preferred retail destination globally. Though owing to the COVID situation the sector had witnessed a 19% decline between January to March 2021, however in the July to September quarter the industry started displaying signs of recovery. Today the industry has recovered nearly 65-70 per cent of the pre-covid revenue. And it is not just the metros the recovery is happening; industry is on a growth path even in tier II and III cities as well. Favourable economic growth, evolving demographic profile, increasing disposable income, urbanisation as well as continuous changing consumer tastes and preferences are some of the factors driving the organised retail market in India.

Further, just like all industries, COVID did bring about a shift in business in the retail industry also. It re-modelled and created a newer retail shopping experience, contactless engagements etc. It also led to the building of Omni channels, shift to digital and personalised marketing, decline In Physical Store Purchases and many such trends.  It was not only in the way people purchase that witness a transformation even products underwent a change in preference. The prolonged home nesting that happened due to the COVID resulted in the growth of select sub-segments such as nutrition, wellness, and hygiene. The last two years also saw an increasing demand for D2C (Direct to Consumer) products which focussed on building consumer awareness and feeding insights back into new product development and e-commerce strategies.  Similarly, as Online Segments grow in India, Ecommerce sectors are poised to growth double digits in 2021. In FY21, digital transactions in the total non-cash retail payments volume increased to 98.5 per cent versus 97.0 per cent in FY20. The exponential growth in digital shopping does not mean physical stores will no longer be in demand. What has happened is that the demand for physical stores is also increasing they are becoming an important touch point. They are being reimagined as experience centres and micro-fulfilment sites. And all this is having a direct impact on the employment opportunities in the sector. 

The expansion drive into rural and Tier III cities is creating more roles in sales, supply-chain, warehouse and logistics, store operations and most importantly personal branding & marketing to treat every purchaser as a person and not a number. Further, the O+O (Offline + Online) models that retailers as well as consumer products are practicing is also bringing in incremental economic contribution, job growth and exports. They are creating an ecosystem that is powered by technology, big data, and artificial intelligence which in turn is having a positive impact on the job opportunities for freshers.  The essential retail sector had witnessed a 48% upward growth in jobs this year Q2 as compared to Q1 which stood at 37 per cent. While the non-essential retail sector increased from 24 per cent in Q1 to 26 per cent as of Q2 this year. This domain also witnessed a lower attrition rate as compared to the other sectors in Q2. Some of the profiles wherein freshers will be in demand are.

1. Jobs in the field of Digital Marketing, E-commerce and E-Supply Solutions are expected to evolve and encourage hiring of fresher’s who can be trained and developed to perform in such critical roles. Also, freshers are generally considered as dynamic, high on aptitude and fit into these roles that allow them to bring out their creativity. 
2. Sales-While Sales hiring will seek experienced manpower in most channels and segments, it will surely need to infuse fresh talent to meet the attrition & ever-increasing demand.
3. Technology & Automation – Data Analysts and Business Analysts are few new emerging segments for the Z generation and organisations are making investments to hire management trainees and Interns as their future employees to create more automation and tech driven solutions.
4. Customer Service & Loyalty – It is imperative for Organisations to focus on How has your customer evolved during and after the crisis? What are their expectations, needs, behaviours, and priorities in this new environment? Thus, there will be a huge demand for talent in functions of CS, After Sales, Technical Support, Promotions and branding to create emotional loyalty than transactional.
5. Designing & Product Development – Selling different things differently and Challenge Orthodoxies is the Key focus for employers today leading to a surge for teams in 3D designing, product development, innovation, creating virtual experience through software’s and tools.