On the pages of newspapers with advertisements you can often see phrases: “a merchandiser is required”, “we can hire a merchandiser with a personal car, you can be a correspondence student.” But far from everyone knows what lies behind this beautiful foreign word, and what functions an employee will have to perform.
In some ways, the duties of the merchandiser coincide with the duties of a sales representative. Both the one and the other are interested in increasing sales of their goods, and, accordingly, in profit growth. On the other hand, the trade representative is more involved in deliveries, but the calculation of products in the store is just the merchandiser.
On the one hand, his responsibilities are simple: it is necessary to ensure that the goods of his company are present in a sufficient assortment, as well as located on shelves in the prescribed manner. It is with this that most often problems arise. Among the representatives of competing firms there is a real struggle for the best places. It is the merchandiser who must ensure that his goods are not pushed to the farthest corner of the lowest shelf, where he is unlikely to be seen by a passing buyer. His duties also consist in establishing friendly relations with the management and employees of the store, in conducting promotions, tastings, designing stands, controlling expiration dates of products on the territory entrusted.
The ability to drive a car and a personal car does not hinder him, since the work of the merchandiser is connected with traveling. Typically, one person should visit 10-15 stores per day. Sometimes an area in a megalopolis is attached to it, and sometimes a small city.
What else should the merchandiser do? The duties of this employee also consist in monitoring the prices of competing goods. As a rule, he must submit a report on competing firms every week or every two weeks: what products are presented, at what prices, what stocks they hold. Based on it, management will make decisions on raising / lowering prices for its own products. He must also monitor the state of the advertising equipment, for example, replenish the supplies of leaflets and monitor the correct operation and cleanliness of the exhibition stands of his company. Ensure the presence of posters, banners, shields, if damaged or missing, this employee must replace them with new ones.
What skills and personal qualities should a merchandiser have? His duties are to work with the product and with people, and, therefore, he must be sociable, be able to clearly tell the product to both sellers and buyers. The merchandiser should be easy to navigate in the product range, be attentive, responsible, conscientious and accurate. A pleasant, attractive appearance will not be superfluous.
As a rule, this position is just a step at the beginning of the career ladder. A person who for several years successfully coped with his duties and fulfilled the set plan can become a supervisor, in whose subordination there will be several merchandisers. Or become a sales representative - in this case, all the contacts and contacts gained will be very useful to him. The work of the merchandiser involves part-time work: four to six hours a day. The higher authorities control the number of visits by store receipts and periodically arrange checks. As a rule, the work schedule is flexible - you can visit some stores in the morning, and some in the evening before closing. Employers usually require that the product be put in order, and at what time it will be done - it does not matter. So such work is a great option for full-time and part-time students.