When job hunting, a resume is one of your most powerful tools. Often a resume is the first thing that a prospective employer sees, especially in industries such as retail where there are a great number of applicants. To strengthen a retail resume, you might add all skills that you bring to the position, your education, your volunteer experience and what your career goals are. Even if you have never had formal work experience, you might be able to look to other areas of your life for skills that you possess.
You do not need to have formal work experience to have skills to list on a retail resume. Employers want employees who are honest, are hardworking, are mature and possess good customer service skills. Look for ways that you have demonstrated these and other skills that can be detailed on your retail resume. Be prepared to discuss these in detail if asked to during the interview. Take that opportunity to expand upon these skills and how they might apply in a retail setting.
Any education that you have can be detailed on your retail resume. Even if you have not completed a college degree, courses that might be relevant to your career in the retail industry might be included on your resume. Any coursework that shows that you have learned skills or other information that is helpful in the retail environment might help a prospective employer see that you have relevant skills even without a degree.
You can gain experience from sources other than employment, such as volunteer work. If you have engaged in volunteer work, you might decide to include this work and the skills that you have gained from it on your retail resume. In addition to seeing the skills you have, a prospective employer likely will enjoy seeing your involvement within the community as well. You might want to be prepared to discuss how these activities will fit with your work schedule if you are still involved.
Many employers like to see that their employees have career goals and the drive to make those happen. By including career goals on your retail resume, you are demonstrating to an employer that you are serious about your work and have a plan for your future. Even if your goals do not involve working in the retail industry, an employer likely will consider someone who is serious and mature more fully than someone who is not serious about working.