Salespeople

How to become a Retail Chain Operations Manager

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 连锁经营管理师

Uses chain management tools to run stores, covering store format, category management, marketing, customer service and visual merchandising.

Main tasks

Designing the chain system, setting out the roles of head office and stores and planning how stores operate
Analysing store trading data and setting and delivering targets and plans
Studying local trading areas, opening new stores and adjusting store format and range
Managing buying, selling and stock, and planning and running store promotions
Designing customer routes through the store and carrying out layout plans and displays
Building store service systems and training and motivating front line staff to serve customers well
Managing the store's outside relationships and handling related admin
Controlling day to day store operations and assessing and improving store performance
Organising safety self checks on stores and goods

Ways in

Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Applied Japanese (570206). Vocational major 570206 Applied Japanese (应用日语), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Applied Korean (570204). Vocational major 570204 Applied Korean (应用韩语), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Business Japanese (570205). Vocational major 570205 Business Japanese (商务日语), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Rural E-commerce (530705). Vocational major 530705 Rural E-commerce (农村电子商务), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Agricultural Products E-commerce Operations; Social E-commerce Operations; Livestream E-commerce; E-commerce Data Analysis; Agricultural Products Supply Chain and Brand Management.; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Small Business Entrepreneurship and Operations (530604). Vocational major 530604 Small Business Entrepreneurship and Operations (中小企业创业与经营), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Business Arabic (770208). Vocational major 770208 Business Arabic (商务阿拉伯语), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Business English (770201). Vocational major 770201 Business English (商务英语), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Business German (770203). Vocational major 770203 Business German (商务德语), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向).

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥57,600 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥42,100 to CN¥84,700. One in ten earn less than CN¥33,100 and one in ten more than CN¥131,300.
This is the figure for the mid group Wholesale and Retail Services Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥73,597 a year (2025), middle half CN¥53,459 to CN¥109,272.
This is the figure for the minor group Salespeople, not for this job alone.
Generative AI could change some tasks in this job, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Wholesale and Retail Services Workers holds 14.1% of everyone employed in China; 51.2% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
41.7% are under 35, 49.9% are 35 to 54 and 8.4% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 35 to 39.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Retail Chain Operations Manager?

Ways in include: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Applied Japanese (570206); Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Applied Korean (570204).

How much does a Retail Chain Operations Manager earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥57,600 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Wholesale and Retail Services Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥73,597 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Retail Chain Operations Manager?

Generative AI could change some tasks in this job, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026