How to become a sales and retail assistant

Official title: Sales and retail assistants

Also called: Assistant, Retail staff, Sales adviser, Retail worker, Shop assistant, Dairy assistant, Kiosk assistant, Naafi assistant, Sales assistant, Staff assistant, Store assistant, Sales associate

Sales and retail assistants demonstrate and sell a variety of goods and services in shops, stores, showrooms and similar establishments.

Main tasks

• Discusses customer requirements, including type and price range of goods/services desired
• Advises customer on selection, purchase, use and care of merchandise and quotes prices, discounts and delivery times
• Advises customer making major purchase on credit terms and arranges finance as appropriate
• Receives full or partial payment, checks validity of form of payment, writes or prints bill, receipt or docket and packages merchandise for customer
• Arranges and replenishes goods on display stands, undertakes stock checks and assists with the receipt of deliveries from suppliers into the stock room
• Handles returns and deals with customer complaints

How to become one

No minimum academic qualifications are required although some employers may require GCSEs/S grades. Training is typically provided on-the-job. Vocational qualifications in Retail Operations and relevant apprenticeships are available at various levels.

Ways in

• Apprenticeship (England): Retailer (level 2). England. Typically 14 months. Skills England standard ST0327.

Pay · Outlook

• Median full-time pay: £25,056 a year The middle half earn £21,970 to £29,846.
• About 1,219,200 people work in this job now, and about 1,159,600 are projected by 2035. (-4.9%)

Related jobs

• Retail cashiers and check-out operators
• Telephone salespersons
• Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants
• Vehicle and parts salespersons and advisers

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Questions people ask

How do I become a sales and retail assistant?

No minimum academic qualifications are required although some employers may require GCSEs/S grades. Training is typically provided on-the-job. Vocational qualifications in Retail Operations and relevant apprenticeships are available at various levels.

How much does a sales and retail assistant earn in the UK?

Median full-time pay is £25,056 a year (Office for National Statistics). The middle half earn £21,970 to £29,846.

Is a sales and retail assistant a growing career in the UK?

Employment is projected to fall 5% by 2035, from about 1,219,200 to about 1,159,600 people (Department for Education).

Do you need a degree to become a sales and retail assistant?

Usually not. Only 20% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Ways in include: Retailer (level 2).

Sources

• Office for National Statistics: Annual Population Survey: employment by occupation (April 2025 to March 2026), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
• Office for National Statistics: SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions (2026-08-27 edition), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
• Department for Education: Skills Imperative 2035: employment projections by occupation (2021 to 2035 (Warwick IER / Cambridge Econometrics)), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
• Office for National Statistics: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14 (2025 provisional), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03

Updated 2026-10-03