OVERVIEW

The Center for Retailing Studies is committed to preparing students with business aptitude for careers in the retailing industry. Further, we strive to provide for the retailing industry well-prepared business students energized to begin retail careers. While typical academic departments educate students in one major discipline, the Center is unique in that its goal is to inform students about all the opportunities in an entire industry.

Retailing is big business. Retailers employ about 15 million people in the US alone, nearly 12% of all jobs in the country. Annual revenues now approach $4 trillion. Career opportunities exist for anyone who can play a role in bringing a product to life and then delivering it to a customer. Computer scientists, buyers, industrial distributors, merchandisers, advertisers, engineers, and managers are just a handful of the kinds of people needed to run retail businesses.

A career in retailing is not limited to store management and merchandising. Many successful retailing executives find their careers thrive and expand as they crossover between different fields within the retailing industry.

Here are a few of the satisfying careers in retailing:

• Accounting and Credit Services
• Advertising and Sales Promotion
• Buying/Merchandising
• Distribution and Logistics
• E-commerce
• Financial Planning
• Human Resources
• Information Technology
• Inventory Management and Loss Prevention
• Operations
• Product Development
• Real Estate and Lease Management
• Store Management
• Store Planning and Design
• Visual Merchandising