A DAY IN THE LIFE OF...
MARC LANNOY-TRIGG, RETAIL MANAGER, SURE
Getting up at about 7.00 a.m., the first thing I do is drink a coffee to spur me into action.
I like to get to work around 8.00 a.m., so I have time to prepare before my colleagues arrive for our daily team meeting. We talk about anything affecting customers - latest offers or perhaps questions customers are asking - so all in the team are up to speed. We open the Sure store at 9.00 a.m. and as there are usually customers from the moment the doors open, so any thoughts I may have had about catching up on admin quickly disappear!
SOME QUESTIONS FOR MARC:
Question: What do you do to unwind at the end of a long day? Answer: My wife and I like to go walking, a good walk really clears the mind and offers us a chance to catch up. There are days when I prefer to get out on my bike and escape the hustle and bustle of town. You can’t beat a 30 mile ride for putting a tough day behind you!
Question: What do you like most about being a Retail Manager? Answer: My colleagues and our customers! I’m lucky to have a great team who are committed to delivering excellent customer service which makes me proud to be their manager. The store is an important part of Sure and being the manager helps me meet some fantastic people and make a difference in the company.
Question: What do you most dislike about being a Retail Manager? Answer: Some days are tough because of the sheer number of people visiting the store. However, no matter how hard it gets, all it takes is one happy customer to make you feel good again.
Question: How did you become a Retail Manager? Answer: I started with Sure as a Sales Advisor and after six months, there was an opportunity to become Assistant Manager. I certainly didn’t expect to be offered the role of Manager two years later, but it really was a natural progression.
Question: What advice would you give someone either just starting their career or midway through their career who wants to be a Retail Manager? Answer: Look at how other managers work - much of what I know now is gathered from my past managers and a fair bit of common sense. As a manager, you have staff that report to you and it is important to look after their needs and make sure they have the tools for the job. Ultimately, a manager is nothing without a good team.
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Lots of management tasks, such as reporting on sales figures and customer satisfaction surveys, handling any personnel requirements like staffing rotas or recruitment and of course the inevitable paperwork, need to be completed throughout the day. My Assistant Manager and I therefore alternate our time serving customers in the shop with shifts in the office. The administration has to be done but I always prefer speaking with customers and helping them make the right choices, so I’ll spend as much time on the shop floor as possible.
I often eat at my desk in the office because the store can be very busy. The busiest period is between 11.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. but we can get busy at any time, so we all have to be flexible. In our new King Street store, we’ve introduced a system that reduces queues and there are interactive screens where customers can ‘self-serve’ if they wish. This is good for both staff and our customers and is a great improvement from our previous premises.
The shop closes at 5.30 p.m. but the last customers of the day don’t usually leave until a bit later, so I try to close up as close to 5.45 p.m. as possible.
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