Retail Pathways Blog Series Roundup
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In response to the report we released in September, “Retail’s Opportunity: Exploring the Industry’s Impact on People and Places,” with the generous support of the Walmart Foundation, retail workers expressed that the evidence in our report backs up their lived retail experiences. They also suggested we continue to collect stories and share data about people in retail careers, and elevate how gained skills can be useful in other industries and in life in general.
Our Retail Pathways blog series in November shared five stories about how the retail industry proved to be a great stepping stone on the pathway to success. Here is a roundup of those blog posts:
- Retail helped me become a more effective manager: “Retail gave me my deep understanding of how beneficial good customer service is to the bottom line, both personally and for the company.”
- All jobs are important to the fabric of our economy: “I can’t think of another career that teaches you the soft skills that retail does. Working retail helped me understand the importance of employee morale, appreciating others for their hard work, and being extremely organized.”
- Retail can shape the groundwork for a fruitful vocation in any field: “The customer service training I attended more than ten years ago is at the foundation of my work ethic and experience.”
- How retail helped me plan for the future: “In addition to the financial support and lessons, my job was a place where I felt valued and could contribute in different ways than in school. I had something on the line there and that changed my life.”
- From Apple to Universal Orlando Resort: “You never know when your moment of opportunity will present itself – mine came in a way I never would have imagined.”
Because the retail industry sits in an unrivaled position of influence to expand economic opportunity for millions of American workers, we hope to release a second edition with additional research and indicators. We also want to continue to share stories — if you worked in retail and it had an impact on your career and you’d like to share your story, we’d love to hear about it!
Opportunity Nation
Opportunity Nation is a bipartisan, national campaign comprised of more than 350 cross-sector organizations working together to expand economic mobility and close the opportunity gap in America. Opportunity Nation envisions the United States as a nation where everyone – regardless of where they were born – has equal access to opportunity, economic mobility, and success at all stages of life.
