At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead visual merchandising across 20 showrooms, ensuring brand consistency and customer engagement.
- Company: Join Oak Furnitureland, a leader in stylish interiors with a customer-first approach.
- Benefits: Enjoy employee discounts, life assurance, 25 days holiday, and a company van.
- Other info: Dynamic role with opportunities for creativity and professional growth.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on showroom aesthetics while travelling and exploring the South East.
- Qualifications: Experience in visual merchandising and strong DIY skills are essential.
The predicted salary is between 30000 - 40000 £ per year.
We’re looking for a field based Divisional Visual Manager to ensure our Oak Furnitureland brand look and feel is maintained consistently across our showrooms in the South East.
The role is for 12 months, on a fixed term maternity cover contract.
Working in a fast-paced environment our DVM understands that the customer is at the heart of everything we do.
Serious about interiors & style, they have an unwavering attention to detail and deep understanding of our customer market.
In this field based role you’ll be provided with a van, fuel card and will be travelling to showrooms in the South East region.
The role is Monday to Friday but there will be some overnight stays (around 1 a week).
An ideal candidate will be located within these areas; South Ruislip, Thurrock, Tunbridge Wells, Dartford or Orpington but it's not essential.
Key Responsibilities
- Responsible for the visual presentation of circa 20 showrooms.
Equal time must be spent at all the showrooms, with overnight stays planned in where necessary to facilitate this focus in line with business activity.
- Build strong working relationships with the Divisional Sales Manager (DSM) as well as Showroom Managers & Colleagues to ensure commercial and visual priorities are aligned.
- Regularly review the performance of each of your showrooms, make recommendations to improve the layout of the store in response to sales.
- Collaborative approach to product updates and implementation requirements with retail colleagues within the showrooms, following Health & Safety guidelines for manual handling of large and heavy products in showrooms.
- Manage display product implementation across the division, working with and feeding back proactively and efficiently with central commercial and retail teams.
- Responsible for keeping up to date with Health and Safety/Manual Handling training.
- Line manage Display Assistant on a day-to-day basis, help plan new ranges in store as well planning workload for range moves and store maintenance.
- Ensure Display Assistant maintains our in-house systems (damaged displays & replacement ordering) with accurate records kept and correct central departments informed.
- Ensure Display Assistant maintains the quality of display stock look and feel to a premium showroom standard.
- Manage budgets and costs within agreed spend.
- Responsible for visual consistency in showrooms, following brand styling guidelines and ranging principles.
A creative thinker, able to interpret VM brand guidelines and adapt them to fit each showroom.
- Take the new range information from the CCM and ensure digital floor plans are accurate & always kept up to date for every showroom for all product launches.
These must be sent back to CCM for final approval.
- Responsible for booking hotels with company preferred partner and within agreed budgets.
- Foster close working relationship with VM Manager, Creative Concept Manager and other DVMs being committed to improving the sales and brand perception through effective Visual Merchandising in your showrooms.
- Confident in positioning furniture, accessories, and props to reflect customer profiles.
- Continually improve the visual Merchandising standards and presentation of showrooms by understanding competitor developments within the furniture sector and beyond.
Skills & experience
- Previous experience as a Visual Merchandiser in retail is required.
- Experienced & confident in all aspects of DIY including the use of power tools and ability to decorate to a high standard.
- Exceptional eye for detail, confident in planning space requirements via digital floor plans, and physical merchandising for consistent product implementation.
- Essential IT skills include Excel, Google Sheets & Illustrator.
- Space planning & Sketchup knowledge is an advantage.
- Great communication skills in both verbal and written format.
- Able to demonstrate commercial awareness alongside visual flair, understanding and interpreting data to drive the overall sales performance of showrooms.
- Physically fit, role requires the need to be able to lift and move furniture (with another person).
- Be a role model advocating and demonstrating professional behaviours while challenging effectively and holding yourself and others to account in relation to embedding OFL’s ‘Customer First’ Principles and values.
- Develops a feedback culture by providing feedback, asking for feedback, and always encouraging best practices.
- Exceptional interpersonal skills, with the ability to build successful professional relationships with stakeholders at all levels.
- Happy to work to own initiative, put forward ideas and translate those into actions.
- Highly organised with an analytical commercial approach to problem solving with a strong can‑do attitude.
Benefits
- Employee discount: amazing discounts available on all Oak Furnitureland products after successful completion of probation
- Life assurance: free cover of a minimum of two times your annual salary up to the age of 65
- 25 days holiday plus bank holidays
- Birthday: an additional day off for you to celebrate your birthday
- Pension: 4% employee contribution matched by the company
- Health and wellbeing: great discounts on local gym memberships
- Employee Assistance Programme: gives all employees access to both telephone and face-to-face counselling services
- My Rewards Programme: offers discounts on everything from restaurants and supermarkets, to entertainment and holidays
- Company van and fuel card provided
- Premier Inn card to pay for overnight stays including meal allowance Phone allowance
- #J-18808-Ljbffr
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Divisional Visual Merchandising Manager -South East in Ruislip
✨Get Your Foot in the Door Early
In retail, many temporary roles pop up during peak seasons, like Christmas or summer sales. Keep an eye on the calendars for these spikes and start scouting for opportunities a bit in advance. We can even help you stay sharp on your search!
✨Utilise Local Connections
Visit local shops in person and chat with managers about potential temporary openings. Many retail positions are filled by word-of-mouth, so don’t underestimate the power of a good conversation while you grab a coffee or do your weekly shopping!
✨Show Off Your Availability
Retail managers love flexibility! Make sure to highlight your availability in a casual chat or when you apply through our website. The more open you are to work varied shifts, the more likely they are to bring you on board—especially for temporary gigs!
✨Be Ready for On-the-Spot Interviews
When you walk into a shop, be prepared for the possibility of an on-the-spot interview. Dress comfortably but smartly, have a few key points about your experience ready, and be enthusiastic. Remember, it’s all about making that positive first impression!
We think you need these skills to ace Divisional Visual Merchandising Manager -South East in Ruislip
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Customer Service Skills:In retail, customer service is key! Make sure your CV highlights any relevant experience you've got, whether it’s casual jobs or volunteer work. Employers want to see that you can interact well with customers, so think about any instances where you've gone the extra mile to help someone out.
Flexibility Is Your Best Friend:Since this is a temporary position, you should emphasise your flexibility in your application. Mention your availability clearly in your cover letter and CV—employers love knowing they can rely on you to work varied hours, especially during busy periods!
Keep It Short and Sweet:For temporary roles, we don’t need an essay! Keep your CV and cover letter concise, focusing on the most relevant experiences and skills. Highlight any specific retail achievements, like sales targets met or product knowledge that demonstrates your eagerness to dive straight in.
Tailor Your Application to Oak Furnitureland:Don’t forget to personalise your application for Oak Furnitureland! Take a look at their values and product range, and if you’ve had previous experience with similar brands, mention that. It shows you’re genuinely interested in the role and have a good understanding of what they do.
How to prepare for a job interview at Oak Furnitureland
✨Show Off Your Customer Service Skills
In retail, it's all about customer interaction, so be ready to share examples of how you've handled tough customer situations. We recommend thinking through a couple of scenarios before the interview where you went above and beyond to help a customer, as these can really make you stand out.
✨Brush Up on Product Knowledge
Temporary roles often have a steep learning curve because you'll need to pick up product knowledge fast. Take some time to familiarise yourself with the main products or services that Oak Furnitureland offers, and if possible, try to understand their current promotions. It’ll give you the edge to engage customers effectively.
✨Flexibility is Key
Being in a temporary retail role means you may need to adapt quickly to different tasks or shifts. Be prepared to highlight your flexibility and willingness to take on varied responsibilities during the interview. Think of examples where you've had to juggle multiple tasks at once – that’ll show you're a great fit for the dynamic retail environment.
✨Demonstrate Team Spirit
Since retail roles often require collaboration, be ready to showcase your teamwork skills. Share experiences where you worked well with colleagues, especially in fast-paced situations. This will underline your ability to slot into the team at Oak Furnitureland and contribute positively during your temporary stint.
