Job Description:
We are looking for booksellers who are enthusiastic about books and can share their passion with customers. We prefer library or prior bookstore experience. This bookseller will spend most of their time on the sales floor helping readers connect with their next literary journey and at the bookseller workstation working on receiving books, organizing books, processing returns, shipping books. and special projects like the Children’s Story-time, Author Events, Book Festival, Weekly Newsletter, Book-of-the-Month club and day-to-day operational tasks. The job requires that the bookseller help the store run efficiently and provide extraordinary customer service–to include some barista assistance duties. The goal is that this bookseller will move up within the year and assist our general manager with running the store as a whole. Previous leadership experience is a plus.
Responsibilities:
*Creating marketing plans for specific titles based on sales data and author interviews scheduled for specific dates. *Coordinating with publishers about upcoming titles and author appearances to promote new books. *Answering questions about specific titles or authors for customers who are looking for something new to read. *Performing clerical tasks such as restocking shelves, ordering new inventory, and accepting deliveries from publishers or vendors. *Maintaining records of inventory levels and ordering new inventory as needed. *Keeping track of customer purchases and recommending other titles they might enjoy based on their interests. *Providing customer service by helping customers find what they are looking for in the store or online website, recommending books based on their interests, and processing returns of unsold books at the end of each month. *Aid customers in locating books within our inventory, as well as special ordering books not currently in-stock. *Greet and establish a rapport with customers, answering questions, engaging in conversations about our store, inventory, services and community initiatives. *Complete customer sales as a cashier in a fast and kind manner. *Assist in ordering and receiving inventory, shelving books and merchandising sidelines. *Maintain store appearance. Examples: Straightening/alphabetizing shelves, setting/maintaining displays, routine maintenance (vacuuming, dusting, windows, etc.) *Support our core beliefs of shopping local/independent, providing great customer service and acting as a resource for literacy in our community. *Work the sales floor engaging customers and providing helpful information or recommendations. *Manage all in-store inquiries and order special requested books. *Stock shelves neatly and take inventory per store schedule. *Manage the events@ emails and replies. Reply to all messages in a timely manner. *Receive new books and log them into the system in a timely manner. *Fulfill special order and monthly book subscriptions. *Contribute to the weekly newsletter. *Contribute occasionally to the social media content. *Generate local partnership ideas and creative marketing strategies to contribute to book sales. *Provide general store cleaning that could include: vacuuming, sweeping, mopping, and dusting and straightening shelves, displays, and register areas. *Execute merchandising standards, promotion standards, creating displays, etc. *Fill-in for other personnel during breaks, lunch, vacation or peak seasonal periods, including barista register operations, shipping/receiving, textbooks, and various departments throughout the store. *Train new team members FT/PT and seasonal team members on bookselling processes and procedures. *Ensure team members follow company and store policies, procedures and standards. *Ensure the proper merchandising standards, promotion standards, & creating displays. *Receive, verify and unload orders as necessary. *Check invoices against purchase orders and credit memos against charge-backs to ensure accuracy. *Compile data for end-of-month reporting on what books are good sellers and not. *Greet customers, answer phones and provide information, direct callers and resolve escalated issues. *Maintain a hassle free customer service culture, focus on solutions-based selling and an exceptional customer experience.
Skills Required:
- Knowledge of books: Booksellers should have a thorough knowledge of the books Baldwin & Co. sell. This includes knowing the author, genre, subject matter and any other information that may be relevant to a customer’s needs. Booksellers should be able to make recommendations to customers and help them find the right book.
Customer service: Customer service skills are essential for booksellers, as they interact with customers on a daily basis. Customer service involves providing customers with the information they need, answering their questions and resolving any issues they may have. Booksellers must develop a positive reputation as a bookseller and encourage customers to return to your store.
Organization: As a bookseller, you are responsible for keeping track of inventory, maintaining a clean work space and keeping track of customer information. Bookseller must have strong organization skills to complete tasks efficiently and keep the work area tidy.
Computer skills: Booksellers must possess strong computer skills to enter customer information, process sales and complete other tasks. Booksellers must also use computer skills to research books, order books, track books and other products to recommend to customers.
Ability to work as part of a team: Booksellers often work with other employees in the store, including managers, baristas and other booksellers. Booksellers must work as part of a team, which means being able to communicate effectively with others, respecting the roles of others and being willing to help others when needed.
Customer Service
- One of the most important aspects of a bookseller's position is the ability to provide excellent customer service. Customers look to booksellers to provide information on books that they are interested in, as well as to direct them toward new books that align with their reading preferences. A customer may come to you with questions about the functionality of our audio books and the process of downloading our audio books to their device. As a bookseller, you should always be friendly and approachable when on the sales floor. It may be necessary for you to be able to help more than one customer at a time during busy periods. Make sure that you treat each customer with respect and maintain a knowledgeable and positive attitude.
Sales
- Sales is a large part of the job of a bookseller. You are required to assist customers with purchasing books through the use of a standard cash register or electronic point-of-sale device. Booksellers must have a thorough knowledge of not only the books in the store, but also upcoming unreleased books and be able to inform customers of all of their options. You will also need to use a computer to order items online or check the store's stock for a specific title. Booksellers will be called upon to assist with a large bulk order, such as for a school or corporate client, that involves ordering books from a specific publisher/wholesaler and arranging delivery between the wholesaler and the customer.
Displays and Stock
- As a bookseller, you are responsible for the maintenance of all book areas in the store, including cleaning, arranging, stocking and displays. Maintaining the stock of all book areas is important so that customers can easily find what they are looking for without asking you to go look in the back storage area for the item. As stock on the sales floor depletes, you should locate, unpack and restock the shelves in your area. Booksellers are also called upon to create visual displays using their area's books to draw customer attention, such as creating displays for new releases. Booksellers should pay attention to top selling titles and maintain stock of top selling titles.
Deliveries and Returns
- Baldwin & Co. will receive deliveries of new merchandise on a regular basis–almost daily. Booksellers assist in the receipt of new merchandise by checking new arrivals against an order sheet and shipping manifest to ensure that the items ordered are the ones received. A bookseller will also store the excess stock off of the sales floor where it cannot be accessed by customers, but remains easily accessible in the podcast studio. It may also be necessary to process returns for books that are not sold within a certain time frame. Booksellers process these returns by cataloging the books to be returned to the publisher, and packing and arranging them for return shipment.
Qualifications:
*Associate's Degree or equivalent is preferred *Previous customer service experience required *Library or bookstore experience preferred *General Computer Skills required *Ability to organize and prioritize workload *Effective verbal and written communication *Friendly and engaging personality *Ability to stand for long periods of time and lift boxes of books *Ability to work a minimum of 4 days per week.
Reporting Structure:
*Owner *General Manager *Food & Beverage Manager | Book Manager *Shift Lead *Barista | Bookseller
Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:
This is a part-time position that does not include tips with an estimated 25 to 35 hours per week. Days and hours will vary to include evening and weekend work according to business needs. Flexibility in schedule is required. Full-time will be available within the year.
Physical Demands:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. The key physical requirements of this position include the ability to walk and stand for an extended period of time, reaching, bending, stooping, being able to lift up to 50 pounds, and the use of standard audio/video and specialized audio/video equipment.
Other Duties:
Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
Available shifts and compensation: We have available shifts all days of the week. Compensation is $11.00 - $15.00/hour.
About Baldwin & Co.: Baldwin & Co. is looking for an individual to join our team. Our ideal candidate is self-driven, motivated and trustworthy.
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