Bookseller - Temporary

About the role

A Barnes & Noble bookstore is a gathering place for readers and the community. As a Bookseller, you are an integral member of the bookselling team at the heart of our stores. You welcome customers in a cheerful and helpful way by saying hello, answering questions, and consistently going out of your way to connect readers with the right titles and products. Equally, you are an essential part of the bookstore team in maintaining the attractive presentation of the store and in ensuring its efficient running. You help unpack and shelve deliveries and tidy our displays. You work our registers in a quick and friendly manner, ensuring our customers receive a highly professional service.

Responsibilities

• Maintain reliable and punctual attendance for scheduled shifts
• Fill scheduling gaps when able, being flexible and responsive to the needs of the store
• Approach work with a positive and willing attitude, performing assigned tasks with purpose and energy
• Support and be considerate of colleagues, going out of your way to help others on the team
• Be consistently cheerful with customers, going out of your way to help them
• Show aptitude and willingness to learn new skills and acquire new knowledge in the store
• Use varied technology, including registers, computers, tablets, programs and other tools comfortably and efficiently
• Develop strong merchandising skills to maintain book presentation and store cleanliness
• Develop effective visual merchandising skills for gifting, toys and other product categories
• Run a register competently to serve customers quickly and reliably
• Support receiving and unpacking of deliveries, and efficient, accurate shelving
• Find books and other products with ease and accuracy using personal knowledge, colleague knowledge, BookMaster and available information tools
• Support the café team willingly and effectively when needed
• Understand loss prevention procedures and de-escalation techniques, identify theft, spot and seek support for problematic behavior
• Build book knowledge across fiction, nonfiction and children's books to maintain sections and present books attractively
• Make effective book recommendations to customers throughout varied sections
• Learn to sell books in a positive way appreciated by customers, supporting key sales objectives (Monthly Picks, Book of the Year, Membership, preorders, etc.)
• Build knowledge and expertise in Educational Toys and Games, Specialty Games, Hobby and Collectibles, music and movies, and Newsstand
• Use product knowledge to maintain all sections and backstock effectively, help customers, and support key sales objectives and new releases
• Comply with all company policies and procedures

Qualifications

• Enjoy being a bookseller
• Demonstrate reliable attendance and punctuality
• Show flexibility with scheduling (store open early mornings to late evenings daily, including weekends and most holidays)
• Work well in a team environment, supporting colleagues
• Provide excellent customer service with a cheerful demeanor
• Willingness to learn and develop new skills continuously
• Ability to perform physical activities including prolonged standing, repetitive bending, lifting, and extensive walking
• May work in other stores within the cluster as needed

Skills & competencies

• Proficiency with registers, computers, tablets, and retail software (BookMaster)
• Merchandising and visual merchandising across books, gifts, toys, and specialty categories
• Cash handling and register operations
• Receiving, unpacking, and shelving accuracy
• Product knowledge development across all store categories
• Customer recommendation and sales techniques
• Loss prevention awareness and de-escalation techniques
• Cross-functional support (café, other stores in cluster)

Career progression

As you develop and demonstrate mastery of the skills outlined in this role, you are expected to advance to the next step in the career path — Senior Bookseller — where you will take on new challenges and gain further opportunities for growth.

Schedule

Store hours: early mornings to late evenings every day, including weekends and most holidays. Flexibility to fill scheduling gaps is expected.

Physical requirements

This role requires physical activity including prolonged standing, repetitive bending, lifting, and a lot of walking.

Benefits

Benefits vary based on scheduled hours per week:

• Less than 20 hours/week: Employee Discount, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Sick Pay
• 20–29.99 hours/week: Employee Discount, EAP, Sick Pay, Paid Time Off (including paid Maternity and Parental Leave), Company Paid Holidays, Transit benefits, 401(k) with Company Match
• 30 hours or more/week: Employee Discount, EAP, Sick Pay, Paid Time Off (including paid Maternity and Parental Leave), Company Paid Holidays, 401(k) with Company Match, Comprehensive Health Benefits (Medical, Dental, Vision), Healthcare and Dependent Care Spending Accounts, Healthcare Spending Account, Disability Benefits, Life Insurance, Transit, Tuition Reimbursement

All benefits provided are in accordance with the terms of the current plan and may be subject to future change. Benefits may vary depending on location/state regulations. More information can be received from the recruiter or Human Resources.