Bookseller - Temporary

Location: Chesapeake, VA | Classification: 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

• Use varied technology, including registers, computers, tablets, programs and other tools comfortably and efficiently.
• Develop strong merchandising skills to maintain the book presentation and cleanliness of the store.
• Develop effective visual merchandising skills to maintain the presentation in gifting, toys and other product categories.
• Run a register competently to serve customers quickly and reliably.
• Support the receiving and unpacking of deliveries, and the efficient and accurate shelving that follows.
• Find books and other products with ease and accuracy, using a combination of your own 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 and issues in the store.
• Maintain sections and present books in an interesting and attractive manner across fiction, nonfiction and children’s books.
• Make effective book recommendations to customers throughout varied sections.
• Sell books in a positive way appreciated by customers, supporting key sales objectives such as 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.
• Maintain all sections and backstock effectively, and help customers with their shopping.
• Support the success of key sales objectives, products and new releases.

All work requires physical activity including prolonged standing, repetitive bending, lifting and a lot of walking. You may work in other stores if able and needed, collaboratively supporting the wider Cluster.

Requirements

• Maintain reliable and punctual attendance for scheduled shifts.
• Fill scheduling gaps when able, being flexible and responsive to store needs — open early mornings to late evenings every day, including weekends and most holidays.
• Be positive and willing in approach to work, performing assigned tasks with purpose and energy, working hard and reliably.
• Be supportive and considerate of colleagues, going out of your way to help others on the team and showing kindness.
• Be always cheerful with customers, consistently going out of your way to help them.
• Show aptitude and willingness to learn new skills and acquire new knowledge in the store.
• Above all, show that you enjoy being a bookseller.

Skills

• Book knowledge across fiction, nonfiction and children’s categories.
• Merchandising and visual merchandising for books, gifting, toys and other product categories.
• Register operation and customer service.
• Receiving, unpacking and accurate shelving.
• Product lookup using BookMaster and information tools.
• Café support.
• Loss prevention and de-escalation techniques.
• Knowledge of Educational Toys and Games, Specialty Games, Hobby and Collectibles, music, movies and Newsstand.
• Sales techniques for key objectives (Monthly Picks, Book of the Year, Membership, preorders).

Benefits

Benefits vary by scheduled hours per week:

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

Pay

Hourly rate starting at $14.00, depending on experience, seniority, geographic locations, and other factors permitted by law.