Highest Paying Retail Jobs
Retail as an industry is considered one of the biggest employers in the U.S. , and provides a good entry point for many people starting their careers, as well as temporary jobs between jobs for a lot of us.
While the common reporting on retail jobs usually represents store-based roles, and hence reports low paying jobs in general, retail as an industry in itself has some of the most fulfilling career options, with high paying jobs across the different functions, from operations, to buying and merchandising.
Many of the people who start at entry level store jobs grow within the industry very fast, if they have the passion and right business skills and acumen. In this article, we are going to list some of the highest paying retail jobs, including store-based role.
1. Luxury Retail Sales Associates
Luxury brands require a certain set of soft skills to deliver their brand experience to their customers through clienteling, and so they are ready to pay for the right profile that has those skills.
What Retail Stores Pay The Most Per Hour?
Luxury retailers have the highest rate per hour for store-based roles. For example, the average salary for a retail sales associate at Chanel is $40/hr, Cartier $25/hr, Louis Vuitton $23/hr and Gucci $21/hr.
Highest Paying Luxury Retail Sales Jobs
| Employer | Average Salary (hourly) |
|---|---|
| Chanel | $40 |
| Cartier | $25 |
| Tiffany & Co. | $25 |
| LVMH | $23 |
| Gucci | $21 |
2. Big Box Retail Store Manager
Store manager salaries depend on the size and turnover of the stores they are operating, with a national average salary of $68,216.
The bigger the store and the higher the turnover, the higher the store manager salary.
Some of the bigger stores call a person in this role a General Manager rather than a Store Manager. This is because, typically at such high volume of sales and big size of a team, the job is more of a general management of a business unit, with more responsibilities and requirements of higher leadership skills.
Such a role would also be managing a team of managers, with each one responsible for their respective departments and teams.
See Also: Walmart Management Structure
According to Walmart a Store Manager can earn between $65,000 and $170,000, and the average wage for this job in 2021 was $210,000, which makes it rank as one of the highest paying retail jobs that are store-based.
Highest Paying Store Manager Jobs
| Employer | Average Store Manager Salary (annual) |
|---|---|
| Target | $112,852 |
| Nordstrom | $109,149 |
| Macy's | $107,298 |
| The Home Depot | $103,301 |
| Lowe's Home Improvement | $102,609 |
| DICK's Sporting Goods | $97,470 |
| Pet Smart | $82,833 |
| Bed Bath & Beyond | $81,083 |
| Kroger | $79,095 |
| Michaels | $78,736 |
| H&M | $76,597 |
| Victoria's Secret | $75,058 |
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3. Buyer
Buying is one of the most important retail functions, and every big retailer recognizes that.
Buyers directly affect the top line and bottom line of the business through their choice of merchandise, and so retail companies are ready to invest in hiring good buyers.
While the national average salary for a Buyer is $63,198, this salary quickly jumps to six figures at many big retailers.
Highest Paying Buyer Jobs
| Employer | Average Buyer Salary (annual) |
|---|---|
| Nordstrom | $127,653 |
| Macy's | $121,700 |
| Ross Stores | $115,753 |
| Bloomingdale's | $106,823 |
| Sears | $105,713 |
| Target | $104,778 |
4. Merchandise Planner
Merchandise planners work hand in hand with buyers to bring the right merchandise in the right quantities, to deliver the sales targets of the business.
So, just like buyers, merchandise planners are extremely important to the retail organization, because they work out all the numbers, factor in all the trends, and give the buyers the purchasing budget to buy with. Because their job is so critical, it is one of the highest paying retail jobs.
The average salary for a Merchandise Planner is $84,885, and at many retailers this figure exceeds $100K.
Highest Paying Merchandise Planner Jobs
| Employer | Average Merchandise Planner Salary (annual) |
|---|---|
| Saks Fifth Avenue | $127,685 |
| Macy's | $116,439 |
| J.C. Penny | $114,996 |
| Victoria's Secret | $108,120 |
| Tommy Hilfiger | $107,492 |
| Bath & Body Works | $105,613 |
| Sephora | $103,470 |
| Bed Bath & Beyond | $101,304 |
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5. Category Manager
A lot of big box retailers like grocery chains and ecommerce giants like Amazon divide the business into categories and put a category manager on top of each category to manage it end-to-end.
Read Also: Category Management
Because Category Managers are essentially business unit managers, with full responsibility of the top-line and bottom line of their respective categories, this role is one of the highest paying retail jobs.
The average salary for a Category Manager is $93,792, and many retailers pay more than $100,000 for this job.
Highest Paying Category Manager Jobs
| Employer | Average Category Manager Salary (annual) |
|---|---|
| CVS Health | $126,242 |
| Walgreens | $119,545 |
| Walmart | $116,211 |
| Staples | $113,528 |
| Amazon | $112,248 |
| 7-Eleven | $110,838 |
| OfficeMax | $104,895 |
| Whole Foods Market | $101,794 |
6. Retail Recruiter
Unlike recruitment in other industries, retail recruitment is a very demanding job. The talent acquisition team at big retail companies are constantly hiring in mass for new store openings, and to fill store roles that get vacant.
That’s why the salary of a retail recruiter is typically higher than the average salary for this job.
For example, while the national average salary for a recruiter is $52657, we have found that at many retail companies the salaries range from $70K and goes beyond $100K at some retailers.
| Employer | Average Recruiter Salary (annual) |
|---|---|
| J.C. Penny | $106,053 |
| Whole Foods Market | $101,794 |
| Starbucks | $95,032 |
| Whole Foods Market | $81,724 |
| Target | $80,150 |
| Staples | $78,586 |
| Nike | $78,323 |
| CVS Health | $73,563 |
Resources
Retailer & Founder of Retail Dogma, Inc.
Rasha has 14 years of retail & ecommerce experience. She has started an ecommerce business in 2008, and later worked at H&M, Bath & Body Works, Victoria’s Secret and Landmark Group. She’s lived in 4 different countries, speaks 3 different languages and holds a BSc in Pharmaceutical Sciences and an MBA in Strategic Management & Marketing.