- What should your retail cover letter include?
- What can you write in the introduction of your cover letter?
- What should be mentioned in the cover letter body for a retail job opening?
- How to write a cover letter closing
Advance your retail career with our definitive guide to composing a compelling cover letter. We’ll deliver key insights on describing your customer service and sales skills, combined with strategic advice to align your expertise with the specific needs of prospective employers. Discover how to present yourself as the results-driven retail professional that will advance a company’s profits.
Looking to make your mark in retail? Retail offers a diverse range of opportunities in a dynamic and fast-paced work environment. There’s also additional perks like flexible working and plenty of advancement opportunities, so it makes sense that this is an attractive sector to many people. If you’re looking to secure plum retail opportunities and get ahead of the competition, having a stand out cover letter is vital.
In this cover letter guide, along with the corresponding retail cover letter example, we’ll look at how to draft a cover letter that can get you interviews, including:
What should your retail cover letter include?
What can you write in the introduction of the cover letter
What information can you give in the body of the cover letter
How to write a cover letter closing
What should your retail cover letter include?
Much like a profitable retail store, your cover letter should be organized, results-focused, and professional. This brief (one page) letter should explain what makes you the best person for the job, with focus on your specific area of retail expertise, combined with your stellar communication and customer service skills.
Typically, your cover letter will include your contact information, details of the organization you are applying to, and a greeting. Following this, you’ll need a compelling introduction to hook the reader, one or two paragraphs describing your most relevant experience and achievements, and finally, a strong closing paragraph. We’ll go over these elements in detail in the following paragraphs.
What can you write in the introduction of your cover letter?
Hiring managers are often swamped with job applications. A strong intro can help set you apart from the competition, making it more likely that the recruiter will read on to learn more about your skills, retail experience, and accomplishments.
Highlight your unique blend of experience gained in the retail sector, whether that involves working in areas such as retail management, customer service, merchandising, or e-commerce. You’ll also want to confirm the position you’re applying for, how you heard about the role, and your commitment to being successful in the role if appointed.
Dear Ralph Lee:
As an accomplished Senior Retail Manager, I was pleased to find Bloomingdales’s opening for a Senior Retail Manager in my search for a new retail management challenge. Eager to learn more about this exciting opportunity, I have enclosed my resume for your review.
What should be mentioned in the cover letter body for a retail job opening?
The body of the retail cover letter is where you expand on your skills and experience as well as allow your achievements to shine. Check the job description for the key responsibilities and objectives of the role so that you can align your relevant experience with these requirements.
An effective approach is to create a paragraph which provides a synopsis of your most recent and relevant role and a notable achievement. Follow this with a bullet-pointed list of four or five broad accomplishments achieved in your career to date. When creating the main body section is useful to ask the following questions:
Why you. Provide a snapshot of your retail background that outlines the scope and scale of your retail experience, details of your core responsibilities in your most recent role, and a standout achievement. Just make sure this information is relevant to the role you’re applying for. Your cover letter should have a heavy focus on achievements in the retail world. Winning awards, boosting sales, improving customer satisfaction, reducing costs, or establishing top-performing teams will all be of great interest to recruiters. Make sure to include quantifiable information where you can.
Why here. Whether you’re targeting a niche retail store or a major multinational, addressing why you’re passionate about working there will really resonate with the hiring manager. Conduct background research so you can find out more about the organization’s vision, mission, and values, then communicate what really resonates with you via your cover letter.
Why now. What has prompted you to make this move in your retail career? Are you looking to take a step up to a management role? Perhaps you’ve always had a love for retail and are looking to get a foot in the door via an entry-level role. Either way, communicating your career objectives and backstory via your cover letter will allow your personality to shine through.
Get more in-depth advice in our blog: Discover the best way to mention skills in a cover letter
- Use the job description as a guide when creating your retail cover letter. Tick the boxes of essential requirements.
- Carefully proofread your cover letter to eliminate any typos or grammatical errors.
- Forget to sprinkle your soft skills across your cover letter, centering on trustworthiness, communication, and teamwork.
- Copy and paste information from your retail resume to your cover letter. Keep it fresh.
As indicated in my resume, I offer a background of significant success in retail management operations within the Alpine / Action Sports and Outdoor Sports & Fashion sectors. Presently, I am a Store Manager for three retail locations with Vail Resorts. In this role, I am accountable for all aspects of sales and management team leadership, operations, marketing and finances. Prior to this, I launched and managed a successful $1M+ Action Sports Retail business, Hoyal, Inc.
Examples of my broad accomplishments include:
Boosting Vail Resorts’ EBITDA substantially by decreasing shrinkage and labor.
Securing high retention scores in a Vail Resorts company survey by building a highly motivated, tight-knit sales and retail team.
Building my Hoyal, Inc. business from the ground up, including developing all aspects of business infrastructure, sales and marketing, branding and visual merchandising strategies.
Designing and overseeing all aspects of new retail space design, construction, staffing and training, and quickly building new retail stores to achieve high profitability levels.
In me, Bloomingdales will gain a bottom-line focused, customer-driven retail management professional with the drive, dedication and people management skills required to successfully fill the role of Senior Retail Manager. As such, I would welcome the opportunity to meet in person and discuss this opening in detail. Also, I am available to travel and relocate in your service.
How to write a cover letter closing
Wrap up your retail cover letter with a strong closing section. Be confident and enthusiastic and include a call to action to encourage the hiring manager to get in touch. A closing composed of one or two sentences is fine. Here’s some inspiration:
Reinforce the value you will bring to the retailer. This should demonstrate what you can offer the company. “In me, (Company Name) will gain a bottom-line focused, customer-driven retail manager with the drive, dedication, and people management skills required to succeed.”
Include a Call to Action. Encourage them to take your application to the next stage in the hiring process. “Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you soon.”
Looking to create a cover letter for an internal position? Learn more here: Cover letter for an internal position
Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you!
Sincerely,
Allison Keller
If you’re looking to progress in your retail career, check out Career.io’s pathway to promotion. Build a clear roadmap to promotion, access tools and strategies, and secure the salary you deserve.
