Entry-level pay for Sales Assistants typically ranges from £11–£13 per hour, with London and flagship stores paying more due to weighting and footfall. Full-time permanent roles often equate to £20,000–£25,000+ annually, rising with responsibilities like keyholding, banking, or specialist product knowledge. Expect shift patterns covering weekends, evenings, and peak retail periods; overtime and seasonal uplift are common. Career ladders include Senior Sales Assistant, Supervisor/Team Leader, Assistant Manager, Store Manager, and multi-site or Area roles. Many professionals also transition into Visual Merchandising, Buying, Customer Success, or B2B Sales. Jobwise data can surface higher-paying employers and locations, helping you target roles with the best progression and benefits.

• Customer service excellence, active listening, and problem-solving.
• Sales techniques: product knowledge, upselling, cross-selling, and add-on recommendations.
• POS and cash handling accuracy; basic numeracy and reconciliation.
• Stock handling: receiving, merchandising, replenishment, and visual standards.
• Communication, teamwork, reliability, and time management in fast-paced settings.
• Compliance: age-restricted sales training, health & safety, and basic manual handling.
• Useful credentials: Retailer Apprenticeship (Level 2/3), NVQ/SVQ in Retail, Food Hygiene Level 2 (for grocery/food), First Aid (desirable). Some roles may require right-to-work checks and, occasionally, a Basic DBS depending on the environment.
• Transferable skills: hospitality service, call-centre customer care, or cashier experience—jobwise’s AI surfaces these strengths directly from your CV.

Upload your CV and jobwise instantly parses your experience, matching you to relevant permanent vacancies by skills, location, and availability. Use powerful filters to refine by pay, shifts, commute time, and benefits, then save searches and set alerts so you never miss an opportunity. Track applications in your dashboard and get recommendations that improve as you interact with roles.

• Reliable income, predictable scheduling, and access to staff benefits and discounts.
• Clear progression routes into supervisory and management roles across retail and sales.
• Transferable customer and sales skills that open doors across industries.
• jobwise’s AI ensures you see matching roles first, reducing time-to-apply and missed opportunities.