Online Sales Boom Leads to New Job Opportunities

For a long time now we’ve all known that our high street is in decline. The first memorable retail outlet to fall was Woolworths back in 2009, and  since then we’ve lost a whole host of recognisable names from our shopping centres and high streets. Companies like HMV, Jessops and Blockbusters are the most recent to fall, calling in the administrators and cutting more than 10,000 jobs!

But what is the cause – is it the recession, the high rates of unemployment and lack of disposable income? We know that 20% of people are surviving on less than what is now being deemed the living wage,  but there might be another reason contributing to the decline of the high street.

Just because we aren’t shopping on the high street, doesn’t mean we aren’t shopping…

There is strong evidence to suggest that many of our high street shops are suffering because of their leading online competitors. Whilst HMV and Blockbusters were going under, many of us were signing up to media download services such as Netflix, LoveFilm and iTunes. And let’s not forget the favourite online stores Amazon and Ebay, helping us scour the internet for the best prices on everything from fashion to electronics, making it much easier and more cost effective than visiting a high street shop like Comet.

When one door closes…

So although it’s reported that we should expect in excess of 50,000 jobs and 5,000 stores to be lost from our high streets, we must remember that many of our online retailers are expanding, moving to larger premises and taking on new staff to cope with their additional demand.

Tesco, the biggest supermarket chain in the UK, with stores in 14 countries as well as a huge online presence, is flourishing in the recession. They have ‘benefited from a strong online performance… with an online food sales growth of 18%’ and as a result they have opened their 5^th depot dedicated entirely to fulfilling online orders. The new dotcom store, which has opened in Crawley, has created 700 new jobs, from warehouse operative to drivers and managers.

But it’s not just the giants of the high street that are thriving in the marketplace – many smaller businesses are experiencing unprecedented growth as a result of booming internet sales! Online retailer WAE+ has had a record first year in business, beginning with just two staff and expanding to more than 30, they have forecast another 50% increase in staff as they move into new, larger warehousing premises to accommodate their higher stock levels. They almost doubled their sales figures for December 2012 with 11,000 customer orders up from just 6,000 in December 2011.

What does this mean for the UK job market?

Well, with online sales booming, the next logical step for jobseekers and those made redundant from high street retail is to move into online retail.

Amazon – one of the biggest online retailers in the world – created jobs for over 1000 new staff at their new warehouse in Rugeley at the end of 2012, and plan to create 2000 more over the next two years to cope with the increase in demand. Nestle have created a further 300 positions at their factory in South Derbyshire – a move they largely accredit to consumers ‘adapting to the tough economic climate by changing the way they shop’ particularly in relation to online sales. And Ocado, an entirely internet based grocery store, plan to employ another 1000 staff over the coming months as a result of their positive annual results.

Unfortunately this shift in the types of jobs available will inevitably mean that many people don’t yet have the skills to simply switch jobs. Front of house and customer service roles will always be needed but many sales assistants may have to search for work in the warehousing sector – meaning they will need a new skill set.

Warehousing Job Opportunities

Jobs such as forklift truck operatives and warehousing technicians require certain training before they can be undertaken safely and legally, and with so many out of work, it is a very tough market to compete in.

One of the best ways potential employees can improve their chances of transferring between sectors and taking advantage of the online sales boom is to undertake training, such as general health and safety training or forklift training, to make them more desirable to employers.

Funded Training

The only benefit of being out of work is that many companies, like Health and Safety Training Ltd, can provide forklift training to the unemployed for free as the government fund many courses to help get people into work.

They work with the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) and local colleges to provide a range of NVQ courses, as well as shorter safety courses, including:

• Forklift training
• MEWP training
• Rough terrain training
• Abrasive wheels training
• Manual handling training

So although more and more of our favourite shops are set to disappear from our streets, it’s not all bad news. With some alternative training many of those facing an uncertain future in retail, can side step into a new career as the online sales boom continues to grow, creating a whole host of new job opportunities.