Senior VM Assistant

Job Introduction

We are recruiting for a Senior VM Assistant to join the team in our Trafford store.

This is a key role within the store VM team, playing a vital part in supporting & delivering our high profile VM proposition.

This person will drive world class VM in their areas, supporting the deliverance of excellence daily with a hands on approach.

Covering volume to luxury in all their areas, this role supports the VM manager and business, as well as brands, contractors & suppliers. 

Role Responsibility

Overall

• Understands the disciplines required to effectively & efficiently deliver best practice across the store
• Supports the VM Manager with weekly team meetings, holding regular floor walks, briefing the team & checking that brief has been done
• Ensures time is spent with each team member on a regular basis

Managing internal relationships & communications

• A good communicator, who understands the need to build relationships & maintain consistently good communication with their key partners & stakeholders in their area
• Able to influence their peers and team to obtain the correct results for the store 
• The ability to listen
• The ability to pitch to their audience (can communicate in different ways to different people

Excellent project management

• Understands a brief & how to develop it into a practical solution that is deliverable both within budget & time-frame
• Can consistently deliver clear, thorough & prompt communications
• Understands budget constraints

Excellent product handling

• Knows how to handle product on fixtures to its best advantage
• Can present product to suit different needs

Great prop & VM kit handling & dressing

• Proven track record working with different styles of VM kit
• Can deliver different styles of dressing & styling
• Can style to suit a scheme

Good understanding of product/brand adjacencies, fixturing layout & customer flow

• Knows what works across a generic mat and which brands sit better next to each other

Being part of a team

• Being a good team member, meaning the ability to take direction & be flexible in their ways of working
• Attends meetings, feeds back to their line manager, updates their line manager regularly & consistently
• Communicates well upwards & downwards

The Ideal Candidate

  Person Specification

  Qualifications/Training

• You’ll need proven experience and be established in a similar VM role
• A Creative/Art background would be an advantage

  Experience

• You should have a proven ability in both merchandising and mannequin styling
• And experience in coaching/training and rolling out guidelines

  Technical Skills

• Excellent planning and organising skills
• A Creative understanding and the ability to translate this into practical solutions
• Project management skills and the ability to juggle different projects simultaneously
• The ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment

  Personal Attributes/Behavioural Skills

• Good communication skills and the ability to connect with different levels of the business;
• The ability to inspire those around you.

About the Company

Our vision is to be the destination for the most extraordinary customer experience, and our people are central to achieving this.  Team members across our business maintain our vision through the values we live day-to-day and the unique Selfridges spirit we bring to every project.

Just as we create an extraordinary experience for our customers, we are dedicated to making Selfridges an exciting, inspiring and fun place to work. Being part of the Selfridges community offers many opportunities and unique experiences. As Harry Gordon Selfridge once said, ‘There’s no fun like work!’

Selfridges