Retail Management Trainee Review

My placement year at Marks and Spencer was great, I was given a lot of responsibility and many opportunities during my time there. There were so many areas to progress in and was a great opportunity to identify my strenghts and weaknesses setting me up for a career after university.

I felt valued by all collegues in my store. They welcomed me from day 1 and could not have done enough to help me through my year. Whenever I needed anything they were ready to guide me through it.

The managers within my store were a great support. They taught me many things which I will take into my final year at uni and my future career. There willingness to help and guide you was something I will always remember.

I was always busy during my time in store, particularly during peak and new launches in clothing. This gave me a great outlook on just how much work is involved in the retail sector. As well as doing hands on tasks I was also involved in a lot of hearings, paperwork analysing and general tasks which allowed me to gain a better feel from where all the messages came from.

I was given responsibility from Day 1, after a few months I was put in charge of launching the Sparks card for the store, organising rotas, training my store team in how to use the card and setting up major events. I also played a big part while in womenswear setting up the store early morning and working nightshifts for launch and stock take.

My time at Marks and Spencer is completely invaluable and is something I have already taken into my academic work so far this year. I hope to base my dissertation on the organisation and know I will take a different outlook when referencing in university as I now have a real life example of situations that occur in the work place. I can not thank M&S enough for that.

Very busy and pressured enviornment however it gives you a buzz as everyone is so passionate.

The work placement was very well organised with different training days and modules occuring throughout the year.

The organisation invested a lot in me giving me responsibility and trusting me with key events such as launch and Sparks. There training days were also really valuable and has set me up for the furture.

The cost of living for myself was not too bad, i live at home however the train fair in every day was costly at almost £15 per return journey.