Retail Interview Questions & Answers

First was a phone interview which was questions about work experience and why I wanted the job. Then I had a branch interview to meet with the team of the branch I'd be working in and the manager there to see if I liked it and if they'd get on with me. After that I had the assessment centre which was from 9 until about 3. There were 7 of us there, 4 for the grad scheme and 3 for internships. The area manager of the area I'd applied for was there and took me for all of my different assessments. First was a group exercise where we all had a project to pitch and a budget so we had to choose between everyone's projects. Second we had to do a day in the life of a manager so had a load of sheets with different information and had to make a schedule for the branch for the day. Then we had a one-to-one interview with the manager about situational role-play to see how we'd interact with customers and if we had the people skills required. Finally it was just an interview about why we wanted the job, and a chance to ask questions about the role and the company. It was a really informal assessment centre and everyone was really approachable. They gave really good feedback on performance too, followed up by more feedback in the call offering the job.

The most difficult questions on the phone were about relevant experience as I'd never done anything similar before. I just highlighted transferable skills and tried to make experiences relevant. In the assessment centre the day in the life of task seemed to be difficult for everyone but I did it in about 15 minutes and was told it was a really good way of doing things. I think there's a variety of challenges that depend on all different skills so you just need to be ready to adapt quickly and turn things to your advantage.

Have a list of skills and experience written down for your phone interview so you have something to answer with in the situational questions. Be friendly and approachable, they're laid back and want people that fit in personality-wise not just academics. They really value social skills.

The first task was the group exercise. We had 30 minutes to pitch our case and argue it to the group. Once decided, the group had to nominate spokespeople to take the decision to the managers who questioned the decisions and asked us to justify them. I was nominated as spokes person but it wasn't too intimidating. They just look for people who get involved without talking over other people.
The day in the life of task was about 30 minutes then once you'd made the schedule you had to present it to the manager and justify it, along with get asked questions which may indicate flaws that you hadnt thought of in the plan.
The interviews and role plays were quite informal and they gave really good feedback.

I had numerous interviews during the process. The first was a phone interview, competency based. The standard 'give me a time when you've had to make a decisive decision' etc. Also a commercial question, such as why did I think halfords had offices based overseas. Once successful, you're invited to their assessment centre based in their support office in Redditch. There was a 5 minute 'get to know you' introduction at the beginning, very informal, nice way to start the day.

This was followed by an icebreaker where we broke off into 2 teams, we had to build the tallest tower with the materials given, highest tower wins. Chance to demonstrate your team working skills.

We then had speed interviews with 6 assessors, 10 minutes each. All competency based so prepare well and you'll be fine. A few tricky ones which I've listed in another sectiosection.

Then we had had to a presentation, this was communicated before hand so practice it and you'll do fine.

Next was role play exercise, again described in another section further along.

The day concluded with a group exercise to pitch a pit stop to the store (assessors acting as store colleagues)

If you had a newspaper advert, what 6 things would it say?
What would your colleagues criticise about you?

Do your research on the company, think of areas you think they could improve to pitch during your interview, this will show initiative. Think about why you really want the job, why Halfords? Why retail? There was a big focus on this so make sure you get it right. There were 24 of us in the assessment centre split into 2 sessions, 4 of us were chosen for the final interview. Be confident, be yourself and most importantly have fun!

Ice breaker - Given a bunch of materials and had to make the tallest tower against the other group. Speed interviews - 5 seseparate interviews with the assessors, 10 minutes each, all competency based. Role play - approaching a customer in the store and helping establish their needs, also involved a bit of conflict resolution. Group exercise - formulate a 'Pit-Stop', we were given a few pages of information about the store and it's sales then had to come up with a team talk to communicate this with the store.

I had a phone interview where I was asked questions mostly regarding why I was interested in the company and sector. Be sure you know your answers beforehand - depth is better than breadth! I had a very solid idea of why I wanted to work for M&S, and was very passionate when I talked about it. Remember to be specific e.g. I talked about the conservation and sustainability schemes that M&S have, which makes them very unique in the field.

Having no experience in the sector, it was difficult to express why I decided that I wanted to work in retail, and why now. This was especially considering that I had not only applied to the retail field. However, I was very clear on why I wanted to work within retail.

Make sure you know why you applied for the job, and make sure you are very well aware of what is expected of you if and when you get the job. There is no point trying hard to get a job if you hate it once you get it.

Know why you are applying, make a list of the competencies and examples of when you have demonstrated each, and do your research on the company! M&S is a great company to work for, with a solid brand and very clear morals. Know them and love them!

There were four parts to the assessment centre. One group task with two parts, both discussing a decision you had to give input to. The first part was allocating new personnel to different departments over the Christmas period while also managing current staff to work on improvements based on feedback. The second part was to choose a charity to support for the year. Make sure your reasoning is heard and your opinion is clear, but do also let others speak. Remember that you are not competing for time. Saying nothing and speaking too much are equally unattractive traits. Remember to watch the time and guide the discussion towards a solution - if the group is straying, bring the conversation back on topic. The answer you come up with is not important at all - the process is what they are looking at.

The second task was a presentation; this is tough, because you are expected to be confident despite having no experience in the particular situation. Again, the answer you come up with does not matter. They are recruiting based on potential, not knowledge. They will teach you what you need to know. You just need to demonstrate that you can understand written data (you will be given an information pack full of statistics and graphs to prepare), reason well and present clearly. You should also be able to answer any follow up questions. Do remember that you have to speak for about 10 minutes! Though better to speak for 8 minutes and get your point across well, than ramble for 15!

The third task was a role play exercise. Here you are given a situation that could occur in the workplace, and you have to perform a certain task - e.g. for us it was giving an employee an appraisal and asking them to perform a task they are not eager to do. Remember to stay in role, commit 100% to the task, and make sure you do not just read off the paper! They will tell you what you should communicate to the employee, but do not just tell them bluntly. Tactful communication is very important in your role.

The final part was the interview. I have to say, for me this was by far the easiest part! Remember that they do not expect you to be the perfect package - if there is anything you don't know, just say so and tell them that you'd be eager to learn. They want you to be passionate about the company and committed to learning. They will ask you about certain competencies that you will require for the job, and will ask you to give an example of when you demonstrated each one. If you do your research and think of examples beforehand, you should not have a problem with this part. Remember also to show a bit of your personality - as long as you are appropriate, there is nothing wrong with a big of humour. Build rapport with your interviewer, and do ask all the questions you have - after all, they've gone through the process and sat in your seat before, too! And a lot of them have very interesting stories about the process. Do make sure you do not ask any questions that you could easily find on the website! That is an absolute faux-pas.

I received an email in December 2014 from Aldi telling me I was successful with their initial CV check, and was asked to attend a group interview with their at their North-West headquarters in Neston. I arrived with plenty of time to spare and slowly more and more people filtered into the waiting room. Eventually the twelve of us were invited through into a board room - very corporate looking - and we sat round a table waiting for our interviewer, who ended up being their managing director of that region.

When he arrived he seemed relatively laid back and informal. He began by asking us to go round, each briefly telling him our name, where we are at university (if we were), when our degree will be completed, and to explain in 30 seconds why we had applied for this role. This seemed simple enough, giving us an opportunity to speak directly with him, and I found the more relaxed speakers came across the best. Some people seemed very wooden and rehearsed which was surprising.

After this brief introduction he explained that this would be not be a conventional assessment centre, and the interview would proceed with him asking some questions about the company, before giving us a chance to ask questions and invoke discussion.

He asked simple things like the history of the company, whether it is privately or publicly owned, how the company is split (Aldi North and Aldi South), and about the produce they supply to the customers, etc. These question were fairly simple for those who had done their research, but it also meant that those who weren't sure on some answers weren't caught out given they were open questions to the group, and plenty of people were fighting to get their voices heard.

This took 45 minutes to an hour, before asking if we had any questions. He explained that this was a tough job and we need to ask our questions now so each person can assess whether Aldi is right for them, as well as whether they are right for Aldi. This process took another hour (so 2 hours in total) and those people who were calm, collected and asked good, honest questions appeared to be the most applicable for the job.

I heard back within a few weeks and was asked back for a second, 1-on-1 interview with the same manager. This process began, however, with a 15 minute assessment on basic mathematical reasoning, verbal reasoning and logical deduction. For example there were questions which followed the structure 'in a museum, if exhibition A is on a floor above exhibition B, and exhibition C is above exhibition D, but C is below A, and if exhibition E was moved from above B to below C, then what exhibition is on the 4th level?' They were basic questions, and if one used a piece of scrap paper then all the questions were deducible and answerable.

I was then lead upstairs to the interview room and met with the managing director once again. This interview was more personal, and it felt somewhat relaxed as he simply wanted to get to know me. He began by asking me to run him from the age of 0 up to the age of 21. So this was easy, telling him about my family, where I grew up, went to school, etc. Adding in relevant things about my work experience, etc.

He would ask question as I went through, and asked me questions at the end. None about the company, just personal questions which were easy to answer. Once again he finished by asking if I had any questions for him. There was an emphasis on making sure I knew everything I needed to know, so ask as many questions as you can think of!

I received an email the next day telling me I had been unsuccessful, but they declined to give any feedback which seemed odd given I had met this man twice already.

Overall the interview process was wide-ranging, giving you and them the best chance to get to know each other.

No classic interview questions.

Simple business questions like 'Why might it be better to be a privately owned business than a publicly owned one?'

The position appeals to a lot of people for the money and the perks, but as I reached the latter stages of the process I realised the job may only suit a select few. So go ahead with the process but be aware that the position at the end of it will be extremely hard work, and don't expect to have your hand held. I realised when I was eventually rejected that I was relieved.

The company is all about efficiency, and that is what you ought to expect; an efficient, corporate organisation. This may not suit everybody.

The assessment centre was termed an 'assessment centre', but in fact it was a basic question and answer scenario; not at all what I was expecting.

A very relaxed atmosphere with me and one other person asking questions.
The questions were to do with times you have shown certain qualities. You must provide examples which, then show that the example worked. For example customer support, I have called people asking for them to send data in, then to prove I was successful in my task you say that you received the data.
I was asked 'why marks and spencers?'

The most difficult question in my opinion was 'What other organisation do you feel is on par with M&S, and why?' I wasn't sure how to answer it. Do you quickly say a company, answering the question too honestly? Take your time, but still be name a company? Or say there is none?

There is no right answer, but it was certainly one that I wasn't sure how to answer 'correctly'.

Research the interview questions! I found them online.
Be positive in the role play.
Make decent notes for your presentation.
And make sure you fit in well within the other candidates.

Be calm. They were very nice. I hate assessments, but this couldn't have gone smoother. They provided food, drinks, gave you a tour of a store nearby etc.

Group Discussion- Everyone in my group was very nice. I was very nervous going into the day, but this certainly calmed me down. The task was to go through a pack for 15mins, in the pack was information on a fictitious company, closely resembling M&S. You were told the store had a few issues, and that it was nearing christmas and that you had an extra 30 staff you had to choose where to put them. Also for CSR you needed to pick a charity out of a possible 4.
This was all very easy and was not about being right or wrong, but how you work in a team. MAKE SURE YOU LET PEOPLE TALK, AND TALK YOURSELF! NOD, SMILE AND COME TO A MUTUAL DECISION.

Then was the presentation. You had an hour to read another pack, on the same pretend company closely resembling M&S. You could make changes to the store, but you were told a new christmas range was coming in, and you had to set it up etc. This was very easy in ways, BUT, watch your time! The hour seems like a minute! You present to one person. It is not daunting, but you do have 10 minutes! And it feels like an hour.... Make sure you have all your points on one sheet!

Then was a role play. You were given 10mins to read a pack, understand the situation, then get into character... A worker in the store comes in, isn't happy he has been called in, is a little negative, quiet, etc. You must tell him that he is to re-design the womens range layout, and you must give him his feedback. Be motivational, but make sure he knows you are the boss. I felt I may have been too stern.... oops

Then the interview. The easier part! I know myself, and so interviews are fine! I don't know pretend store workers and companies, so those can be challenging. Just make sure you look up all possible questions, have an answer for them, smile and be polite. Thats all.