How to hire a merchandising specialist

How to hire a merchandising specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step merchandising specialist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a merchandising specialist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new merchandising specialist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a merchandising specialist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the merchandising specialist you need to hire. Certain merchandising specialist roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A merchandising specialist's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, merchandising specialists from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of merchandising specialists and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Merchandising Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Merchandising Specialist		$10-22
   Display Coordinator	A display coordinator manages and oversees the visual presentation of products and services. Despite having different responsibilities depending on their organization or industry of employment, it usually involves conducting market research and analyses, developing and implementing plans, communicating and negotiating with internal and external parties to secure supplies, and spearheading various events such as exhibits and shows... Show more	$12-33
   Retail Coverage Merchandiser	A retail coverage merchandiser is responsible for assisting store customers by responding to their inquiries and concerns about a product, directing them to the correct area of their needs, and recommending items according to their requests. Retail coverage merchandisers ensure that the shelves are accurately filled and maintained... Show more	$11-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Customer Service
   • Sales Floor
   • Cash Handling
   • Cleanliness
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Ladders
   • Product Knowledge
   • Work Ethic
   • Store Associates
   • GEO
   • Retail Store
   • Stock Room
   • Store Management
   • Store Merchandise

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Work within OPEX budget to achieve company goals.
   • Manage the products for service companies in Kroger stores, PoG, doing resets.
   • Manage the distribution of POS items as assigned to the region to create brand affinity.
   • Verify and manage data for the weekly store ads which includes UPC verification, item description and ad pricing.
   • Lead seasonal consolidation/re-assortment of own consignment estate jewelry to strengthen merchandise productivity by door.
   • Check in drop shipments, truck shipments, and GEO shuttles.

   More merchandising specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the merchandising specialist job description is a good way to get more applicants. A merchandising specialist salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a merchandising specialist in South Carolina may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level merchandising specialist. Additionally, a merchandising specialist with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average merchandising specialist salary

   $15.83hourly

   $32,920 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level merchandising specialist salary

   $22,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 17, 2026

   Average merchandising specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$45,128	$22
   2	New York	$41,250	$20
   3	Maine	$40,388	$19
   4	Washington	$39,763	$19
   5	Massachusetts	$37,673	$18
   6	Oregon	$36,796	$18
   7	Nevada	$35,721	$17
   8	Illinois	$35,190	$17
   9	Ohio	$34,970	$17
   10	Pennsylvania	$34,890	$17
   11	Minnesota	$34,349	$17
   12	Wisconsin	$34,170	$16
   13	Michigan	$33,143	$16
   14	Colorado	$33,004	$16
   15	Iowa	$32,614	$16
   16	North Carolina	$31,817	$15
   17	Missouri	$30,943	$15
   18	Kansas	$29,964	$14
   19	Texas	$29,748	$14
   20	Georgia	$29,513	$14

   Average merchandising specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Apple	$46,670	$22.44	17
   2	Other World Computing	$42,663	$20.51
   3	Zoro	$42,457	$20.41
   4	United Natural Foods	$41,844	$20.12	6
   5	ALDI USA	$41,055	$19.74
   6	Affinity Group Holding Inc	$38,120	$18.33	4
   7	Vera Bradley	$38,023	$18.28
   8	Clover Food Lab	$36,984	$17.78
   9	The Mosaic Company	$36,833	$17.71	2
   10	Anheuser-Busch	$36,595	$17.59	17
   11	Green Mountain Coffee Roasters	$36,516	$17.56
   12	SWFcontract	$36,120	$17.37	1
   13	Target	$35,993	$17.30	47
   14	Gap Inc.	$35,806	$17.21
   15	Nintendo	$35,651	$17.14	1
   16	Michael Kors	$35,636	$17.13
   17	Yaamava' Resort & Casino	$35,515	$17.07
   18	Empire Cat	$35,189	$16.92
   19	AmerisourceBergen	$35,170	$16.91
   20	Summer Classics	$35,012	$16.83

4. Writing a merchandising specialist job description

   A merchandising specialist job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a merchandising specialist job description:

   Merchandising specialist job description example

   Are you looking for a way to challenge yourself and build your digital merchandising skills?
   
   Groupon is an experiences marketplace that brings people more ways to get the most out of their city or wherever they may be. By enabling real-time mobile commerce across local businesses, live events and travel destinations, Groupon helps people find and discover experiences-big and small, new and familiar-that make for a full, fun and rewarding life. Groupon helps local businesses grow and strengthen customer relationships-resulting in strong, vibrant communities. Even with thousands of employees spread across multiple continents, we still maintain a culture that inspires innovation, rewards risk-taking and celebrates success.
   
   The Online Merchandising Specialist will focus on experience strategy and planning, developing and executing merchandising campaigns to drive revenue and repeat visits for multiple business channels and across varying platforms. You will own supply-focused merchandising and be responsible for knowledge of all or specific lines of business to deliver a strong customer experience that delivers YOY growth. This position requires strategic thinking, a drive to get things done, strong communication and problem solving skills, confidence and an ability to self-start. The Merchandising team will work on big-picture strategies to increase overall financials but will also be responsible for reacting quickly to changing company initiatives and business trends.
   
   We're a "best of both worlds" kind of company. We're big enough to have resources and scale, but small enough that a single person has a surprising amount of autonomy and can make a meaningful impact. We're curious, fun, a little intense, and kind of obsessed with helping local businesses thrive. Does that sound like a compelling place to work?
   
   You'll spend time on the following:
   Quarterly strategy and execution, including collections, landing pages, site and mobile assets and more Understanding drivers of category growth based on but not limited to market level (coverage), deal type (PDS), seasonality, customer segment, platform engagement and conversion (mobile, site, touch) Building off YoY analysis, seasonal trends and marketplace demand Partnering with the Integrated Marketing Planning team regularly to create site and email collections and copy to drive user engagement and profitable growth, understand campaign strategies to align/create vertical cohesiveness to overall site experience, and review competitive trends, marketing & testing results Partnering with the Vertical teams regularly to bring to life the IMP aligned short-term and long-term strategies to drive top and bottom line sales Partnering with the Revenue Management team regularly to ensure merchandising plans are accurately delivering expected outputs, react to business trends with merchandising levers in real time, and align on metrics -- efforts should drive to (GP, NOB, CVR, Bounce, etc.) based on current needs of business Analyzing and actioning site analytics to create optimized customer journeys and experiences Developing landing pages to encourage customer engagement and support strategic account partnerships Working to optimize site engagement through Merchandising for seasonality + marketplace demand Planning all email landing pages and partners with email team to ensure optimization of email content and links Driving innovation to test new, creative ways to present our inventory to the consumer through messaging, landing page templates and more Contributing to large-scale campaign projects throughout the year, aligning with all partnering teams to a common goal Managing site marketing assets through back-end tools across multiple platforms Working with SEO teams on optimizing merchandising landing pages Assisting in streamlining overall operational processes and tracking best practices Pulling and reviewing weekly performance to make business and experience recommendations Occasional off hours work for site checks, critical business needs and peak season activities
   
   Competencies:
   Dealing with Ambiguity: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the total picture; isn't upset when things are up in the air; doesn't have to finish things before moving on; can comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.Drive for Results: Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully and achieve deadlines; is constantly and consistently one of the top performers; very bottom-line oriented; steadfastly pushes self and others for results.Action Oriented: Enjoys working hard; is action oriented and full of energy for the things that he/she sees as challenging; not fearful of acting with a minimum of planning; seizes more opportunities than others.
   
   We're excited about you if you have:
   3+ years of experience in Site Merchandising, Digital Marketing (Email preferred) or eCommerce4-year degree Capacity to work cohesively as a team through support, guidance and inclusion Strong and detailed organization and process skills given the highly visible output of this position Ability to pivot and problem solve quickly Thrive in dynamic, fast-paced environment Focus on analytical data-driven decision making Exceptionally strong communication skills Strategic and innovative thinker in big picture and details looking for ways to improve processes and customer experience Communicate effectively with all levels of the organization in a simple/concise manner, using data-supported logic
   Groupon's purpose is to build strong communities through thriving small businesses. To learn more about the world's largest local ecommerce marketplace, click here for the latest Groupon news. Plus, be sure to check out the values that shape our culture, guide our strategy and make our company a great place to work. And just don't take our word for it. Hear from real Groupon team members and learn more about our inclusive employee groups. If all of this sounds like something that's a great fit for you, then click apply and let's see where this takes us.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find merchandising specialists for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your merchandising specialist job on Zippia to find and recruit merchandising specialist candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting merchandising specialists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new merchandising specialist

   Once you've decided on a perfect merchandising specialist candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new merchandising specialist. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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