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How to hire an opener

Opener hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring openers in the United States:

  • In the United States, the median cost per hire an opener is $1,633.
  • It takes between 36 and 42 days to fill the average role in the US.
  • Human Resources use 15% of their expenses on recruitment on average.
  • On average, it takes around 12 weeks for a new opener to become settled and show total productivity levels at work.

How to hire an opener, step by step

To hire an opener, consider the skills and experience you are looking for in a candidate, allocate a budget for the position, and post and promote the job opening to reach potential candidates. Follow these steps to hire an opener:

Here's a step-by-step opener hiring guide:

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

What does an opener do?

Openers are those who serve as the front line of different establishments. The duties and responsibilities of these professionals include opening stores, cleaning and managing display cases, and promptly assisting customers. They are in charge of handling money on drive-thru and counter registers. It is part of their job to perform routine food service activities for operational procedures and policies. Also, they encourage professionalism, take orders and phone calls, and maintain quality communication.

Learn more about the specifics of what an opener does
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  1. Identify your hiring needs

    Before you start hiring an opener, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    Hiring the perfect opener also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

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

    Type of OpenerDescriptionHourly rate
    OpenerCashiers process payments from customers purchasing goods and services.$8-18
    Cashier/Overnight StockCashier/overnight stockers are employees usually working in a retail establishment who are given the dual role of a cashier and an overnight stocker. As cashiers, they are responsible for managing cash boxes, point of sales machines, or cash registers, scanning customers' items for checkout, getting customers' payment, providing change when needed, and ensuring that the cash register's records are accurate... Show more$12-17
    Service CashierService cashiers are employees who take charge of the cash registers in banks or any other institutions. Primarily, cashiers receive payments and issue receipts to customers... Show more$11-16
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Cleanliness
    • Good Time Management
    • Taking Care
    • Food Orders
    • Store Opening
    • Customer Service
    • Front Desk
    • Basic Math
    • Wine
    • Work Ethic
    • Food Products
    • Drive-Thru
    • Mortgage Loans
    • Loan Applications
    Check all skills
    Responsibilities:
    • Handle money on front counter and drive-thru registers.
    • Provide exceptional customer service by preparing all smoothies, juice bar, and food items in an accurate and timely manner.
    • Cashier, clean lobby work drive-thru.
    • Ensure the cleanliness of the store prior to daily openings.
    • Make sure areas and slicers are keep clean and sanitize.
    • Train new team members in FOH operations, serving, cash register.
    More opener duties
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in the opener job description is a good way to get more applicants. An opener 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 an opener in Utah may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level opener. Additionally, an opener with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

    Average opener salary

    $12.50hourly

    $26,004 yearly

    Entry-level opener salary
    $17,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 17, 2025

    Average opener salary by state

    RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
    1Massachusetts$33,846$16
    2Washington$32,751$16
    3California$32,702$16
    4Maine$31,502$15
    5New York$30,702$15
    6Oregon$29,671$14
    7Colorado$28,867$14
    8Illinois$28,595$14
    9Arizona$28,095$14
    10Pennsylvania$27,367$13
    11Oklahoma$27,138$13
    12Ohio$27,128$13
    13Indiana$25,793$12
    14Kansas$23,837$11
    15Virginia$23,826$11
    16West Virginia$23,676$11
    17Missouri$23,369$11
    18Wyoming$23,325$11
    19South Carolina$23,294$11
    20Tennessee$23,253$11

    Average opener salary by company

    RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rateJob openings
    1Google$60,161$28.9230
    2Ernst & Young$47,807$22.98
    3Columbia University in the City of New York$44,027$21.17
    4Alfa Laval$39,563$19.02
    5Peet's Coffee$36,659$17.62
    6Bausch + Lomb$36,653$17.62
    7Avery Dennison$34,765$16.71
    8Amphenol$34,451$16.562
    9Chicago Public Schools$34,228$16.463
    10Worthington Industries$34,082$16.39
    11Amazon$33,875$16.29
    12University of Washington$33,597$16.15
    13Boston College$33,508$16.111
    14Univ Of Colorado-Colorado Spgs$33,312$16.02
    15Briggs & Stratton$33,245$15.98
    16Encore Wire$33,150$15.94
    17University of Nebraska System$32,966$15.85
    18Dexter$32,897$15.82
    19Centralia College$32,882$15.81
    20CPI Card Group$32,776$15.76
  4. Writing an opener job description

    An opener 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 an opener job description:

    Opener job description example

    over 50 lbs

    on a regular basis

    Reaching and/or lifting overhead

    on a regular basis

    Climbing

    stairs

    Repetitive hand/finger movement

    on a regular basis

    Grasping/grabbing with hands

    on a regular basis

    Pushing and Pulling

    on a regular basis

    Expectations General Expectations

    Devote himself/herself to insuring satisfaction to customers.

    Determine management, production and quality requirements by asking questions and listening.

    Attend company meetings as required.

    Maintain a follow-up system that encourages follow through with assigned projects.

    Establish personal performance goals that are consistent with company standards of productivity and devise a strategy to meet those goals.

    Review and analyze actions at the end of each day, week, month, and year to determine how to better utilize time and plans more effectively.

    Understand the terminology of the business and keep abreast of technology changes in products and services.

    Know, understand and abide by the federal, state and local requirements which govern the company’s business.

    Follow lawful directions from supervisors.

    Understand and follow work rules and procedures.

    Participate in performance management.

    Interact well with others and be a positive influence on employee morale.

    Uphold the company’s non-disclosure and confidentiality policies and agreements.

    Work evening, weekend and holiday work hours as required.

    Job-Specific Expectations

    Take and fill orders for service technicians promptly and efficiently, helping service technicians as needed to determine which parts and accessories are required for each job.

    Communicate with the service technicians to verify that your department is meeting their parts and accessories requirements.

    Make suggestions when appropriate regarding specific parts and accessories that may be needed for each job.

    Provide information regarding the associated cost of parts required on repair orders.

    Inform service personnel when back ordered or special order parts are received.

    Accept and follow through on lawful directions from supervisors.

    Be polite and friendly, greet customers promptly and deliver exceptional customer service.

    Actively seek and obtain a thorough knowledge of parts history, merchandise and automobile service. Be able to communicate this knowledge.

    Work with the parts and accessories manager and aid in reaching set goals for profitability and sales of parts and accessories.

    Work with multiple customers at once if needed while still providing individual customer satisfaction.

    Keep customer mailing lists up to date.

    Work with customers to determine parts and accessories needs and explore merchandise in catalogues. Draw attention to any new merchandise, specials, and sales, as well as suggest supplementary products that may supplement the customer’s initial purchase.

    Conduct telephone transactions courteously and promptly. Inform customers and dealership staff when appropriate regarding any new merchandise, specials and sales.

    Deal with customer complaints in a sensible manner by showing empathy and a pleasant attitude to show our commitment to excellent customer service and to increase customer satisfaction and loyalty.

    Be precise in all cash register transactions, taking accurate credit card and cash payments for purchases.

    In accepting delivery of and processing merchandise from distributors, verify merchandise according to purchase invoice and record merchandise into inventory. Prepare the product for presentation on the showroom floor.

    Make sure that the merchandise displays are dusted, clean, fully stocked, and appealing to customers.

    Become proficient and familiar with computer systems necessary for parts and accessories management.

    Periodically carry out physical inventory of merchandise.

    Deliver parts to customers as required.

    Make sure that the work areas in the parts department are kept clean and that there are no safety issues that go unremedied.

    This job description is in addition to the Glenwood Springs Subaru, Inc. Employee Manual and the employee is expected to abide by the requirements set forth in both. This is not necessarily an exhaustive list of responsibilities, skills, duties, requirements, efforts or working conditions of the job. While this list is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, the Dealership reserves the right to revise the functions and duties of the job or to require that additional or different tasks be performed when circumstances change (i.e. emergencies, changes in personnel, work load, rush jobs or technological developments).

    Your continued employment with Glenwood Springs Subaru, Inc. is based on mutual consent. You have the right to end your employment relationship with Glenwood Springs Subaru, Inc. at any time for any reason. Similarly, the employment of an employee can be terminated at the sole discretion of Glenwood Springs Subaru, Inc. for any reason at any time. It should also be understood that no supervisor or representative of Glenwood Springs Subaru, Inc. other than the Dealer or General Manager has the authority to enter into an agreement for employment for any specified period of time or to make any promises or commitments contrary to the terms stated above. Furthermore, any employment agreement entered into by the Dealer or General Manager shall not be enforceable unless it is in writing.

    I have carefully read and understand the contents of this job description. I understand the responsibilities, requirements and duties expected of me. I also understand that this job description does not constitute a contract of employment nor alter my status as an at-will employee. I have the right to terminate my employment at any time for any reason and the Dealership has a similar right.

  5. Post your job

    There are various strategies that you can use to find the right opener for your business:

    • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
    • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
    • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
    • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.
    Post your job online:
    • Post your opener job on Zippia to find and attract quality opener candidates.
    • Use niche websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
    • Post a job on free websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    Recruiting openers 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. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

    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 opener

    Once you've selected the best opener candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

    It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

    To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is 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.)
    Sign up to download full list

How much does it cost to hire an opener?

There are different types of costs for hiring openers. One-time cost per hire for the recruitment process. Ongoing costs include employee salary, training, onboarding, benefits, insurance, and equipment. It is essential to consider all of these costs when evaluating hiring a new opener employee.

The median annual salary for openers is $26,004 in the US. However, the cost of opener hiring can vary a lot depending on location. Additionally, hiring an opener for contract work or on a per-project basis typically costs between $8 and $18 an hour.

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