How to hire a store team leader

How to hire a store team leader, step by step

Here's a step-by-step store team leader hiring guide:

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

What does a store team leader do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your store team leader job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a store team leader for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

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   Hiring the perfect store team leader 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.

   Here's a comparison of store team leader salaries for various roles:

   Type of Store Team Leader	Description	Hourly rate
   Store Team Leader		$12-23
   Shift Supervisor	Shift supervisors are responsible for the employees assigned to the shift that they are handling. Shift supervisors ensure that the employees who were expected to report to work at the specific shift came in... Show more	$12-21
   Co-Manager	A co-manager's role is to supervise business operations and perform administrative tasks as support to a manager. One of the primary functions of a co-manager is to delegate tasks of team members and arrange schedules... Show more	$16-57

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Logistics
   • Customer Satisfaction
   • Inventory Control
   • Store Leadership
   • Sales Floor
   • Develop Team
   • Employee Engagement
   • KPI
   • Store Sales
   • Store Management
   • Store Associates
   • Loss Prevention
   • Cleanliness
   • Store Inventory

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage POS, payroll and scheduling systems to control store expenses and manage resources.
   • Assist store leadership in effectively leading, managing and developing store and/or department operations and associates to maximize sales and profitability.
   • Conduct monthly audits to ensure OSHA compliance.
   • Complete OSHA work injury forms and logs.
   • Place groceries in bags after the cashier scans the items.
   • Utilize 10 key and math skills to enter inventory into counting equipment.

   More store team leader duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your store team leader job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A store team leader salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, store team leaders' average salary in ohio is 36% less than in district of columbia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level store team leaders earn 45% less than senior-level store team leaders.
   • Certifications. A store team leader with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a store team leader's salary.

   Average store team leader salary

   $37,200yearly

   $17.88 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level store team leader salary

   $27,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 19, 2026

   Average store team leader salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Colorado	$48,992	$24
   2	New Jersey	$44,467	$21
   3	Rhode Island	$44,310	$21
   4	Minnesota	$44,072	$21
   5	Connecticut	$42,733	$21
   6	Wisconsin	$42,322	$20
   7	Oregon	$42,108	$20
   8	Massachusetts	$42,031	$20
   9	Oklahoma	$42,020	$20
   10	Arizona	$40,894	$20
   11	Illinois	$40,736	$20
   12	Vermont	$40,168	$19
   13	Texas	$40,119	$19
   14	Alabama	$39,818	$19
   15	Tennessee	$39,490	$19
   16	New York	$37,702	$18
   17	Virginia	$37,558	$18
   18	California	$37,142	$18
   19	New Hampshire	$36,804	$18
   20	Florida	$36,302	$17

   Average store team leader salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Price Chopper Supermarkets-Market 32	$38,496	$18.51
   2	Eastwood & Company	$38,366	$18.45	2
   3	Fresh Thyme	$38,313	$18.42	2
   4	Aki Technologies	$38,060	$18.30
   5	Store Financial	$37,863	$18.20	45
   6	Allied Universal	$37,514	$18.04
   7	Trane	$37,431	$18.00	36
   8	Club Demonstration Services	$37,323	$17.94
   9	Gordon Food Service	$37,178	$17.87	86
   10	Signature Retail Services	$37,148	$17.86	8
   11	Cabot Creamery Co-operative	$37,091	$17.83	1
   12	Yeti	$36,920	$17.75	7
   13	PLUM	$36,912	$17.75	13
   14	P&S Surgical Hospital	$36,900	$17.74	26
   15	Adidas North America Inc	$36,781	$17.68	35
   16	Festival Foods	$36,691	$17.64	43
   17	Earth Fare	$36,395	$17.50	6
   18	Austin Habitat for Humanity	$35,880	$17.25
   19	Central Missouri Community Action	$35,674	$17.15
   20	Foxtrot International	$35,301	$16.97	6

4. Writing a store team leader job description

   A job description for a store team leader role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a store team leader job description:

   Store team leader job description example

   Is shopping with your 4-legged family member a tail waggin’ good time? Do you believe carry out isn’t just about pizza, it’s for bags of kibble to? If you’re the leader of the pack and enjoy providing products and services that enrich pets’ lives, then come work in our neighborhood!

   As Assistant Store Team Leader at Pet Supplies Plus, you’re pawsitively passionate about people and their pets. Providing exceptional, neighborly service at every opportunity during your work day, you:

   · help your store team by example – including, but definitely not limited to, greeting a neighbor and their new puppy when they enter the store \ recognize the local pug rescue coordinator and offer to host the next adoption event

   · join the conversation when you hear a team member assisting a neighbor in choosing between three very good natural dog food brands

   · Support STL in analyzing your store sales results and developing plans to maximize sales, neighbor engagement and productivity

   · create a fun, positive environment for the team and your neighbors; and a reputation for neighborly, knowledgeable, trustworthy, petcentric service in your neighborhood

   …all while engaging with PSP neighbors and smiling in the face of puppy breath. Are you awesome? No, you’re more than that. You’re PAWsome.

   Assistant Store Team Leader’s key responsibilities include:

   · Assisting in the operational management of the stores

   · Adhering to operational policies and procedures (cleanliness, animal care, safety and security) that ensure exceptional service is provided to our neighbors

   · Assisting in promoting team member engagement and morale by understanding individual motivation and needs, recognizing and rewarding successful performance, and helping them achieve career goals

   · Supports STL in maintaining a fully staffed team and recruiting and onboarding for all levels in the store

   · Cultivating a learning culture by providing exceptional onboarding and development opportunities, along with coaching and feedback to team members

   · Connecting with community organizations to partner on events and marketing opportunities.

   PAWsome Assistant Store Team Leaders will have:

   · 2+ years of experience leading a retail team

   · 4-year college degree or equivalent work experience

   · Microsoft Office knowledge is a must, as well as good communication skills

   · Ability to operate all equipment – including a forklift – to run the store is important, as well as being able to climb ladders, bend, kneel, and lift up to 50 pounds (that cat litter can be heavy!)

   · Be able to work flexible schedules, have reliable transportation and must pass the drug, background and validated selection test, and be 18 years or older.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right store team leader for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with store team leaders they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit store team leaders who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your store team leader job on Zippia to find and attract quality store team leader candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as salesjobs, salesheads, allretailjobs.com, sales trax.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit store team leaders, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 store team leader

   Once you've found the store team leader candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   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.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new store team leader. 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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How much does it cost to hire a store team leader?