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The differences between visual merchandising managers and counter managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a visual merchandising manager and a counter manager. Additionally, a visual merchandising manager has an average salary of $97,250, which is higher than the $42,396 average annual salary of a counter manager.
The top three skills for a visual merchandising manager include customer service, POS and store operations. The most important skills for a counter manager are cleanliness, store management, and fragrance.
| Visual Merchandising Manager | Counter Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $97,250 | $42,396 |
| Hourly rate | $46.75 | $20.38 |
| Growth rate | 10% | - |
| Number of jobs | 23,486 | 32,169 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A visual merchandising manager is responsible for facilitating the arrangement of visual displays to attract customers to purchase the products. Visual merchandising managers monitor the sales performance of the store and develop effective merchandise strategies to boost revenues and increase profitability. They also assist in creating promotional events and discount offers, as well as designing the store's layout during special occasions. A visual merchandising manager must have excellent leadership and communication skills, especially on guiding the staff's performance and implementing techniques to maximize productivity.
A counter manager is a person who leads a team of employees in the retail departments of bakeries, cosmetics, and delis. Counter managers take both administrative and leadership responsibilities. They support managers in procedure enforcement, customer relations, and staff communication. It is their job to oversee service management and keep track of the inventory. Among other duties, they tend to include employee recruitment and training, goal setup, conflict resolution, corporate finance, and budgeting.
Visual merchandising managers and counter managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Visual Merchandising Manager | Counter Manager | |
| Average salary | $97,250 | $42,396 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $139,000 | Between $29,000 And $61,000 |
| Highest paying City | Bridgeport, CT | - |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | - |
| Best paying company | Meta | - |
| Best paying industry | Retail | - |
There are a few differences between a visual merchandising manager and a counter manager in terms of educational background:
| Visual Merchandising Manager | Counter Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Specialized Sales And Merchandising | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi |
Here are the differences between visual merchandising managers' and counter managers' demographics:
| Visual Merchandising Manager | Counter Manager | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 31.7% Female, 68.3% | Male, 15.1% Female, 84.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.0% Asian, 7.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 6.9% White, 61.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |